North Africa and Southwest Asia

 

Themes

•            Climate change could greatly impact the small number of viable agricultural areas in this overall dry region

•            High (but slowing) rates of population growth and rapid urban growth

•            Big divide in region between states with oil/gas (ie fossil fuel reserves) and without; both types are involved in geopolitical and domestic political contestations

–        Note: This edition, they have decided to use the term “occupied Palestinian Territories” to refer to Gaza and the West Bank.

 

•            NOTE: I don’t love the way the book writes about this region.   There is good information, but sometimes they don’t frame it in ways most other scholars do.

–       So trust my slides over the book if there is a discrepancy.

 

Physical Patterns

–                  Driest inhabited world region

•                Sahara: world’s largest desert

–            Also Rub al Khali in Saudi Arabia

•                Mediterranean shores, uplands have Mediterranean and Steppe climates

–                  Atlas, Zagros mountains are the major ranges

•                Rivers rise in uplands, travel through dry areas

–            Allows irrigated agriculture

–                  Earthquakes common in Turkey & Iran

•                Bad impacts in squatter, mud brick settlements

 

Environmental Issues: Water

•            Water already scarce and…

–        Living standards are increasing overall (even if many left behind)

–        Populations are booming

•       This is leading to issues of quality, not just quantity

–        Traditional water conservation methods used less

•       These methods include public bath, water recycling, underground irrigation, shaded buildings

 

Water!

–        Upstream countries like Turkey, Sudan using more water for own agriculture through dam projects

•      Take it from Egypt, Syria, Iraq

•      Dams also stop alluvial soil, more evaporation, mosquitoes

–        Israel got water rights in West Bank, Golan Heights

–        Good solution: waste water recycling, efficient irrigation

–        Short term only solutions: desalinization (takes a lot of fossil fuels and is very expensive) ; over-pumping fossil water aquifers (those that don’t recharge, thus it can be used up)

–        Desertification (turning of moist land to desert) caused by:

•      Settled camel farming

•      Dropping water tables from urban water use

•      Likely climate change (which will also lead to sea level rise in delta regions)

•      Can be related to salinization (the salting of soil due to over-irrigation)

 

 

Agriculture

•            In some countries, agriculture employs 40-50% of the populations

–        In river valleys, near coasts

–        Saudi Arabia uses desalinizing water to grow wheat

–        Salinization due to irrigation evaporation

–        Herding, once a staple, now in decline

•       Private property, national boundaries made roaming harder

 

Agricultural Beginnings

•            Farming began 10,000 ybp in Fertile Crescent

•       Had water, fish, grasslands, grains, goats, sheep

–      Most important: wheat and cattle

•       Nomadic hunters domesticated these

•       Sumer, developed writing, wheel

–      Specialized professions; more specialized gender roles

•            Soon after in the Nile Valley, in the Maghreb, and in Persia

•            Nomads traded with, raided settled areas

–        Eventually became assimilated

•            Increasing evidence distinct gender roles began to emerge along with agriculture

 

 

Religious Beginnings

•            Region origin of most of the world’s “monotheistic” religions (those that believe in one God)

•            Judaism

–    Founded about 4000 years ago, when Abraham led tribe from Mesopotamia to Eastern Mediterranean

–    Rebelled against the Romans, sent away from Israel

•       Scattering called Diaspora

–    Ended up in Mesopotamia, North Africa, Spain, Eastern Europe

•       Faced much prejudice, pogroms

 

Regional Religion (cont)

•            Christianity

–         Christians Followers of Jesus of Nazareth

•       Built on Jewish belief

•       Preached in Judea, Galilee (currently Palestine); early expansion into Syria/Turkey

–        Persecuted by Romans until Edict of Milan (in the year 313)

•       Constantine converts in 330

•       Made state religion of Rome in 380

–        Splits in 1054 into Catholic (Rome) and Orthodox (Constantinople)

–        Largely gone from region except

•       Maronites of Lebanon

•       Copts of Egypt

•       Small groups in Syria, Iraq; European and Filipino expats in the Gulf.

 

Regional Religion (cont)

•            Islam

–        Religion revealed to the Prophet Muhammad by the Angel Gabriel

•        Muslims (followers of Islam)

•       Qur’an, the holy book that contains the words of Allah (God)

–        Believe the Propht Muhammad was “seal of prophets,” a tradition including Jewish and Christian prophets

–        Jerusalem believed to be the sight where Muhammad ascended into heaven

 

Five pillars of Islam

•            Shahadah (the profession of faith)

–    No god but God, Muhammad is the messenger of God

•            Salah (prayer)

–    Five times daily, towards Mecca

•            Zakat (religious tax, or tithe)

–    Sadaqah, voluntary almsgiving, is also encouraged

•            Sawm (fasting during Ramadan)

•            Hajj (the pilgrimage to Mecca)

–        Mecca also direction Muslims pray

 

The Diffusion of Islam

–        Islam spread by both conquest and trade

•       In 100 yrs, from Spain to Central Asia

•       Got control of trade from Eastern Asia to Africa

–        Beyond personal behavior, also had rules for business and government

•       Included tolerance for people of the book

•       Continued under Ottoman Empire

–        Unlike some other religions, rules were known to all believers; all believers were equal

–        While Europe languished, maintained/expanded Greek and Roman knowledge

•       This despite the fact there was no central authority in the religion.

–        Arabs dominated Muslim empires early

•       Turks form Ottoman Empire, displace Constantinople in 15th century

 

A little more Islam

–        93 % of region are Muslims

–        Saudi Arabia contains the holy cities of Mecca and Medina

–        Law based on the Qur’an is called Sharia (which has several “schools”)

–        Origin of two Main Branches:

•       Sunni – Believed successor to the Prophet should be a Caliph, a virtuous political leader, chosen by leaders of the Muslims

•       Shi’a – Believed successor, the Imam, should be member of his family through his daughter Fatima and son-in-law Ali

–        Much Sunni/Shi’a conflict over the centuries has not been about doctrine, but power differences (with the Sunni often dominant over the Shi’a in most areas)

 

Western Domination

–        North Africa barely controlled by Ottomans by 1800

•       France gets control of Algeria, annexes it

–      Make Morocco, Tunisia protectorates or local figure head rulers with France making all the decisions
–      Britain does similar things in Egypt, Sudan
–      Italy into Libya

–        Raw materials sent to Europe, while rising nationalism suppressed

 

Western Domination (cont.)

–        Ottomans in WWI, align with Germany, lose

•       Syria, Lebanon to France

•       Iraq, Jordan, Palestine created by Britain

–      Both France and Britain build weak, religiously divided states to strengthen their rule

•       Turkey remains independent

–        Ibn Saud unites Saudi Arabia

 

State Formation

–        After World War II, states get independence

•       Small Gulf States formalize boundaries

•       Bloodiest battle in Algeria

•       Still dependent on Europe, and now U.S. (and increasingly East Asia) for oil technology, manufactured goods, arms and much food

–      In Iran, US and Britain overthrow the democratically elected prime minister