Human geography is the branch of geography dealing with how human activity affects or is influenced by the earth's surface.
Religions:
One of the first things you will be asked in the Middle East is, "What is your religion?". Religion plays a huge part of the dynamics of the Middle East. Some religions that exist in the Middle East are:
Sunni Islam
Jewish
Muslim
Shia Islam
Alawite
Druze
Christianity (with several branches - Maronite, Chaldean, Assyrian, and Coptic which are region-based versions of Christianity)
Judaism
Maronite
Greek Orthodox
Druze
Greek Catholic
Other minority religions
Languages:
The main language spoken in MENA (Middle East and North Africa), is Arabic. This is a rich language filled with a large amount of synonyms for each word. Some other languages spoken in this area are:
Turkish
Farsi
Assyrian
Armenian
Kurdish
Turkmen
Hebrew
English
French
Uzbek
Pashto
Dari
Dining Etiquette
When looking at dining etiquette in the Middle East, there are a few points to be considered:
Seating
Eating
Body
Conversation
The Food
Home/Restaurant
While dining in MENA, you should consider these points to help you go along with they way they eat:
Conversations that are animated and loud
The head of the family or honored guest is normally served first
The eldest person has priority in being served first
If you are enjoying the food, express yourself; it's a form of a compliment
If invited to a restaurant, the host usually pays, and will deny your request to help with the bill
Alcohol Consumption/Foods
When it comes to alcohol, one should not consume it or ask for it. This is Muslim culture which is most of MENA. The exception is when Muslims or non-Muslims offer you alcohol first. The drinking ages in some of the Middle East countries are as follows:
Lebanon - 18
Saudi Arabia - no legal drinking age
Pakistan - 21 (non-Muslims; drinking is prohibited for Muslims)
United Arab Emirates - no legal drinking age (need a license saying you are not Muslim to purchase)
Kuwait - drinking is illegal here
Iraq - no legal drinking age (must have a license stating you are not Muslim)
Iran - no legal drinking age (must have a license stating you are not Muslim)
Jordan - 18
Indonesia - 21
Morocco - no legal drinking age
Israel - 18
Dubai - 21 (depending on the nightclub, you might need to be 25)
The Muslim religion has a ban on drinking alcohol. Therefore, if you are non-Muslim in a predominately Muslim area, you would need at license stating you are not of that religion to purchase alcohol or consume it. The drinking ages here are different from the purchasing ages; some of them are higher/lower. Countries that are mostly Muslim usually don't have a drinking age because no one there is allowed to drink; it's considered "illegal" to their religion.
People in the Middle East have diverse food choices. White and wheat rice are preferred as staple foods. Barely is widely used as well. Bread is a universal staple - practically eaten at every meal. Lamb and mutton have been favored in the Middle East. Most meat preparations include grilling or kebabs. Cabbage, spinach, and chard are common in this area. Spices are frequently used in this region; cinnamon, cloves, cumin, coriander, and black pepper are the most commonly found.
Clothing
Most people in the Middle East are very conservative dressers. They do not wear revealing clothing, most of the time they are covered from head to toe. You will most likely never see an Arab man in the Middle East wearing shorts unless he is at the beach. Middle Eastern men and women will be found covering their faces/hair most of the time, and they have turbans on their heads. Dressing modestly in the Middle East is very important for both men and women. When going to the Middle East, you should wear clothes that are:
loose fitting
cover your shoulders
capris (women)
scarf (if wanted) should be thrown over the shoulder for a conservative look
longish shorts/pants and a short sleeve shirt (men)
When going to the Middle East, you shouldn't wear:
shorts
short skirts
tank tops
halter tops
tight clothing
These clothes are considered offensive to their culture, and we should respect them, as well as ourselves.
