People in SW Asia

Who is an Arab?• 75% of people in SW Asia

• Share a culture and language—Arabic

• Not all Arabs are Muslims (religion)

• Not all live in SW Asia

Other People and Languages• Iran—Persian ethnic

group and Muslim (not Arab), large population

-speak Farsi and Arabic

• Turkey—Turks from central Asia, speak Turkish but use roman alphabet

Minority Groups • Kurds, Armenians, Greeks, and Jews

• Often persecuted —Jews and the Holocaust

• Over 25 languages

Religions of the Region• 90% Muslim – Sunni and Shiite divisions

• Christians scattered throughout

• Jews in Israel and a few in other countries

Village Farmers

• Sown land --farmable, river valleys, mountain sides, lots of irrigation

• Desalination –taking the salt out of salt water• Fertigation –watering directly to the roots of

plants

Desert Herders• Bedouins –nomads to carry goods or herd

in the desert

• Skilled at desert travel, finding water

• Way of life is dying out due to technology

Ancient Cities• Damascus, Syria –oldest occupied city in world• Istanbul, Turkey –major trading city• Baghdad, Iraq and Tehran, Iran• Jerusalem, Israel –see section on Israel