NASWACA Landforms And Terms Flashcards
The Straight of Gibraltar
The body of water where Africa and Europe are separated and the Mediterranean Sea meets the Atlantic Ocean
The Dardanelles Straight, Sea of Marmara, and Bosporus Straight
Together they link the Mediterranean Sea to the Black Sea and separate Europe from Asia
The Suez Canal
A man made waterway that lets ships pass from the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea
The Straight of Hormuz
A waterway north of the Arabian Peninsula that allows oil tankers to enter and leave the Persian Gulf and tankers have to go through this narrow waterway to pass from the Persian Gulf to the Arabian Sea and Oman is in a strategic place because it is next to this waterway
Khyber Pass
A narrow gap between mountains in the Hindu Kush that is a trade route that links Southwest Asia to other parts of Asia and has been a major trade route through the mountains for centuries and Afghanistan’s capital, Kabul, is covered by the Hindu Kush range and is in a valley
Mesopotamia
Flooding of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers left an alluvial plain, which is an area of fertile soil left by floods, where the Mesopotamian civilization was based on farming, the place where it started was called the Fertile Crescent curving from the Mediterranean to the Persian Gulf and it began around 4000 b.c.e.
The Persian Gulf
Land made of sedimentary rock, which is created when layers of material are are hardened by the intense weight of materials piled on top of it, and this land is full of oil because over millions of years, heat and pressure turned the remains of sea animals and plants into oil
Phosphates
Mineral used to make fertilizer
Poaching
Illegal fishing or hunting of animals, in this region the main animals being killed are sturgeons, whose eggs make caviar
Sedimentary rock
This is created when layers of material are hardened because of the intense weight of materials piled on top of them and the land in the Persian Gulf land is made of this
Air pollution
A growing problem in the region because a large number of cars in the region are older so they release more pollutants and chemicals are released by refineries, which turn petroleum into gas and are bad for the environment
Refineries
There are many of these in the region and they turn petroleum into gas, which is bad for the environment
Alluvial plain
An area of fertile soil left by floods, Mesopotamia is on one and it was made by the flooding of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers
Sumer
A region in Mesopotamia where many cities developed around 3000 b.c.e., the people who lived there were called Sumerians
Irrigation
Walls, waterways, and ditches carrying water to crops
Polytheism
The belief and worship of many gods and goddesses
Theocracy
A government controlled by religious leaders
Cuneiform
An early form of writing developed by Sumerians which was made up of wedge shaped markings made with sharp reeds on clay tablets
King Hammurabi
A king who invaded Mesopotamia around 1790 b.c.e. and created the code of Hammurabi, which was one of the first written legal codes
Code of Hammurabi
One of the first written legal codes created by King Hammurabi
Pharaohs
Rulers in Ancient Egypt who were believed to be both rulers as well as gods
Pyramid
A type of tomb that pharaohs in Ancient Egypt ordered thousands of people to build for them
Hieroglyphics
A system of writing that Ancient Egyptians developed which used pictures for words or sounds and carved them on the walls of stone temples that they built to honor their gods
Phoenicia
The place where one of the greatest trading empires of the ancient world that stretches from the Mediterranean Sea to Spain was developed around 1000 b.c.e.
Koran
The Islamic holy book written in Arabic that offers spiritual guidance for Muslims and it doesn’t have a description of god in it
Mecca
Holy Islamic city where Muhammad lived and once, Muhammad went to a cave above it and saw an angel who told him to recite in the name of god
Medina
An Islamic holy city which was called the city of the prophet
Dome of the Rock
A very important Islamic holy building in the middle of a city with many Christians in it
Sunni and Shia
The two Islamic sects that both follow the Quran and share many beliefs but disagree on how people should be governed and one of the groups is more conservative than the other but most Muslims throughout the world are Sunnis and Iran, Iraq, Azerbaijan, and parts of Lebanon and Syria, most people are Shia
Hajj
A holy journey to Makkah (Mecca) that all Muslims must make at least once in their lifetime
Easter
A major Christian holy day, a day set aside to honor saints or Christian holy people
Christian holy day
A day set aside to honor saints or Christian holy people
Orthodox Christians
Many people in Armenia and Georgia are Orthodox Christians, which is a type of Christianity
Coptic Orthodox Church
Egyptian Christians are mostly Coptic Orthodox Church, which is a type of Christianity
Sabbath
A traditional Jewish practice that is marked from Friday until sundown on Saturday
Yom Kippur
The holiest Jewish day, which is a day of atonement
Epics
Tales and poems about heroes and heroines, many of which are written in this region
Mosques
Islamic houses of worship that are all throughout the Muslim world
The Persian Gulf coast
Saudi Arabia’s oil region
The Saud family
The family that established Saudi Arabia as a monarchy that united the nation’s many clans, or groups of families related by blood and marriage and under their rule, Islam has maintained a strong rule in Saudi Arabia