Arab world: Difference between revisions

{{shortShort description|GeographicGeographical and cultural region in Africa and the Middle East}}

{{DistinguishAbout|Muslimgeographical worldregion|the geopolitical entity|Arab League}}

{{pp-30-500extended|small=yes}}

|image = [[File:Arab worldWorld location(orthographic mapprojection).svg|220px]]

|population = 423456,000520,000777<ref name="totalpop">{{cite web |title=Arab World Arabic Language Day {{!}} UnitedData Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization|url=httphttps://wwwdata.unescoworldbank.org/newregion/en/unesco/events/prizesarab-and-celebrations/celebrations/international-days/world-arabic-language-day/ |websitepublisher=unesco.org|language=enWorld Bank |access-date=156 DecemberMay 20162022}}</ref>

|density = 29.839/km² (70.37/sq mi)<ref>{{cite web|title=Population density (people per sq. km of land area) {{!}} Data|url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/EN.POP.DNST?locations=1A&view=chart|websitepublisher=data.worldbank.orgWorld Bank|language=en-us}}</ref>

|GDP_PPPGDP_nominal = $2.501&nbsp;782 trillion<ref>{{cite web|title=GDP (current US$) {{!}} Data|url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.CD?locations=1A|websitepublisher=data.worldbank.orgWorld Bank|language=en-us}}</ref>

|GDP_per_capita = $6,647<ref>{{cite web|title=GNI per capita, Atlas method (current US$) {{!}} Data|url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GNP.PCAP.CD?locations=1A|websitepublisher=data.worldbank.orgWorld Bank|language=en-us}}</ref>

|demonym = [[Demographics of the Arab Leagueworld|Arab]]

|title = 22 [[list of sovereign states|sovereign states]]

|{{flag|BahrainAlgeria}}

|{{flag|ComorosBahrain}}

|{{flag|DjiboutiEgypt}}

|{{flag|EgyptIraq}}

|{{flag|IraqJordan}}

|{{flag|JordanKuwait}}

|{{flag|KuwaitLebanon}}

|{{flag|LebanonLibya}}

|{{flag|LibyaMauritania}}

|{{flag|MauritaniaMorocco}}

|{{flag|MoroccoOman}}

|{{flag|OmanPalestine}}

|{{flag|PalestineQatar}}

|{{flag|QatarSaudi Arabia}}

|{{flag|Saudi ArabiaSudan}}

{{flagicon|SudanEgypt}} [[KhartoumAlexandria]] <br />

{{flagicon|EgyptAlgeria}} [[AlexandriaAlgiers]]<br />

{{flagicon|KuwaitSaudi Arabia}} [[Kuwait CityJeddah]]<br />

{{flagicon|Morocco}} [[Casablanca]] <br />

{{flagicon|Saudi ArabiaYemen}} [[JeddahSanaa]] <br />

The linguistic and political denotation inherent in the term ''[[Arab people|Arab]]'' is generally dominant over [[genealogical]] considerations. In Arab states, [[Modern Standard Arabic|Standard Arabic]] is the only language used by the government. TheLocal language[[Varieties of anArabic|vernacular individuallanguages]] nationare isreferred calledto as ''[[Darija]],'' which means({{lang|ar|الدَّارِجَة}} "everyday/colloquial language."<ref>Wehr, Hans: ''Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic'' (2011); Harrell, Richard S.: ''Dictionary of Moroccan Arabic'' (1966)</ref>) Darijain sharesthe [[Maghreb]] or ''Aammiyya'' ({{lang|ar|ٱلْعَامِيَّة}} "common language") in the [[Mashreq]]. The majority of itsthe vocabulary in these vernaculars is shared with standardStandard Arabic, but itthey also significantly borrowsborrow from other languages, such as [[Berber (Tamazight)languages|Berber]], substrates[[French language|French]], [[Spanish language|Spanish]] and [[Italian language|Italian]] in the Maghreb.<ref>Tilmatine Mohand, Substrat et convergences: Le berbére et l'arabe nord-africain (1999), in Estudios de dialectologia norteaafricana y andalusi 4, pp 99–119</ref> as well as extensively from French, the language of the historical colonial occupier of the [[Maghreb]]. Darija is spoken and, to various extents, mutually understood in the Maghreb countries, especially Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia, but it is unintelligible to speakers of other Arabic dialects, mainly for those in Egypt and the Middle East.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=ary|title=Arabic, Moroccan Spoken|publisher=}}</ref>

===Standard territorial definition===

The Arab League is a [[regional organisation]] that aims, (among other things), to consider in a general way the affairs and interests of the Arab countries and sets out the following definition of an Arab:

{{quoteblockquote|An Arab is a person whose language is Arabic, who lives in an ArabicArab country, and who is in sympathy with the aspirations of the ArabicArab people.<ref>Dwight Fletcher Reynolds, ''Arab folklore'': a handbook, (Greenwood Press: 2007), p.1.</ref>}}

