The Middle East is a region that includes parts of southwest Asia and northeast Africa.

The region dates back to the beginning of civilization. The region is also the root of three of the world’s major religions, Islam, Christianity, and Judaism.

The Middle East is a western name for the region. The area consists of many countries, with a variety of religions, languages, ethnic groups, and climates. As many as seventeen languages are spoken in the Middle East, including Arabic, Armenian, Hebrew and Turkish.

The following countries are usually included in the Middle East region: Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, Palestinian Territories, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, and Yemen.

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Text: Shawna Irish; Image: CIA Factbook