Asian & Middle-Eastern Geography and History Vocabulary

A comprehensive set of vocabulary flashcards summarizing key geographic features, cultures, and historical facts from the student’s lecture notes.

Ural Mountains

Mountain range regarded as the boundary between Europe and Asia.

Siberia

Russian region east of the Urals, dominated by tundra and taiga landscapes.

Caspian Sea

World’s largest lake; located between Europe and Asia.

Lake Baikal

Earth’s deepest and largest freshwater lake; southeastern Siberia.

Huang River (Yellow River)

Northern Chinese river; yellow silt supported China’s earliest civilization.

Chang River (Yangtze)

China’s longest river, vital for rice farming and transportation through densely populated areas.

Mesopotamia

ancient civilization area between the Tigris and Euphrates in modern Iraq.

Tigris River

One of the twin rivers of Mesopotamia flowing through present-day Iraq.

Euphrates River

southern river of Mesopotamia, pairing with the Tigris to nurture early civilizations.

Persia

Historical name for modern-day Iran.

Arabian Peninsula

Desert-dominated landmass in Southwest Asia

Mecca

Islam’s holiest city in Saudi Arabia; site of the Kaʿaba and annual pilgrimage (Hajj).

Kaʿaba

Cube-shaped shrine in Mecca that Muslims face during prayer and visit on pilgrimage.

Arabs

Largest ethnic group of the Middle East; Arabic-speaking and predominantly Muslim.

Persians (Iranians)

Farsi-speaking people of Iran

Turks

Turkic-speaking majority of Turkey, historically centered in Anatolia.

Kurds

Ethnic group spread across Turkey, Iraq, Iran, and Syria, seeking greater autonomy.

Asia Minor (Anatolia)

Peninsula comprising most of modern Turkey; bridge between Europe and Asia.

Republic of Türkiye

Modern state spanning Anatolia and Eastern Thrace, established 1923.

Israel

Jewish-majority state founded in 1948 in the eastern Mediterranean.

Palestine

Region including the West Bank and Gaza Strip; declared independence in 1988 with mostly Muslim population.

Himalayas

World’s highest mountain range, formed by the collision of the Indian and Eurasian plates.

Tibetan Plateau

High plateau north of the Himalayas

Indian Subcontinent

South Asian landmass containing India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Bhutan.

Partition of 1947

Division of British India into Hindu-majority India and Muslim-majority Pakistan.

Kashmir

Disputed territory between India and Pakistan since 1947.

Indus River

River in Pakistan that nurtured one of the world’s earliest civilizations.

Ganges River

Sacred river of Hinduism where devotees perform ritual cleansing.

Strait of Malacca

Narrow passage between the Malay Peninsula and Sumatra crucial to Indian Ocean trade.

Indonesia

Archipelagic state; largest Muslim population in the world.

Timor-Leste (East Timor)

Southeast Asian nation independent from Indonesia since 2002; predominantly Catholic.

Caucasus States

Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan; b/w the Black and Caspian Seas south of the Caucasus Mountains.

Central Asian Republics

Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan—nations that emerged after the Soviet Union’s 1991 collapse.

Turkic Languages

Language family spoken by most Central Asians, distinct from Turkish.