This standard territorial definition is sometimes seen to be inappropriate<ref>Baumann: 8</ref> or problematic,<ref>Deng: 405</ref> and may be supplemented with certain additional elements (see [[#Ancillary linguistic definition|ancillary linguistic definition]] below).<ref name="Kronholm">Kronholm: 14</ref>

* {{Flag|MauritaniaAlgeria}} ({{lang-ar|موريتانيا الجزائر}} ''{{transltransliteration|ar|Mūrītānyāal-Jazā’ir}}''): [[Standard Algerian Berber|Berber]] is the second official language (minority)

* {{Flag|MoroccoBahrain}} ({{lang-ar|المغربالبحرين}} ''{{transltransliteration|ar|al-MaghribBaḥrayn}}'') ([[Tamazight]] is the other official language, [[French language|French]] is used in education, daily life and business)

* {{Flag|OmanComoros}} ({{lang-ar|عمانجزر القمر}} ''{{transltransliteration|ar|‘UmānJuzur al-Qamar}}''): [[Comorian language|Comorian]] and [[French language|French]] are the other official languages

* {{Flag|Palestinian territories|PalestineDjibouti}} ({{lang-ar|فلسطينجيبوتي}} ''{{transltransliteration|ar|FilasṭīnJībūtī}}''): [[French language|French]] is the other official language

* {{Flag|QatarEgypt}} ({{lang-ar|قطرمصر}} ''{{transltransliteration|ar|QaṭarMiṣr}}'')

* [[Somalia]]{{Flag|Jordan}} ({{lang-ar|الصومالالأردن}} ''{{transltransliteration|ar|aṣal-ṢūmālUrdun}}'') ([[Somali language|Somali]] is the other official language)

* [[Sudan]]{{Flag|Mauritania}} ({{lang-ar|السودانموريتانيا}} ''{{transltransliteration|ar|as-SūdānMūrītānyā}}'')

* [[Tunisia]]{{Flag|Oman}} ({{lang-ar|تونسعمان}} ''{{transltransliteration|ar|Tūnis‘Umān}}'')

* [[Yemen]]{{Flag|Qatar}} ({{lang-ar|اليمنقطر}} ''{{transltransliteration|ar|al-YamanQaṭar}}'')

===Ancillary linguistic definition===

When an ancillary linguistic definition is used in combination with the [[Arab world#Standard territorial definition|standard territorial definition]], various parameters may be applied{{Clarify|this sounds [[WP:OR]]. The language must be changed or a very reliable source added|date=June 2015}} to determine whether a state or territory should be included in this alternative definition of the Arab world. These parameters may be applied{{Clarify|sounds [[WP:OR]]|date=June 2015}} to the states and territories of the Arab League (which constitute the Arab world under the standard definition) and to other states and territories. Typical parameters that may be applied include: whether Arabic is widely spoken; whether Arabic is an official or national language; or whether an Arabic cognate language is widely spoken.

[[Somalia]] has two official languages, Arabic and [[Somali language|Somali]], bothwhile of[[Somaliland]] whichhas three, Arabic, Somali and [[English language|English]].<ref>{{Cite web|date=2001-03-02|title=Somaliland Republic : Country Profile|url=http://www.somalilandgov.com/cprofile.htm|access-date=2021-10-13|website=archive.ph|archive-date=2 March 2001|archive-url=https://archive.today/20010302083933/http://www.somalilandgov.com/cprofile.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> Both Arabic and Somali belong to the larger [[Afroasiatic languages|Afro-Asiatic]] language family. Although Arabic is widely spoken by many people in the north and urban areas in the south, Somali is the most widely used language, and contains many Arabic [[loan word]]s.<ref>Diana Briton Putman, Mohamood Cabdi Noor, ''The Somalis: their history and culture'', (Center for Applied Linguistics: 1993), p.15.</ref>

The [[Comoros]] has three official languages: Arabic, [[Comorian language|Comorian]] and French. Comorian is the most widely spoken language, with Arabic having a religious significance, and French being associated with the educational system.

[[Chad]], [[Eritrea]]<ref name="CIA">[https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/eritrea/ Eritrea] {{CIA WorldWebarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210927060149/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/eritrea/ Factbook link|er|Eritrea|accessdatedate=2827 September February2021 2013}}. ''[[The World Factbook]]''. [[Central Intelligence Agency]].</ref> and [[Israel]] all recognize Arabic as an official or working language, but none of them is a member-state of the Arab League, although both Chad and Eritrea are observer states of the League (with possible future membership) and have large populations of Arabic speakers.

Israel is not a part of the Arab world. By some definitions,<ref name="Kronholm"/><ref>Rinnawi: xvi</ref> [[Arab citizens of Israel]] may concurrently be considered a constituent part of the Arab world.

