This eBook introduces readers to the geography of North Africa and the Middle East, covering the culture region as a whole rather than individual countries. The volume emphasizes the region's people and their various ways of life, considering how they have adapted to, used, and changed the natural environments in which they live. Like other titles in the 10-volume Modern World Cultures set, North Africa and the Middle East, Second Edition explores the geographical features, climate, and ecosystems; population, settlement, and culture; and the history and economy of the region at hand. Also covered are the region’s diversity, challenges, and prospects. Illustrated with full-color maps and photographs, and accompanied by a chronology, glossary, and further readings, these accessible titles offer an ideal starting point for research on the culture regions of the world.

The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) is a large, complex, and diverse region, which faces a wide range of economic issues. The MENA group includes Algeria, Bahrain, Cyprus, Djibouti, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.The purpose of this book is not to provide a country-by-country study, but rather to deal with general economic themes found in Arab MENA and Israel, such as problems associated with growth and structural change; the role of State-intervention in country-specific local markets; labor market imperfections driven by gender bias; technology gaps and endogenous growth; capital market development in a restricted financial model based on religious constraints; savings and investment behaviour in a model of state subsidization and intervention designed to control local development; and the role of the state in constraining private sector activity. Data sources used in this second edition include country-specific data, the World Bank, the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.The new material in this second edition includes a discussion of the impending and inevitable leadership changes which will occur throughout Arab MENA over the next decades. The evidence to support this evaluation is based on the current lack of transparent markets; the lack of inclusive macro policies, the impact of distortionary micro economic policies across all sectors; and the impact of anti-globalization and xenophobia on innovation. Old chapters are revised with updated data, a discussion of the role of the 'State' and 'Oligarchies' in the economies of most of the MENA countries, an in-depth exploration of the investment in human capital and growth and an identification of the most important binding constraints to economic development in Arab MENA and Israel.This book serves as both a textbook and a summary of the very large literature on MENA. It examines the economic realities of the region and compares them across the MENA economies. It should be stressed that this book is not about the latest political debate on who did what to whom in the Middle East or in North Africa. The focus is on economics, not political economics.

The international relations of the Middle East have long been dominated by uncertainty and conflict. External intervention, interstate war, political upheaval and interethnic violence are compounded by the vagaries of oil prices and the claims of military, nationalist and religious movements. The purpose of this book is to set this region and its conflicts in context, providing on the one hand a historical introduction to its character and problems, and on the other a reasoned analysis of its politics. In an engagement with both the study of the Middle East and the theoretical analysis of international relations, the author, who is one of the best known and most authoritative scholars writing on the region today, offers a compelling and original interpretation. Written in a clear, accessible and interactive style, the book is designed for students, policymakers, and the general reader.

Britain in the Middle East provides a comprehensive survey of British involvement in the Middle East, exploring their mutual construction and influence across the entire historical sweep of their relationship. In the 17th century, Britain was establishing trade links in the Middle East, using its position in India to increasingly exclude other European powers. Over the coming centuries this commercial influence developed into political power and finally formal empire, as the British sought to control their regional hegemony through military force. Robert Harrison charts this relationship, exploring how the Middle East served as the launchpad for British offensive action in the World Wars, and how resentment against colonial rule in the region led ultimately to political and Islamic revolutions and Britain's demise as a global, imperial power.

This revised and updated volume highlights the major issues and challenges that define the Middle East today and places them within their historical and geographical context.

This book, first published in 1976 and in this second edition in 1988, combines an examination of the political, cultural and economic geography of the Middle East with a detailed study of the region’s landscape features, natural resources, environmental conditions and ecological evolution. The Middle East, with its extremes of climate and terrain, has long fascinated those interested in the fine balance between man and his environment, and now its economic and political importance in world affairs has brought the region to the attention of everybody.

The second edition of this well-regarded volume explores the societies of the Middle East and North Africa. Presenting original studies written by the world’s leading MENA scholars, it sheds light upon the organizing structures, human vulnerabilities, and dynamic forces that propel social change among the peoples of the Arab world, as well as Israel, Turkey, and Iran. The volume can be used in conjunction with The Government and Politics of the Middle East and North Africa textbook for a comprehensive overview of the region. Carrying over from the previous edition, among the rich topics covered are agriculture, urbanization, development, identity, citizenship, gender, religion, civil society, the environment, and youths. This second edition adds two new chapters on refugees and public opinion, as each constitutes a crucial part of the region’s social and cultural context. This edition also updates existing chapters to account for the latest events and trends, including the COVID-19 pandemic, popular protests, and demographic growth. Written in an accessible way, the chapters are clearly structured and contain insightful analysis, memorable case studies, illustrative photographs, and visualized data that illuminate the contours of social life across this diverse region. Each chapter also ends with curated questions for discussion, followed by annotated bibliographies to help spark further research to encourage seamless adoption into classrooms.

Uranium Geology of the Middle East and North Africa demonstrates mining potential in the MENA region, with a special interest given to Uranium. The formation and origin of uranium deposits is of interest for uranium exploration and is necessary for the long-term sustainability of nuclear energy production. The book proposes a new classification system built on earlier classification with detailed new maps, explanatory diagrams, cross sections, helpful satellite images, etc. In addition, it explains why the occurrences, depositional and geological environments of uranium in the Middle East and North Africa vary from one country to another. Using various related recognition criteria, the book reports the potential uranium provinces in the Middle East and North Africa countries. The definition of these provinces is based on the existing geologic and tectonic settings, along with geochronological sequences and geochemical characteristics. - Presents a comprehensive overview of uranium resources and resource potential across the Middle East and North Africa - Proposes a new system of metallogenic and tectonic classification for uranium ore deposits - Includes case studies from each country in the region