Near East
The
Near East is a term commonly used by
archaeologists,
geographers and
historians, less commonly by journalists and commentators, to refer to the region encompassing the
Levant (modern
Israel, the
Palestinian territories,
Jordan,
Syria and
Lebanon),
Turkey,
Mesopotamia (
Iraq and eastern
Syria). The alternative term
Middle East â€" preferred in political and economic contexts â€" is not used by Near Eastern archaeologists and historians. An alternative non-Eurocentric designation in recent years has been '
Southwest Asia', although this term has yet to achieve widespread use.
Egypt, although part of the
African
continent, is generally considered to be part of the Near East region. Its inclusion is due to the substantial interactions it has had with other Near Eastern states throughout ancient, medieval and modern times.
In
Europe, "Near East" is the preferred term due to the evident geographical proximity.
*
Middle East*
Southwest Asia*
Ancient Near East*
Far East*
Orient