[[Iran]] has about 1.5&nbsp; million Arabic speakers.<ref>{{cite web|title=Middle East {{ndash}} Iran |url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geoscountries/iran/ir.html |work=[[The World Factbook]] |accessdateaccess-date=24 October 2013 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120203093100/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ir.html |archivedate=3 February 2012 }}</ref> [[Iranian Arabs]] are mainly found in [[Ahvaz]], a southwestern region in the [[Khuzestan Province]]; others inhabit the [[Bushehr Province|Bushehr]] and [[Hormozgan Province|Hormozgan]] provinces and the city of [[Qom]]. [[Mali]] and [[Senegal]] recognize [[Hassaniya]], the Arabic dialect of the [[Moors|Moorish]] ethnic minority, as a [[national language]].<ref name="Hassaniyya">{{cite web|url=http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=mey |title=Hassaniyya – A language of Mauritania |publisher=Ethnologue.com |access-date= |accessdate=17 October 2011}}</ref> [[Greece]] and [[Cyprus]] also recognize [[Cypriot Maronite Arabic]] under the [[European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages]]. Additionally, Malta, though not part of the Arab world, has as its official language [[Maltese language|Maltese]]. The language is grammatically akin to Maghrebi Arabic.

{{Main|Demographics of the Arab Leagueworld}}

In the Arab world, [[Modern Standard Arabic]], derived from [[Classical Arabic]] (symptomatic of Arabic [[diglossia]]), serves as an official language in the Arab League states, and [[varieties of Arabic|Arabic dialects]] are used as lingua franca. Various indigenous languages are also spoken, which predate the spread of the Arabic language. This contrasts with the situation in the wider [[Islamic world]], where, in contiguous Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan, the [[Perso-Arabic script]] is used and Arabic is the primary liturgical language, but the tongue is not official at the state level or spoken as a [[vernacular]]. [[Arabs]] constitute around one quarter of the 1.5 billion [[Muslim]]s in the Islamic world.<ref>{{cite web|title=How Many Muslims Are There in the World?|url=http://islam.about.com/od/muslimcountries/a/population.htm|website=About.com Religion & Spirituality|access-date=28 November 2016|archive-date=26 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181226143553/http://www.oxfordislamicstudies.com/article/opr/t125/e1809?_hi=1&_pos=1%20|url-status=dead}}</ref>

There are also some [[Christianity|Christian]] adherents in the Arab world, particularly in [[Egypt]], [[Syria]], [[Lebanon]], [[Iraq]], [[Jordan]], and [[State of Palestine|Palestine]]. [[CopticSmall Church|Coptic]], [[Maronite Church|Maronite]] and [[Assyriannative Christian]] enclavescommunities existcan inbe the Nile Valley, Levant and northern Iraq respectively. There arefound also numbersthroughout ofthe [[AssyrianArabian people|AssyrianPeninsula]], and [[Armenians|ArmenianNorth Africa]],.<ref [[Termsname="PharesIntro">*{{cite forweb|first=Walid|last=Phares|author-link=Walid Syriac ChristiansPhares|Syriac]]url=https://www.arabicbible.com/for-christians/christians/1396-[[Aramean]] and [[arab-christians-introduction.html|title=Arab Christians]]: throughoutAn Iraq,Introduction|publisher=Arabic Syria,Bible LebanonOutreach and Jordan, many of which have diminished due to various regional conflicts.Ministry|year=2001}}

Smaller ethno-religious minorities across the Arab League include the [[Yezidis]], [[Yarsan]] and [[Shabak people|Shabaks]] (mainly in Iraq), the [[Druze]]s (mainly in Syria and also in Lebanon, Jordan)<ref>{{cite book|title=Middle East Patterns: Places, People, and Politics| first=Colbert C. |last= Held|year= 2008| isbn= 9780429962004| page =109|publisher=Routledge|quote= Worldwide, they number 1 million or so, with about 45 to 50 percent in Syria, 35 to 40 percent in Lebanon, and less than 10 percent in Israel. Recently there has been a growing Druze diaspora.}}</ref> and [[Mandaeans]] (in Iraq). Formerly, there were significant minorities of [[Jews]] throughout the Arab World. However, the [[Arab–Israeli conflict]] prompted their mass [[Jewish exodus from Arab countries|exodus]] between 1948 and 1972. Today small Jewish communities remain, ranging anywhere from just 10 in [[Bahrain]], to more than 1,000 in [[Tunisia]] and some 3,000 in [[Morocco]]. Historically, [[History of slavery in the Muslim world|slavery in the Muslim world]] developed out of [[Pre-Islamic Arabia|pre-Islamic]] [[Arab slave trade|practices of slavery in the Arab world]].<ref name="Lewis">Lewis 1994, [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/med/lewis1.html Ch.1] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010401012040/http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/med/lewis1.html |date=1 April 2001 }}</ref><ref>Bernard Lewis, ''Race and Color in Islam,'' Harper and Yuow, 1970, quote on page 38. The brackets are displayed by Lewis.</ref>

