Chapter 15
a desert streambed that is dry except during heavy rain
Wadi
Why do some countries in North Africa import most of the food needs?
Water scarcity makes it impossible to grow enough food for the population.
an ethnic group or nation that does not possess its own state and is not the majority population in any nation state.
stateless nation
Generalize the social status trends of women in the Arab nations of the Eastern Mediterranean.
Women have fewer rights and opportunities than men, but in some instances and regions, they are slowly gaining more rights.
OPEC is a group that regulates oil production in order to keep global oil prices _____.
high
a branch of Islam that regards Muhammad’s son and the imams as rightful successors
Shia
The actions of ____________________ threaten the stability of the region.
insurgents, al-Qaeda militants, and pirates
When the Soviets invaded Afghanistan in 1979, they encountered resistance from ____________________, or Islamic guerrilla fighters.
mujahideen
tribe of nomads predominantly found in North Africa and Arabia
Bedouin
Why is French spoken in some countries of North Africa?
France colonized parts of North Africa in the 1800s.
Muslims, Jews, & Christians are a _____ religion, which means they believe in only _____ God.
Monotheistic, one
the raising of animals for food and other products
pastoralism
What very active fault line is about 750 miles in length and extends across much of Turkey?
North Anatolian
the holiest city of Islam to which many Muslims make a pilgrimage
Makkah
What do push and pull factors refer to?
the reasons people leave and are drawn to the Arabian Peninsula.
In what two Central Asian countries is the majority of the population Christian?
Armenia and Georgia
fertile silt, sand, and mud deposited by a river or flowing water
alluvial soil
What are the negative effects of tourism in North Africa?
It requires large quantities of water for swimming pools, hotels, and golf courses.
Why have the economies of the Eastern Mediterranean subregion been slow to develop?
scarcity or uneven distribution of natural resources such as oil, natural gas, and especially water
the fertile area and the birthplace of some of the earliest civilizations
Mesopotamia
Which body of water is the world’s largest inland sea and key fishery that is threatened by pollution?
the Caspian Sea
The ____________________ industry produces the most soil, air, and water pollution in the region.
water desalination
a territory or cultural area separated from the political entity to which it belongs
exclave
The testing of nuclear weapons has led to serious health and environmental problems in the former Soviet republic of _____.
Kazakhstan
What has been the environmental impact of oil and petroleum industries in North Africa?
Winds can blow oil spills toward land and endanger coastal and marine environments.
a landform created by tectonic activity
rift valley
What is the Eastern Mediterranean’s predominate climate?
Semi-arid and arid
a system of wedge-shaped symbols pressed into clay tablets
Cuneiform
Due to high mountains that block moisture from major bodies of water, much of the inland areas of the Northeast experiences which type of climate?
arid or semi-arid
Why did the nomadic Bedouin tribes move from place to place?
they needed to move their herds from one desert oasis to another
Islamic guerilla fighters
mujahideen
Uzbekistan is one of the world’s leading producers and exporter of _____.
cotton
Where do most of North Africa’s nomads live today?
In villages and cities
a harmful effect of erosion and deforestation where soil conditions supporting vegetation is lost
desertification
What were the effects of the 1947 UN action to divide the former Ottoman and British colony of Palestine into a Jewish and Arab state?
Jews accepted the plan, forming the independent state of Israel, while Arab Palestinians rejected it.
Hundreds of thousands of refugees from North Africa, Iraq, Syria, etc. have fled where?
Turkey
a branch of Islam that regards the first four successors of Muhammad as his rightful successors
Sunni
How have countries in the Arabian Peninsula managed freshwater, their most precious resource?
Most have mismanaged their water use and wasted it with poor irrigation methods.
Grains that are grown for food—such as barley, oats, or wheat
cereals
After September 11, 2001, the United States overthrew the government of _____.
Afghanistan