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Middle East Basic Informations:

Etymology
2> The term "Middle East" may have originated in the 1850s in the British India Office.[2] However, it became more widely known when American naval strategist Alfred Thayer Mahan used the term in 1902[3] to 'designate the area between Arabia and India'.[4][5] During this time the British and Russian Empires were vying for influence in Central Asia, a rivalry which would become known as The Great Game. Mahan realized not only the strategic importance of the region, but also of its center, the Persian Gulf.[6][7] He labeled the area surrounding the Persian Gulf as the Middle East, and said that after the Suez Canal, it was the most important passage for Britain to control in order to keep the Russians from advancing towards British India.[8] Mahan first used the term in his article "The Persian Gulf and International Relations," published in September 1902 in the National Review, a British journal. The Middle East, if I may adopt a term which I have not seen, will some day need its Malta, as well as its Gibraltar; it does not follow that either will be in the Persian Gulf. Naval force has the quality of mobility which carries with it the privilege of temporary absences; but it needs to find on every scene of operation established bases of refit, of supply, and in case of disaster, of security. The British Navy should have the facility to concentrate in force if occasion arise, about Aden, India, and the Persian Gulf.[9] Mahan's article was reprinted in The Times and followed in October by a 20 article series entitled "The Middle Eastern Question," written by Sir Ignatius Valentine Chirol. During this series, Sir Ignatius expanded the definition of Middle East to include "those regions of Asia which extend to the borders of India or command the approaches to India."[10] After the series ended in 1903, The Times removed quotation marks from subsequent uses of the term.[11] Until World War II, it was customary to refer to areas centered around Turkey and the eastern shore of the Mediterranean as the "Near East", while the "Far East" centered on China,[12] and the Middle East then meant the area from Mesopotamia to Burma, namely the area between the Near East and the Far East.[citation needed] In the late 1930s, the British established the Middle East Command, which was based in Cairo, for its military forces in the region. After that time, the term "Middle East" gained broader usage in Europe and the United States, with the Middle East Institute founded in Washington, D.C. in 1946, among other usage.[13]

Tags:Persian,Cairo,Region,Near East,Far East,Persian Gulf,India Office,American,Alfred Thayer Mahan,British,Russian Empires,Central Asia,The Great Game,Suez Canal,British India,National Review,The Times,Ignatius Valentine Chirol,India,World War Ii,Turkey,China,Mesopotamia,Burma,Washington, D.c.,Un,Russian,Area,Euro,
Criticism and usage
3> 1957 American film about the Middle East Many have criticized the term Middle East because of its implicit Eurocentrism.[14][15] In contemporary English-language academic & media venues, the term is used by both Europeans and non-Europeans. The description Middle has also led to some confusion over changing definitions. Before the First World War, "Near East" was used in English to refer to the Balkans and the Ottoman Empire, while "Middle East" referred to Iran, Afghanistan, and Central Asia, and the Caucasus. In contrast, "Far East" referred to the countries of East Asia (e.g. China, Japan, Formosa, Korea, Hong Kong, etc.) Some critics usually advise using an alternative term, such as "Western Asia", which is the official designation used by the UN. With the disappearance of the Ottoman Empire in 1918, "Near East" largely fell out of common use in English, while "Middle East" came to be applied to the re-emerging countries of the Islamic world. However, the usage of "Near East" was retained by a variety of academic disciplines, including archaeology and ancient history, where it describes an area identical to the term Middle East, which is not used by these disciplines (see Ancient Near East). The first official use of the term "Middle East" by the United States government was in the 1957 Eisenhower Doctrine, which pertained to the Suez Crisis. Secretary of State John Foster Dulles defined the Middle East as "the area lying between and including Libya on the west and Pakistan on the east, Syria and Iraq on the North and the Arabian peninsula to the south, plus the Sudan and Ethiopia."[12] In 1958, the State Department explained that the terms "Near East" and "Middle East" were interchangeable, and defined the region as including only Egypt, Syria, Israel, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Qatar.[16] The Associated Press Stylebook says that Near East formerly referred to the farther west countries while Middle East referred to the eastern ones, but that now they are synonymous. It instructs: Use Middle East unless Near East is used by a source in a story. Mideast is also acceptable, but Middle East is preferred.[17] At the United Nations, the numerous documents and resolutions about the Middle East are in fact concerned with the Arab–Israeli conflict, in particular the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, and, therefore, with the four states of the Levant. The term Near East is occasionally heard at the UN when referring to this region.[citation needed]

