Middle East patterns : places, peoples, and politics

Now in its fifth edition, Middle East Patterns continues to be the most comprehensive and authoritative geographical study of the region. New coauthor John Thomas Cummings joins Colbert C. Held in updating this classic work while retaining the well-received framework of past editions. The authors first cover the Middle East from a topical perspective, considering the region's biophysical, ethnographic, economic, and geopolitical patterns, and then provide in-depth country-by-country coverage. The fifth edition maintains the book's distinctive focus on geography, natural resources, and land-use patterns while integrating updated comparative material on development economics and political economy throughout the book, as well as new sections on terrorism and piracy and the effects of development on women's health issues. Richly illustrated with more than 100 photos and 60 maps, this acclaimed book remains the best accessible resource for students and general readers who seek to understand the spatial dynamics of the Middle East.

pt. 1. Physical and cultural geography -- Tricontinental junction: an introduction -- The face of the Earth -- Patterns of time: historical-geographical foundations -- Patterns of peoples, cultures, and settlements -- The desert and the sown: land use -- Riches beneath the earth -- Manufacturing and transportation -- The Earth and the state: geopolitics -- pt. 2. Regional geography -- Syria: Middle East heartland -- Lebanon and Cyprus: a mountain and an island -- Jordan: the land beyond and between -- Israel, Palestine and the disputed territories -- Iraq: modern Mesopotamia -- Saudi Arabia: development in the desert -- The Gulf and its oil states -- Oman and Yemen: the southern fringe -- Egypt: a river and a people -- Turkey: bridgeland in Anatolia -- Iran: complex republic on the plateau -- Glossary -- Geological time chart.