The Middle East is a historical and cultural subregion of Africa-Eurasia traditionally held to be countries or regions in Southwest Asia together with Egypt. In other contexts, the region can include other parts of North Africa and/or Central Asia.

Characteristics

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In the Western world, the Middle East is generally thought of as a predominantly Islamic Arabic community defined by frequent war. However the area encompasses many distinct cultural and ethnic groups, including the Arabs, Armenians, Assyrians, Azeris, Berbers, Chaldeans, Druze, Greeks, Jews, Kurds, Maronites, Persians and Turks. The main language groups include: Arabic, Armenian, Assyrian (also known as Aramaic and Syriac), Hebrew, Persian, Kurdish and Turkish. The corresponding adjective is Middle-Eastern and the derived noun is Middle-Easterner.

Most Western definitions of the "Middle East" — in both established reference books and common usage — define the region as 'nations in Southwest Asia, from Iran (Persia) to Egypt'. Egypt, with its Sinai Peninsula in Asia, is often considered part of the 'Middle East', although most of the country lies geographically in North Africa. North African nations without Asian links, such as Libya, Tunisia and Morocco, are increasingly being called North African — as opposed to Middle Eastern (Iran (Persia) to Egypt-Asia) — by international media outlets.

One widely used definition of "Middle East" is that of the airline industry, maintained by the IATA standards organization. This definition — as of early 2006 — includes Bahrain, Egypt, Iran (Persia), Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Palestinian Territory, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. ^* This definition is used in world-wide airfare and tax calculations for passengers and cargo.

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[Middle East News] Uncivil service http://bit.ly/3Ha6Bw
MidEastNews (Middle East News) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 10:04:58 -0000
[Middle East News] Uncivil service http://bit.ly/3Ha6Bw
[Middle East News] Cutting corners http://bit.ly/3WkD2x
MidEastNews (Middle East News) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 10:04:56 -0000
[Middle East News] Cutting corners http://bit.ly/3WkD2x
Tilgin AB: Tilgin Wins New Order on IP Technology from a Leading Operator in the Middle East http://bit.ly/1vWqpk
techflypaper (Tech Flypaper) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 10:04:49 -0000
Tilgin AB: Tilgin Wins New Order on IP Technology from a Leading Operator in the Middle East http://bit.ly/1vWqpk
AmericanWriter.US Middle East peace talks - Seattle Times: Seattle Post In.. http://bit.ly/2XJ1DS http://bit.ly/pTCCt
UCMTSU (AMERICAN WRITER) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 10:03:22 -0000
AmericanWriter.US Middle East peace talks - Seattle Times: Seattle Post In.. http://bit.ly/2XJ1DS http://bit.ly/pTCCt
Singapore beckons UAE tourists: The city-state hopes to grow total numbers from the Middle East by at least .. http://bit.ly/47h9j4
yourSDP (yourSDP) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 10:02:57 -0000
Singapore beckons UAE tourists: The city-state hopes to grow total numbers from the Middle East by at least .. http://bit.ly/47h9j4
Business: Metito Conferred the Frost & Sullivan 2009 Market Leadership Award for Middle East Water and.. http://bit.ly/2Wn8e7
gani_d (Eye Of Dubai) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 10:02:12 -0000
Business: Metito Conferred the Frost & Sullivan 2009 Market Leadership Award for Middle East Water and.. http://bit.ly/2Wn8e7

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