Tags:Western Asia,Islam,Eurocentrism,First World War,Balkans,Ottoman Empire,Iran,Afghanistan,Caucasus,East Asia,Japan,Formosa,Korea,Hong Kong,Islamic World,Archaeology,Ancient History,Ancient Near East,United States Government,Eisenhower Doctrine,Suez Crisis,John Foster Dulles,Libya,Pakistan,Syria,Iraq,Sudan,Ethiopia,State Department,Egypt,Israel,Lebanon,Jordan,Saudi Arabia,Kuwait,Bahrain,Qatar,Associated Press,United Nations,Arab–israeli Conflict,Israeli–palestinian Conflict,Levant,Government,Oman,
Translations
3> There are terms similar to Near East and Middle East in other European languages, but since it is a relative description, the meanings depend on the country and are different from the English terms generally. In German the term Naher Osten (Near East) is still in common use (nowadays the term Mittlerer Osten is more and more common in press texts translated from English sources, albeit having a distinct meaning) and in Russian Ближний Восток or Blizhniy Vostok, Bulgarian Близкия Изток, Polish Bliski Wschód or Croatian Bliski istok (meaning Near East in all the four Slavic languages) remains as the only appropriate term for the region. However, some languages do have "Middle East" equivalents, such as the French Moyen-Orient, Swedish Mellanöstern, Spanish Oriente Medio or Medio Oriente, and the Italian Medio Oriente.[18] Perhaps because of the influence of the Western press, the Arabic equivalent of Middle East (Arabic: الشرق الأوسط ash-Sharq al-Awsaṭ), has become standard usage in the mainstream Arabic press, comprehending the same meaning as the term “Middle East” in North American and Western European usage. The designation, Mashriq, also from the Arabic root for east, also denotes a variously defined region around the Levant, the eastern part of the Arabic-speaking world (as opposed to the Maghreb, the western part).[19] The Persian equivalent for Middle East is خاورمیانه (Khāvar-e miyāneh).

