| Term | Definition |
| Oasis | An isolated area of vegetation in a desert, typically surrounding a spring or similar water source, such as a pond or small lake. |
| Arable | Capable of producing crops; suitable for farming; suited to the plow and for tillage |
| Commodity | An article of trade or commerce, especially a product as distinguished from a service. |
| Wadi | A valley, gully, or streambed in northern Africa and southwest Asia that remains dry except during the rainy season. |
| Caucasus Mountains | Rise north of Mount Ararat between the Black Sea and Caspian Sea. |
| Aral Sea | An inland sea lying between southern Kazakhstan and northwest Uzbekistan. Once the fourth-largest inland body of water in the world, it has largely disappeared because of diversion of its two sources, the Amu Darya and the Syr Darya. |
| Phosphate | A salt or ester of phosphoric acid. |
| Nile River | A river in East Africa, the longest in the world, flowing North from Lake Victoria to the Mediterranean. |
| Aswan high dam | A dam on the Nile forming a reservoir (Lake Nasser) extending 480 km (300 miles) from the First to the Third Cataracts |
| Bedouin | An Arab of any of the nomadic tribes of the Arabian, Syrian, Nubian, or Sahara Deserts. |
| Petrochemical | A chemical substance obtained from petroleum or natural gas, as gasoline, kerosene, or petrolatum. |
| Persian Gulf | An arm of the Arabian Sea between the Arabian Peninsula and southwest Iran. It has been an important trade route since ancient times and gained added strategic significance after the discovery of oil in the Gulf States in the 1930s. |
| Ethnic diversity | Differences among groups based on their languages, customs, and beliefs |
| Nationalize | To convert from private to governmental ownership and control |
| Ziggurat | A temple of Sumerian origin in the form of a pyramidal tower, consisting of a number of stories and having about the outside a broad ascent winding round the structure, presenting the appearance of a series of terraces. |
| Infrastructure | The system of public works of a country, state, or region |
| Alluvial soil | A fine-grained fertile soil deposited by water flowing over flood plains or in river beds. |
| Atlas Mountains | Africa’s longest mountain range, extends across Morocco and
Algeria. Enough precipitation falls on the northern
side of these mountains to water the coastal
regions, making them ideal for farming. |
| Embargo | The partial or complete prohibition of commerce and trade with a particular country or a group of countries. |
| Euphrates River | A river in SW Asia, flowing SE from SE Turkey through Iraq, joining the Euphrates to form the Shatt-al-Arab. |
| Rub’ al-Khali | A desert in south Arabia, north of Hadhramaut and extending from Yemen to Oman. |
| Hieroglyphics | Designating or pertaining to a pictographic script, particularly that of the ancient Egyptians, in which many of the symbols are conventionalized, recognizable pictures of the things represented. |
| Pastoralism | The branch of agriculture concerned with the raising of livestock. It is animal husbandry: the care, tending and use of animals such as camels, goats, cattle, yaks, llamas, and sheep. |
| Dead Sea | A salt lake between Israel and Jordan: the lowest lake in the world. 46 miles (74 km) long; 10 miles (16 km) wide; 1293 feet (394 meters) below sea level. |
| Caspian Sea | A salt lake between SE Europe and Asia: the largest inland body of water in the world. About 169,000 sq. mi. (438,000 sq. km); 85 feet (26 meters) below sea level. |
| Gross domestic product | The monetary value of all the finished goods and services produced within a country's borders in a specific time period. |
| Strait of Hormuz | Strait of, a strait between Iran and the United Arab Emirates, connecting the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. |
| Tigris River | A river in SW Asia, flowing SE from SE Turkey through Iraq, joining the Euphrates to form the Shatt-al-Arab. |
| Anatolia | A vast plateau between the Black and the Mediterranean seas: in ancient usage, synonymous with the peninsula of Asia Minor; in modern usage, applied to Turkey in Asia. |
| Monotheism | The doctrine or belief that there is only one God. |
| Arabian Peninsula | A peninsula between the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf; strategically important for its oil resources |
| Prophet | A person who speaks by divine inspiration or as the interpreter through whom the will of a god is expressed. |
| Mosque | A Muslim temple or place of public worship. |
| Sahara | A river in SW Asia, flowing SE from SE Turkey through Iraq, joining the Euphrates to form the Shatt-al-Arab. |
| Kara Kum | A desert south of the Aral Sea, largely in Turkmenistan. |
| Domesticate | Take animals from the wild and make them useful to people. |
| Nationalism | The strong belief that the interests of a particular nation-state are of primary importance. |
| Cuneiform | A type of writing that was used in ancient Mesopotamia and Persia. |
| Culture hearth | Civilizations that have cultural influence around the world. |
| Gulf of Aqaba | Gulf of, an arm of the Red Sea, between Saudi Arabia and Egypt. 100 miles (160 km) long. |
| Bazaar | A market consisting of a street lined with shops and stalls, especially one in the Middle East. |
| Hajj | The pilgrimage to Mecca, which every adult Muslim is supposed to make at least once in his or her lifetime: the fifth of the Pillars of Islam. |
| Sinai Peninsula | A peninsula linking southwest Asia with northeast Africa at the northern end of the Red Sea between the Gulf of Suez and the Gulf of Aqaba. |