===GenderFilm equalityindustry===

Table of largest cities in the Arab world by official [[city propersproper]]s:<ref>{{cite web|title=Demographia World Urban Areas|url=http://www.demographia.com/db-worldua.pdf|publisher=Demographia|accessdateaccess-date=20 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040330085700/http://www.demographia.com/db-worldua.pdf|archive-date=30 March 2004|url-status=live}}</ref>

!class=unsortable|Image

| 67,960,000

| 19487250 ADBC

| 1833 AD<ref>{{cite web |title=History of Dubai |url=http://www.dubai.ae/en/aboutdubai/Pages/DubaiHistory.aspx |website=dubai.ae |publisher=[[Government of Dubai]] |accessdateaccess-date=5 August 2019}}</ref>

[[File:Great Mosque of Kairouan Panorama - Grande Mosquée de Kairouan Panorama.jpg|thumb|upright=1.45|right25|The [[Mosque of Uqba|Great Mosque of Kairouan]] (also called the Mosque of Uqba), was founded in 670 by the Arab general and conqueror Uqba ibn Nafi.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sm0BfUKwct0C&pg=PA248&dqq=kairouan+oldest+mosques+arab+world#v=onepage&q&fpg=falsePA248 |title=Hans Kung, ''Tracing the Way: Spiritual Dimensions of the World Religions'', éd. Continuum International Publishing Group, 2006, p. 248 |date=31 August 2006 |accessdateaccess-date=17 October 2011|isbn=9780826494238 |last1=KngKüng |first1=Hans |publisher=A&C Black }}</ref> The [[Mosque of Uqba|Great Mosque of Kairouan]] is located in the historic city of [[Kairouan]] in [[Tunisia]].]]

The [[Arab people|Arabs]] historically originate as a [[Central Semitic languages|Central Semitic]] group in thesouthern [[Levant]] and northern [[Arabian peninsula]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=al-Jallad |first1=Ahmad |title=Ancient Levantine Arabic: A Reconstruction Based on the Earliest Sources and the Modern Dialects |year=2012 |publisher=ProQuest LLC |isbn=9781267445070 |url=https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED547427}}</ref> Arab tribes and federations such as [[Nabataeans]], [[Tanukhids]], [[Salihids]], [[Ghassanids]], and numerous other groups were prevalent in southern Levant ([[Syrian Desert]]) and northern Arabia. Their expansion beyond Arabia and the [[Syrian desert]] is due to the [[Early Muslim conquests|Muslim conquests]] of the 7th and 8th centuries. [[MesopotamiaIraq]] (modern Iraq) was conquered in 633, [[Levant]] (modern Syria, Israel, Palestine, Jordan, and Lebanon and tine) between 636 and 640 CE.

When the Ottoman Empire collapsed as a result of [[World War I]], much of the Arab world came to be controlled by the European colonial empires: [[Mandatory Palestine]], [[Mandatory Iraq]], [[British protectorate of Egypt]], [[French protectorate of Morocco]], [[Italian Libya]], [[French occupation of Tunisia|French Tunisia]], [[French colonization of Algeria|French Algeria]], [[French Mandate offor Syria and the Lebanon]] and the so-called [[Trucial States]], a British protectorate formed by the sheikhdoms on the former "Pirate Coast".

The [[Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen]] also seceded directly from the Ottoman Empire in 1918. [[Oman]], apart from brief intermittent Persian and Portuguese rule, has, been self-governing since the 8th century.

The Al-Saud had been in exile in [[Ottoman Iraq]] since 1893 following the disintegration of the Second Saudi State and the rise of [[Emirate of Ha'il|Jebel Shammar]] under the [[Rashidi dynasty|Al Rashid]] clan. In 1902, Ibn Saud recaptured [[Riyadh]], the Al Saud dynasty's former capital. He went on to subdue the rest of [[Nejd]], [[Al-Ahsa Oasis|Al-Hasa]], [[Jebel Shammar]], [[Asir]], and [[Hejaz]] (location of the [[Islam|Muslim]] holy cities of [[Mecca]] and [[Medina]]) between 1913 and 1926. The resultant polity was named the [[Kingdom of Nejd and Hejaz]] from 1927 until it was further consolidated with Al-Hasa and [[Qatif]] into the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 1932.

An [[Egypt–Israel Peacepeace Treatytreaty]] was signed in 1979.

====Iraq–IranIran–Iraq War====

{{mainMain|Iran–Iraq War}}

The [[Western Sahara War]] was an armed struggle between the Sahrawi Polisario Front and Morocco between 1975 and 1991, being the most significant phase of the Western Sahara conflict. The conflict erupted after the withdrawal of Spain from the Spanish Sahara in accordance with the Madrid Accords, by which it transferred administrative control of the territory to Morocco and Mauritania, but not the sovereignty. In 1975, Moroccan government organized the Green March of some 350,000 Moroccan citizens, escorted by around 20,000 troops, who entered Western Sahara, trying to establish Moroccan presence.

