Social Studies PACE 1108

Middle East

Mountains, plateaus, and deserts are the main geographic features here

Mediterranean

The Middle East has a predominately _____________ climate, with hot, dry summers and cool winters

Petroleum

The Middle East contains vast _________ deposits along the Persian Gulf

OPEC

Formed to help provide a regular supply of oil and stable oil prices for buyers from the United States and Europe

Languages

Arabic, Persian, and Turkish are the major _________ spoken in the Middle East, and the primary religions are Islam and Judaism

Arabs

Descendants of Abraham and Hagar through Ishmael

Jews

Descendants of Abraham and Sarah through Isaac

Cradle of Civilization

Middle East

Cyprus

Controlled by Turkey in the north and Greece in the south

Iran

Once known as Persia

Kurds

World's largest ethnic group without their own country

Rub al-Khali

Largest area of continuous sand in the world

Saudi Arabia

Largest Middle Eastern country

Wadis

Intermittent rivers that flow after a heavy rainfall

Kuwait

Includes nine islands that are mostly uninhabited

Desilination

Process used to obtain most of Kuwait's water supply

Aflaj

Ancient system of water channels used for irrigation

Mount Ararat

Highest peak in Turkey

Turkey

The apostle Paul spent much of his time ministering in ______

Arabian Peninsula

Most of the _______ _________ is an arid plateau encircled by escarpments

Persian Gulf War

Began in January 1991, after Iraqi forces invaded Kuwait

High

Both Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates have ____ per capita incomes

Qatar

A barren peninsula that juts into the Persian Gulf and includes several offshore islands

Bahrain

Archipelago consisting of 33 low islands

King Fahd Causeway

Links Bahrain and Saudi Arabia

United Arab Emirates

The second youngest country on the Arabian Peninsula; composed of seven tiny emirates

Oman

An independent sultanate that includes a point of land jutting from the Musandam Peninsula

Yemen

One of the oldest countries in the world; one of the poorest countries in the Arab world

Bab al-Mandab

Part of the shipping lane between the Mediterranean Sea and the Indian Ocean; a strait southwest of Yemen

Judaism

The oldest organized religion in the Western world

Sabbath

Lasts from sunset Friday to sunset Saturday

Yom Kippur

Jewish Day of Atonement

The Fertile Crescent

A crescent-shaped region extending from Egypt's Nile Valley north along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea and then east and south through the Tigris and Euphrates valley

Euphrates River

The most important water source in Syria

ISIS

Syria's economy has been severely damaged by the civil war that began in 2011 and by the spread of the terrorist group known as ____

Lebanon

More than 15 ethnic-religious communities are recognized by law in _______

Palestine

Includes the modern countries of Israel and Jordan

Dead Sea

The saltiest lake on Earth

Israel

The modern state of ______, which came into existence on May 14, 1948, was established as a homeland for Jews

Irrigation

Helped turned the deserts of Israel into productive agricultural land

Religion

Freedom of ________ is guaranteed by law in Israel

Proverbs 3:26

For the Lord shall be thy confidence, and shall keep thy foot from being taken