Tags:Arabic,French,German,Naher Osten,Ближний Восток,Bulgarian,Близкия Изток,Polish,Bliski Wschód,Croatian,Bliski Istok,Moyen-orient,Swedish,Mellanöstern,Spanish,Oriente Medio Or Medio Oriente,Italian,Medio Oriente,Mashriq,Maghreb,Country,
Traditional definition of the Middle East
3> Country, with flag Area Population Density Capital GDP (Total) Per capita Currency Government Official languages km2 sq mi /km2 /sq mi  Bahrain 665 257 656,397 987 2,560 Manama $26.970 billion (2008) $34,605 (2008) Bahraini Dinar Constitutional monarchy Arabic  Cyprus 9,250 3,570 792,604 90 230 Nicosia $22.703 billion (2008) $29,830 (2008) Euro, Turkish lira Presidential republic Greek, Turkish  Egypt 1,002,450 387,050 77,498,000 74 190 Cairo $442.640 billion (2008) $5,898 (2008) Egyptian pound Military junta Arabic  Iran 1,648,195 636,372 71,208,000 42 110 Tehran $819.799 billion (2008) $11,250 (2008) Iranian rial Islamic republic Persian  Iraq 437,072 168,754 31,001,816 70.93 183.7 Baghdad $202.3 billion (2008) $6,500 (2008) Iraqi dinar Parliamentary republic Arabic, Kurdish  Israel 20,770 8,020 7,465,000 290 750 Jerusalem2 $200.630 billion (2008) $28,206 (2008) Israeli new sheqel Parliamentary democracy Hebrew, Arabic  Jordan 92,300 35,600 6,407,085 58 150 Amman $32.112 billion (2008) $5,314 (2008) Jordanian dinar Constitutional monarchy Arabic  Kuwait 17,820 6,880 3,100,000 119 310 Kuwait City $137.190 billion (2008) $39,849 (2008) Kuwaiti dinar Constitutional monarchy Arabic  Lebanon 10,452 4,036 4,224,000 354 920 Beirut $58.576 billion (2010) $14,988 (2010) Lebanese pound Republic Arabic, French  Oman 212,460 82,030 3,200,000 13 34 Muscat $66.889 billion (2008) $24,153 (2008) Omani Rial Absolute monarchy Arabic Gaza Strip(not fully sovereign) 360 140 1,376,289 3,823 9,900 Gaza $770 million (2009) $3,100 (2009) Egyptian pound, Israeli new sheqel Autonomous republic Hamas Governed Gaza Hamas Arabic  Palestinian Authority (not fully sovereign) 5,860 2,2603 2,235,0005 432 1,1203,4 Ramallah $12.95 billion (2009) $2,900 (2009) Israeli new sheqel Autonomous republic Palestinian National Authority Fatah Arabic  Qatar 11,437 4,416 793,341 69 180 Doha $94.249 billion (2008) $85,867 (2008) Qatari Riyal Absolute monarchy Arabic  Saudi Arabia 1,960,582 756,985 23,513,330 12 31 Riyadh $593.385 billion (2008) $23,834 (2008) Riyal Absolute monarchy Arabic  Syria 185,180 71,500 22,505,000 93 240 Damascus $105.238 billion (2010) $5,043 (2010) Syrian pound Presidential republic Arabic  Turkey1 783,562 302,535 78,785,548 91 240 Ankara $1.028 trillion[20] (2008) $13,920[20][21] (2008) Turkish lira Parliamentary democracy Turkish  United Arab Emirates 82,880 32,000 5,432,746 30 78 Abu Dhabi $184.984 billion (2008) $38,830 (2008) UAE dirham Federal Constitutional monarchy Arabic  Yemen 527,970 203,850 23,701,257 35 91 Sanaá $55.433 billion (2008) $2,412 (2008) Yemeni rial Semi-presidential republic Arabic Source: International Monetary Fund, April 24, 2009, PPP GDP 2008 World Bank, July 1, 2009, PPP GDP 2008 Notes: 1 The figures for Turkey includes Eastern Thrace, which is not a part of Anatolia. 2 Under Israeli law. The UN doesn't recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital. 3 Includes the whole of the West Bank, according to the pre-1967 boundaries. 4 In addition, there are around 400,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank, of which half are in East-Jerusalem.