While at first met with just minor resistance by the Polisario, Morocco later engaged a long period of guerilla warfare with the Sahrawi nationalists. During the late 1970s, the Polisario Front, desiring to establish an independent state in the territory, successively fought both Mauritania and Morocco. In 1979, Mauritania withdrew from the conflict after signing a peace treaty with the Polisario. The war continued in low intensity throughout the 1980s, though Morocco made several attempts to take the upper hand in 1989–1991. A cease-fire agreement was finally reached between the Polisario Front and Morocco in September 1991.

Various factions began competing for influence in the power vacuum that followed, which precipitated an aborted UN peacekeeping attempt in the mid-1990s. A period of decentralization ensued, characterized by a return to customary and religious law in many areas as well as the establishment of autonomous regional governments in the northern part of the country. The early 2000s saw the creation of fledgling interim federal administrations, culminating in the establishment of the [[Transitional Federal Government]] (TFG) in 2004.<ref name="Eanbkois2"/>

In 2006, the TFG, assisted by Ethiopian troops, assumed control of most of the nation's southern conflict zones from the newly formed [[Islamic Courts Union]] (ICU). The ICU subsequently splintered into more radical groups, notably [[Al-Shabaab (militant group)|Al-Shabaab]], which have since been fighting the Somali government and its [[AMISOM]] allies for control of the region. In 2011, a coordinated military operation between the Somali military and multinational forces began, which is believed to represent one of the final stages in the war's Islamist insurgency.<ref name="Eanbkois2">{{cite news|url=http://www.voanews.com/english/news/africa/East-African-Nations-Back-Kenyan-Offensive-in-Somalia-132374053.html|agencypublisher=Voice of America|title=E. African Nations Back Kenyan Offensive in Somalia|first=Peter|last=Heinlein|date=22 October 2011|accessdateaccess-date=23 October 2011}}</ref>

{{Main|Arab Spring|Libyan Civil War|Syrian Civilcivil Warwar}}

The [[Persian Gulf]] is particularly well-endowed with this strategic [[raw material]]: five Persian Gulf states, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, the UAE, Kuwait, and Qatar, are among the top ten petroleum or gas exporters worldwide. In Africa, Algeria (10th world) and Libya are important gas exporters. In addition Bahrain, Egypt, Tunisia, and Sudan all have smaller but significant reserves. Where present, these have had significant effects on regional politics, often enabling [[rentier state]]s, leading to economic disparities between oil-rich and oil-poor countries, and, particularly in the more sparsely populated states of the Persian Gulf and Libya, triggering extensive labor immigration. It is believed that the Arab world holds approximately 46% of the world's total proven oil reserves and a quarter of the world's natural-gas reserves.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.economist.com/news/special-report/21580630-even-rich-arab-countries-cannot-squander-their-resources-indefinitely-haves-and|title=The haves and the have-nots|publisher=|vianewspaper=The Economist}}</ref>

A chain of events leading to the destabilization of the authoritarian regimes established during the 1950s throughout the Arab world became apparent during the early years of the 21st century. The [[2003 invasion of Iraq|2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq]] led to the collapse of the [[Baathist]] regime and ultimate [[execution of Saddam Hussein]].

A growing class of young, educated, secular citizens with access to modern media such as [[Al Jazeera Arabic|Al Jazeera]] (since 1996) and communicating via the [[internet]] began to form a third force besides the classical dichotomy of Pan-Arabism vs. Pan-Islamism that had dominated the second half of the 20th century. These citizens wish for reform in their country's religious institutions.<ref>Boms, Nir Tuvia and Hussein Aboubakr. [https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/13/1/28/htm "Religions."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221116161759/https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/13/1/28/htm |date=16 November 2022 }} ''MDPI''. 2022. 20 January 2022.</ref>

After [[World War II]], [[Pan-Arabism]] sought to unite all Arabic-speaking countries into one political entity. Only [[Syria]], [[Iraq]], [[Egypt]], [[Sudan]], [[Tunisia]], [[Libya]] and [[Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen|North Yemen]] considered the short-lived unification of the [[United Arab Republic]]. Historical divisions, competing local nationalisms, and geographical sprawl were major reasons for the failure of Pan-Arabism. [[Arab Nationalism]] was another strong force in the region which peaked during the mid-20th century and was professed by many leaders in Egypt, Algeria, Libya, Syria, and Iraq. Arab Nationalist leaders of this period included [[Gamal Abdel Nasser]] of Egypt, [[Ahmed Ben Bella]] of Algeria, [[Michel Aflaq]], [[Salah al-Din al-Bitar]], [[Zaki al-Arsuzi]], [[Constantin Zureiq]] and [[Shukri al-Kuwatli]] of Syria, [[Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr]] of Iraq, [[Habib Bourguiba]] of Tunisia, [[Mehdi Ben Barka]] of Morocco, and [[Shakib Arslan]] of Lebanon.

