People in SW Asia

1
People in SW Asia
2
Who is an Arab?

• 75 of people in SW Asia
• Share a culture and languageArabic
• Not all Arabs are Muslims (religion)
• Not all live in SW Asia

3
Other People and Languages

• IranPersian ethnic group and Muslim (not Arab),
  large population
• -speak Farsi and Arabic
• TurkeyTurks from central Asia, speak Turkish but
  use roman alphabet

4
Minority Groups

• Kurds, Armenians, Greeks, and Jews
• Often persecuted Jews and the Holocaust
• Over 25 languages

5
Religions of the Region

• 90 Muslim Sunni and Shiite divisions
• Christians scattered throughout
• Jews in Israel and a few in other countries

6
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

7
Desert Herders

• Bedouins nomads that carry goods or herd in the
  desert, often with camels
• Skilled at desert travel, finding water
• Way of life is dying out due to technology