Tags:Greek,Hebrew,Kurdish,Turkish,Dari,Tehran,Baghdad,Riyadh,Flag,Population,Density,Capital,Gdp,Currency,Manama,Bahraini Dinar,Constitutional Monarchy,Cyprus,Nicosia,Turkish Lira,Presidential Republic,Egyptian Pound,Military Junta,Iranian Rial,Islamic Republic,Iraqi Dinar,Parliamentary Republic,Jerusalem,Israeli New Sheqel,Parliamentary Democracy,Amman,
Greater Middle East
3> Main article: Greater Middle East Country, with flag Area (km²) Population Density (per km²) Capital GDP (Total) Per capita Currency Government Official languages km2 sq mi /km2 /sq mi  Afghanistan1 647,500 250,000 31,889,923 46 120 Kabul $21.340 billion (2008) $758 (2008) Afghan afghani Islamic republic Persian, Pashto  Algeria 2,381,740 919,590 33,333,216 14 36 Algiers $233.098 billion (2008) $6,698 (2008) Algerian dinar Semi-presidential republic Arabic  Armenia 29,800 11,500 3,262,200 111.7 289 Yerevan $18.715 billion (2008) $5,272 (2008) Armenian dram Semi-presidential republic Armenian  Azerbaijan 86,600 33,400 8,621,000 97 250 Baku $74.734 billion (2008) $8,620 (2008) Azerbaijani manat Semi-presidential republic Azerbaijani  Comoros 2,235 863 798,000 275 710 Moroni $772 million (2009) $1,159 (2009) Comorian franc Federal republic Comorian, Arabic, French  Djibouti 23,200 9,000 496,374 34 88 Djibouti $1.877 billion (2008) $2,392 (2008) Djiboutian franc Parliamentary republic Arabic, French, Somali, Afar  Eritrea 117,600 45,400 4,401,009 37 96 Asmara $3.739 billion (2008) $747 (2008) Nakfa Provisional government Tigrinya, Arabic  Georgia 20,460 7,900 4,630,841 99.3 257 Tbilisi $21.812 billion (2008) $4,957 (2008) Georgian lari Semi-presidential republic Georgian  Kazakhstan 2,724,900 1,052,100 15,217,711 5.4 14 Astana $177.545 billion (2008) $11,416 (2008) Kazakhstani tenge Semi-presidential republic Kazakh, Russian  Kyrgyzstan 199,900 77,200 5,356,869 26 67 Bishkek $11.580 billion (2008) $2,180 (2008) Kyrgyzstani som Semi-presidential republic Kyrgyz, Russian  Libya 1,759,540 679,360 6,036,914 3 7.8 Tripoli $90.251 billion (2008) $14,533 (2008) Libyan dinar Provisional: National Transitional Council Arabic  Mauritania 1,030,700 398,000 3,291,000 70 180 Nouakchott $6.221 billion (2008) $2,052 (2008) Ouguiya Islamic republic Arabicx  Morocco 446,550 172,410 33,757,175 70 180 Rabat $136.728 billion (2008) $4,349 (2008) Moroccan dirham Constitutional monarchy Arabic, Tamazight  Pakistan 880,940 340,130 169,300,000 206 530 Islamabad $439.558 billion (2008) $2,738 (2008) Pakistani rupee Islamic republic Urdu, English  Somalia 637,661 246,202 9,925,640 [22] 13 34 Mogadishu $7.890 billion $795[23] Somali shilling Semi-presidential republic Somali, Arabic  Sudan 1,886,068 728,215 30,894,000 14 36 Khartoum $87.885 billion (2008) $2,305 (2008) Sudanese pound Presidential republic Arabic, English  Tajikistan 143,100 55,300 7,215,700 45 120 Dushanbe $13.041 billion (2008) $2,019 (2008) Somoni Semi-presidential republic Tajik  Tunisia 163,610 63,170 10,102,000 62 160 Tunis $82.226 billion (2008) $7,962 (2008) Tunisian dinar Semi-presidential republic Arabic  Turkmenistan 488,100 188,500 5,110,023 9.9 26 Ashgabat $30.091 billion (2008) $5,710 (2008) Turkmenistani manat Presidential republic Turkmen  Uzbekistan 447,400 172,700 27,372,000 59 150 Tashkent $71.501 billion (2008) $2,629 (2008) Uzbekistani som Semi-presidential republic Uzbek  Western Sahara 266,000 103,000 513,000 1.9 4.9 El Aaiun Moroccan dirham Arabic Source: International Monetary Fund, April 24, 2009, PPP GDP 2008 World Bank, July 1, 2009, PPP GDP 2008 Notes: 1 Afghanistan is often considered Central Asian[24][25]

Tags:Azerbaijani,Armenian,Georgian,Pashto,Somali,Tamazight,Tigrinya,Urdu,
History
2> Main article: History of the Middle East See also: List of conflicts in the Middle East This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (December 2011) The Temple Mount in Jerusalem The Imam Ali Mosque, an important shrine in Najaf The Middle East lies at the juncture of Eurasia and Africa and of the Mediterranean Sea and the Indian Ocean. It is the birthplace and spiritual center of religions such as Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Manichaeism, Yezidi, Druze, Yarsan and Mandeanism, and in Iran, Mithraism, Zoroastrianism, Manicheanism, and the Bahá'í Faith. Throughout its history the Middle East has been a major center of world affairs; a strategically, economically, politically, culturally, and religiously sensitive area. The worlds earliest civilizations, Mesopotamia (Sumer, Akkad, Assyria and Babylonia) and ancient Egypt, originated in the Fertile Crescent and Nile Valley regions of the ancient Near East. These were followed by the Hittite, Greek and Urartian civilisations of Asia Minor, Elam in pre Iranian Persia, as well as the civilizations of the Levant (such as Ebla,

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