Later and current Arab Nationalist leaders include [[Muammar al-Gaddafi]] of Libya, [[Hafez al-Assad]] and [[Bashar al-Assad]] of Syria. The diverse Arab states generally maintained close ties but distinct national identities developed and strengthened with the social, historical and political realities of the past 60 years. This has made the idea of a pan-Arab nation-state increasingly less feasible and likely. Additionally, an upsurge in political Islam has since led to a greater emphasis on pan-Islamic rather than pan-Arab identity amongst some [[Arab Muslims]]<!-- and/or non-Arab Muslims too? -->. Arab nationalists who once opposed Islamic movements as a threat to their power, now deal with them differently for reasons of political reality.<ref>{{cite web|title=Arab Nationalism: Mistaken Identity by Martin Kramer |url=http://www.geocities.com/martinkramerorg/ArabNationalism.htm |archiveurlarchive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091025064830/http://geocities.com/martinkramerorg/ArabNationalism.htm |archivedatearchive-date=25 October 2009 |url-status=live |df=dmy }}</ref>

At other times, kings, [[emir]]s or [[sheikh]]s were placed as semi-autonomous rulers over the newly created [[nation state]]s, usually chosen by the same imperial powers that for some drew the new borders, for services rendered to European powers like [[the British Empire]], e.g. [[Sherif Hussein ibn Ali]]. Many African states did not attain independence until the 1960s from France after bloody insurgencies for their freedom. These struggles were settled by the imperial powers approving the form of independence given, so as a consequence almost all of these borders have remained. Some of these borders were agreed upon without consultation of those individuals that had served the colonial interests of Britain or France. One such agreement solely between Britain and France (to the exclusion of Sherif Hussein ibn Ali), signed in total secrecy until [[Vladimir Lenin|Lenin]] released the full text, was the [[Sykes-Picot Agreement]]. Another influential document written without the consensus of the local population was the [[Balfour Declaration of 1917|Balfour Declaration]].

{{quoteblockquote|The borders, which if you look on the maps of the middle-east are very straight lines, were drawn by British and French draftsmen who sat with maps and drew the lines of the frontiers with rulers. If the ruler for some reason or other moved on the map, because of some person's hand shaking, then the frontier moved (with the hand).<ref name="lawac2004">[{{cite web |url=http://www.lawac.org/speech/2004-05/Halevy%202005.pdf ]|url-status=dead {{webarchive|date=16 April 2015 |title=Winds of Change in the Middle East |last=Halevy |first=Efraim |publisher=Los Angeles World Affairs Council |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101206212247/http://www.lawac.org/speech/2004-05/Halevy%202005.pdf |archive-date=6 December 2010 }}</ref>}}

{{quoteblockquote|There was a famous story about a British consul, a lady named [[Gertrude Bell]] who drew the map between Iraq and Jordan, using transparent paper. She turned to talk to somebody and as she was turning the paper moved and the ruler moved and that added considerable territory to the (new) Jordanians.<ref name="lawac2004"/>}}

{{quoteblockquote|Without that imperial carve-up, Iraq would not be in the state it is in today...Gertrude Bell was one of two or three Britons who were instrumental in the creation of the Arab states in the Middle East that were favourable to Britain.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sundayherald.com/31563 |titledate=Internet3 ArchiveJanuary 2016 |title=Games WaybackWith MachineFrontiers |datework=3Sunday JanuaryHerald 2016|last=Royle |first=Trevor |url-status=dead |archiveurlarchive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030307134402/http://www.sundayherald.com/31563 |archivedatearchive-date=7 March 2003 |df=dmy }}</ref>}}

The Arab states are mostly, although not exclusively, developing economies and derive their export revenues from oil and gas, or the sale of other raw materials. Recent years have seen significant economic growth in the Arab World, due largely to an increase in oil and gas prices, which tripled between 2001 and 2006, but also due to efforts by some states to diversify their economic base. Industrial production has risen, for example the amount of steel produced between 2004 and 2005 rose from 8.4 to 19 million tonnes. (Source: Opening speech of Mahmoud Khoudri, [[Algeria]]'s Industry Minister, at the 37th General Assembly of the Iron & Steel Arab Union, Algiers, May 2006). However even 19 million tons pa still only represents 1.7% of global steel production, and remains inferior to the production of countries like [[Brazil]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.worldsteel.org |title=World Steel Association – Home |publisher=Worldsteel.org |access-date= |accessdate=17 October 2011}}</ref>

The main economic organisations in the Arab World are the [[Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)]], comprising the states in the Persian Gulf, and the Union of the Arab Maghreb (UMA), made up of North African States. The GCC has achieved some success in financial and monetary terms, including plans to establish a common currency in the Persian Gulf region. Since its foundation in 1989, the UMA's most significant accomplishment has been the establishment of a 70007,000&nbsp;km highway crossing North Africa from [[Mauritania]] to [[Libya]]'s border with [[Egypt]]. The central stretch of the highway, expected to be completed in 2010, will cross [[Morocco]], [[Algeria]] and [[Tunisia]]. In recent years a new term has been coined to define a greater economic region: the [[MENA]] region, (standing for "Middle East and North Africa)", is becoming increasingly popular, especially with support from the current US administration.

