CH 3.

1 GEOGRAPHY AND LIFE IN ARABIA

Name: Jovanna Date: 11/27/12 Per.: 2

A DESERT LAND Arabian Peninsula is mostly a hot and dry desert land. Scorching temperatures and a lack of water make life difficult. Arabias location, physical features, and climate have shaped life in the region. A Crossroads Location

An intersection of three continents - Africa, Asia, and Europe. Trade routes linking the three continents have passed through the regions. Merchants carried goods to trade, this introduced products and ideas to culture and society

Physical Features Arabias location has also shaped its physical features. Such as sand dunes which are hills of sand, and an oasis which is a wet and fertile area in the desert. Landforms appear on the edge of the peninsula.

Desert Climate Arabia is one of the hottest, driest places in the world. Summer temperatures reach 100 F it makes it hard for plants and animals to survive. Yet people found ways to adapt also animals.

TWO WAYS OF LIFE Some people lived a nomadic life, from place to place. Others lived a sedentary, or settled, life in towns. Nomads Lived in tents and raised herds. Animals provided milk, meat, and skin. Nomads traveled with their herds across the desert, and moved when season changed. Membership in a tribe, a group of related people was important to the nomads. Townspeople

These settlements, particularly the ones in oases along the trade routes, become towns. Most people in Arabia lived in towns. Merchants and craftsmen lived there and worked with people in the caravan trade (caravan: is a group of traders that traveled together).

Trade Centers (p. 56-58!) Towns became centers of trade for nomads and townspeople. Many towns had a souk (souk: a market or bazaar). Nomads traded animal products and desert herbs for goods, such as cooking supplies and clothing. Merchants sold spices, gold, leather, and other goods.