Holidays
The following are holidays celebrated in some of the Middle East countries:
New Years Day, January 1
Moulad, January 13 (prophets birthday)
Iraq Day, December 31
Army Day, January 6
Eid al-Fitr, August 27-30 (end of Ramadan)
Eid al-Adha, October 4
Saudi National Day, September 23
Arafat (Haj) Day, October 4
Al-Hijra (Islamic New Year), October 25
Nowruz, March 21
Republic Day, July 14
Ashoura, November 14
Kind Abdullah's accession to the throne, July 9
Sports
When asked what sport they like to watch on TV the most, 58% of Middle Easters responded with football (American soccer). 17% said swimming, and 15% said martial arts/wrestling. When they asked which sport they like to participate in, football and swimming came out on top. Here are a list of some sports played here:
Football (American soccer)
Swimming
Tennis
Basketball
Rugby
Golf
Martial Arts/Wrestling
Motorsports
Volleyball
Powerboating
Snooker
The Middle East has a rich selection of sports played here, but football is a dominant sport watched and played here. One of the most watched TV shows is the FIFA World Cup.
Movies
The Middle East has a variety of movies that are alike and dislike those of America. Here is a list of famous movies watched in the Middle East:
Waltz With Bsahir
Wadjda
Paradise Now
Control Room
The Syrian Bride
Children of Heaven
Turtles Can Fly
The White Balloon
A Separation
Captain Abu Raed
Some of the movies above are like the ones we watch in America. A lot of Middle East movies have terrorism involved, and they get banned. There are many movies that have been banned because of terrorism and offensive comments towards the government and others.
Symbols
The Middle East has many ancient symbols that make people here curios. Most of them do not know the actual meaning and history behind these symbols. This is a list of some Middle East symbols and their meanings: Ankh: This is the Egyptian cross of life. Its other name was Key of the Nile, because the sacred marriage between the God and the Goddess was supposed to take place at the Nile each year before the flood. This represents the union of the male and female sexual symbols; a female oval surrounding a males cross. In hieroglyphics the Ankh means "life". Evil Eye Amulet: This symbol is widely used in Turkey to ward off the "evil eye". The evil eye is a jealous look cast at someone that has power to bring misfortune. The amulet's purpose is to ward it off. The traditional colors for this charm are shades of blue and white. This represents water and its life-giving properties. Falcon: The god Horus, who was the archetype for the pharaohs, often appeared in Egyptian art as a falcon, or a man with a falcon head. Falcon mummies have been found at ancient cemeteries. Funeral ceremonies of Pharaohs often included the release of a live falcon, depicting the dead king's soul flying away to the after-life. Sphinx: The picture of a Sphinx usually associated with the Egyptian goddess Hathor and her role as the lioness/destroyer. When the sun god, Ra, grew older, he became fearful of his enemies and asked Hathor to help him. She took on the role and enjoyed the killing. Ra started fearing she would kill the entire human race, so he had red dye mixed in ale and spread about the land. Hathor drank it because she thought it was blood and became intoxicated. She forgot her job and the human race was saved. Winged Sun Disk: This symbol is very old. This image became the primary picture of the sun god, Ra. He was named the Sun of Righteousness with healing in his wings, a title which Christians adopter later for their own god. The sun disk was carved on many Egyptian temples and tombs, and it appears on many papyri. Below are some pictures of the symbols mentioned above:
Music and Dance
The Middle East has some diverse music choices. They also have different instruments here that we are not used to seeing or playing. Some instruments played in the Middle East are as follows:
Oud
Harp
Qanoun
Riq
Finger Cymbals
Doumbek
Rhaita
Zurnas
Kaval
Bamboo Reed Pipes
Mey
Middle Eastern music can sound strange to an Americans ears a first. The notes and tones of the music often lie a quarter-tone apart, rather than a half step. Their music also includes complex rhythms, use of improvisation and ornamentation, and a call and response form. This is very different from the type of music we are used to hearing. Dancing here literally embodies the music; different body parts move to different rhythms. The dancers job is to increase the audience's awareness of the music, while at the same time expressing the emotions behind it. Colorful fabrics and shiny beads can be found on a Middle Eastern dancer's body. One dancing style common here is belly dancing, and music to this kind of dance can be found below.