As of August 2009 it was reported that Saudi Arabia is the strongest Arab economy according to World Bank.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.infoprod.co.il/article/2/283|archiveurlarchive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091130182205/http://www.infoprod.co.il/article/2/283|url-status=dead|title=World Bank: Saudi Arabia, strongest Arab economy|archivedatearchive-date=30 November 2009}}</ref>

[[Saudi Arabia]] remains the top Arab economy in terms of total GDP. It is Asia's eleventh largest economy, followed by [[Egypt]] and [[Algeria]], which were also the second and third largest economies in Africa, (after [[South Africa]]), in 2006. In terms of GDP per capita, [[Qatar]] is the richest developing country in the world.<ref>CIA [[World Factbook]], GDP by country classification</ref>

The total GDP of all Arab countries in 1999 was US$531.2&nbsp;billion.<ref>{{Cite book |last = Lewis |first = Bernard |authorlinkauthor-link = Bernard Lewis |title = The Crisis of Islam |publisher = [[Random House]] |year = 2004 |location = New York City |page = [https://archive.org/details/crisisofislam00bern/page/116 |url = |doi = |id =116] |isbn = 978-0-8129-6785-2 |title-link = The Crisis of Islam }}</ref> By grouping all the latest GDP figures, theThe total Arab world GDP iswas estimated to be worth at least $2.8&nbsp;trillion in 2011.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://english.alarabiya.net/articles/2011/05/05/147980.html |title=Poking at the Beast: How much is the Arab world worth? |work=Alarabiya News |last=El-Shenawi |first=Eman |date=5 May 2011 |access-date=19 August 2021 |url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511195256/http://english.alarabiya.net:80/articles/2011/05/05/147980.html |archive-date=11 May 2011 }}</ref> This is only smaller than the GDP of the US, China, Japan and Germany.

The term "Arab" often connotes{{according to whom|date=September 2023}} the MiddleArabian EastPeninsula, but the larger (and more populous) part of the Arab World is North Africa. Its eight million square kilometers include two of the largest countries of the African continent, [[Algeria]] (2.4&nbsp;million km²) in the center of the region and [[Sudan]] (1.9&nbsp;million km²) in the southeast.{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}} Algeria is about three-quarters the size of [[India]], or about one-and-a-half times the size of [[Alaska]], the largest state in the United States. The largest country in the Arab MiddleWest EastAsia is [[Saudi Arabia]] (2&nbsp;million km²).{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}}

At the other extreme, the smallest autonomous mainland Arab country in North Africa and the Middle East is [[Lebanon]] (10,452&nbsp;km²), and the smallest island Arab country is [[Bahrain]] (665&nbsp;km²).{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}}

Notably, everyEvery Arab country borders a sea or ocean, with the exception of the Arab region of northern Chad, which is completely landlocked.{{Citation needed|date=September 2023|reason=Who says northern Chad is part of the "Arab world"?}} Iraq is actually nearly landlocked, as it has only a very narrow access to the Persian Gulf.{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}}

The political borders of the Arab world have wandered, leaving Arab minorities in non-Arab countries of the [[Sahel]] and the [[Horn of Africa]] as well as in the Middle Eastern countries of [[Cyprus]], [[Turkey]] and [[Iran]], and also leaving non-Arab minorities in Arab countries. However, the basic geography of sea, desert and mountain provides the enduring natural boundaries for this region.{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}}

In the west, it is bounded by the shores of the [[Atlantic Ocean]]. From northeast to southwest, [[Morocco]], [[Western Sahara]] ([[Southern Provinces|mostly]] unilaterally [[annexation|annexed]] by Morocco), and [[Mauritania]] make up the roughly 2,000 kilometers of Arab Atlantic coastline. The southwestern sweep of the coast is gentle but substantial, such that Mauritania's capital, [[Nouakchott]] (18°N, 16°W), is far enough west to share longitude with [[Iceland]] (13–22°W). Nouakchott is the westernmost capital of the Arab World and the third-westernmost in Africa, and sits on the Atlantic fringe of the southwestern Sahara. Next south along the coast from Mauritania is [[Senegal]], whose abrupt border belies the gradient in culture from Arab to indigenous African that historically characterizes this part of [[West Africa]].{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}}

Arab Africa's boundary to the north is again a continental boundary, the [[Mediterranean Sea]]. This boundary begins in the west with the narrow [[Strait of Gibraltar]], the thirteen kilometer wide channel that connects the Mediterranean with the Atlantic to the west, and separates Morocco from [[Spain]] to the north. East along the coast from Morocco are Algeria, Tunisia, and Libya, followed by Egypt, which forms the region's, (and the continent's), northeastern corner. The coast turns briefly but sharply south at Tunisia, slopes more gently southeastward through the Libyan capital of [[Tripoli, Libya|Tripoli]], and bumps north through Libya's second city, [[Benghazi]], before turning straight east again through Egypt's second city, [[Alexandria]], at the mouth of the Nile. Along with the spine of [[Italy]] to its north, Tunisia thus marks the junction of western and eastern Mediterranean, and a cultural transition as well: west of Egypt begins the region of the Arab World known as the [[Maghreb]] include (Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco and Mauritania).{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}}

Historically the 4,000-kilometer Mediterranean boundary has fluttered. Population centers north of it in [[Europe]] have invited contact and Arab exploration—mostly friendly, though sometimes not. Islands and peninsulas near the Arab coast have changed hands. The islands of [[Sicily]] and [[Malta]] lie just a hundred kilometers east of the Tunisian city of [[Carthage]], which has been a point of contact with Europe since its founding in the first millennium BCE; both Sicily and Malta at times have been part of the Arab World. Just across the Strait of Gibraltar from Morocco, regions of the Iberian peninsula were part of the Arab World throughout the [[Middle Ages]], extending the northern boundary at times to the foothills of the [[Pyrenees]] and leaving a substantial mark on local and wider European and Western culture.{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}}

The northern boundary of the African Arab world has also fluttered briefly in the other direction, first through the [[Crusades]] and later through the imperial involvement of [[France]], [[United Kingdom|Britain]], [[Spain]], and [[Italy]]. Another visitor from northern shores, [[Turkey]], controlled the east of the region for centuries, though not as a colonizer. Spain still maintains two small enclaves, [[Ceuta]] and [[Melilla]] (called "Morocco Espanol"), along the otherwise Moroccan coast. Overall this wave has ebbed, though like the Arab expansion north it has left its mark. The proximity of North Africa to Europe has always encouraged interaction, and this continues with Arab immigration to Europe and European interest in the Arab countries today. However, population centers and the physical fact of the sea keeps this boundary of the Arab World settled on the Mediterranean coastline.{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}}

To the east, the [[Red Sea]] defines the boundary between [[Africa]] and [[Asia]], and thus also between Arab Africa and the Arab MiddleWest EastAsia. This sea is a long and narrow waterway with a northwest tilt, stretching 2,300 kilometers from [[Egypt]]'s [[Sinai peninsula]] southeast to the [[Bab-el-Mandeb]] strait between [[Djibouti]] in Africa and [[Yemen]] in Arabia but on average just 150 kilometers wide. Though the sea is navigable along its length, historically much contact between Arab Africa and the Arab MiddleWest EastAsia has been either overland across the Sinai or by sea across the Mediterranean or the narrow Bab al Mendeb strait. From northwest to southeast, Egypt, Sudan, and Eritrea form the African coastline, with Djibouti marking Bab al Mendeb's African shore.{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}}

Southeast along the coast from Djibouti is Somalia, but the Somali coast soon makes a 90-degree turn and heads northeast, mirroring a bend in the coast of Yemen across the water to the north and defining the south coast of the Gulf of Aden. The Somali coast then takes a hairpin turn back southwest to complete the horn of Africa. For six months of the year the [[monsoon]] winds blow from up equatorial Somalia, past Arabia and over the small Yemeni archipelago of [[Socotra]], to rain on [[India]];. theyThey then switch directions and blow back. Hence the east- and especially southeast-coast boundary of Arab Africa has historically been a gateway for maritime trade and cultural exchange with both [[East Africa]] and the subcontinent. The trade winds also help explain the presence of the Comoros islands, an Arab-African country, off the coast of [[Mozambique]], near [[Madagascar]] in the [[Indian Ocean]], the southernmost part of the Arab World.

==NotesReferences==

===General=Sources==

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* [http://www.arableagueonline.org/ Arab League Online]

* [http://www.infosamak.org/english/countries.cfm INFOSAMAK -– Arab world]

* [https://web.archive.org/web/20140207131308/http://www.arabland.com/dir/ ArabLand.com]—Directories — Directories of all Arab Worldworld countries

* [http://www.araboo.com/ Araboo.com]—Arab World— DirectoryArab world directory

* [https://web.archive.org/web/20150723010825/http://www.al-hakawati.net/english/states/index.asp Arab Countriescountries information]

* [https://web.archive.org/web/20140807034239/http://www.winarab.net/ WinArab]—Arab Articles— Arab articles

* [http://www.carboun.com/ Carboun] Information and resources relating to energy, environment, and sustainability in the Arab Worldworld

* {{wikivoyage- inline}}

[[Category:WesternWest Asia]]