Deck 7: Southwest Asia and North Africa

Question 1

The geography of human populations across Southwest Asia and North African demonstrate the ties between what resource and life in this part of the world?

A)timber
B)oil
C)agriculture
D)water
E)natural gas

Answer 1

D

Question 2

What is the approximate population of Southwest Asia and North Africa?

A)1 billion
B)200 million
C)500 million
D)700 million
E)100 million

Answer 2

C

Question 3

What is Southwest Asia and North Africa most likely NOT to face as a result of global climate change?

A)Warmer average temperatures will likely increase evaporation and lower moisture throughout the region
B)Sea level changes will threaten farmlands in the Nile Delta
C)Hydroelectric potential could be significantly reduced
D)An increase in crop yields due to the increase in precipitation forecast for the region
E)There will be an increase in heat-related deaths, especially in urban areas

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Which of the following resources will prove to be of critical value for Southwest Asia and North Africa in the coming decades?

A)petroleum
B)coal
C)iron ore
D)uranium
E)water

Question 5

The famous Aswan High Dam is located in which nation?

A)Iran
B)Lebanon
C)Iraq
D)Egypt
E)Turkey

Question 6

Which country of Southwest Asia and North Africa has made efforts to preserve its famed "cedars" forestlands in recent years?

A)Turkey
B)Iran
C)Lebanon
D)Libya
E)Iraq

Question 7

Development of the upper Tigris and Euphrates rivers by this country could threaten water supplies in Iraq and Syria.

A)Jordan
B)Turkey
C)Lebanon
D)Israel
E)Iran

Question 8

What does the acronym OPEC stand for?

A)Oil and Petroleum Exporting Corporation
B)Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries
C)Organization of Petroleum Energy Countries
D)Oil Producing and Exporting Countries
E)Organized Petrochemical and Energy Countries

Question 9

From the perspective of which world region is Southwest Asia and North Africa the "Middle East"?

A)Sub-Saharan Africa
B)Europe
C)Latin America
D)East Asia
E)Australia and Oceania

Question 10

What countries comprise the Maghreb of Southwest Asia/North Africa?

A)Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia
B)Libya, Egypt, Tunisia
C)Western Sahara, Algeria, Libya
D)Algeria, Libya, Egypt
E)Tunisia, Libya, Egypt

Question 11

Which of the following is NOT considered a chokepoint within the Middle East?

A)Dead Sea
B)Suez Canal
C)Bab-el-Mandeb
D)Strait of Hormuz
E)Dardanelles

Question 12

What is physiological density?

A)a population statistic that relates the number of people in a country to the amount of arable land
B)a population statistic that relates the number of people in a country to the amount of food harvested
C)a population statistic that relates the number of people in a country to the number of farmers
D)a population statistic that relates the number of people in a country to the amount land in that country
E)a population statistic that relates the number of people in a country to the number of doctors

Question 13

The Atlas Mountains dominate the topography of which nation?

A)Egypt
B)Iran
C)Saudi Arabia
D)Turkey
E)Morocco

Question 14

Which animal is most to blame for the loss of forests in Southwest Asia and North Africa?

A)goats
B)the gypsy moth
C)horses
D)cows
E)camels

Question 15

Which of the following cities in Southwest Asia and North Africa receives the highest amounts of annual precipitation?

A)Baghdad, Iraq
B)Tehran, Iran
C)Istanbul, Turkey
D)Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
E)Cairo, Egypt

Question 16

The buildup of toxic salts in the topsoil where desert lands are subjected to extensive irrigation is known as

A)fossil water
B)hydropolitics
C)toxicology
D)salinization
E)groundwater

Question 17

By what name is the large peninsula of Turkey, located wholly in Asia, known?

A)Levant
B)Middle East
C)Anatolia
D)Maghreb
E)Persia

Question 18

Which nation in the region has made huge investments in the development of deep-water wells to extract fossil water?

A)Iraq
B)Egypt
C)Saudi Arabia
D)Iran
E)Libya

Question 19

Which country in Southwest Asia & North Africa has seen a rapid decline in fertility rates in the last two decades?

A)Turkey
B)Egypt
C)Saudi Arabia
D)Iran
E)Iraq

Question 20

When narrow waterways are vulnerable to military blockade or disruption it is called a

A)military checkpoint
B)choke point.
C)hydropolitics.
D)fossil water.
E)desalination.

Question 21

The largest source region for migrant workers entering Saudi Arabia is

A)Iran
B)East Asia (ex. China, Japan, South Korea)
C)Israel
D)South and Southeast Asia (ex. India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Philippines)
E)Africa

Question 22

Which of the following places is NOT located in the Fertile Crescent of North Africa and Southwest Asia?

A)Morocco
B)eastern Turkey
C)northeastern Syria
D)Lebanon
E)northern Iraq

Question 23

Which of the following statements is TRUE regarding the population pyramids of Egypt and Iran?

A)Iran has a younger population than Egypt.
B)Iran is growing faster than Egypt.
C)Egypt is growing faster than Iran.
D)Egypt and Iran are growing at roughly the same rate.
E)Women have more children in Iran than do women in Egypt.

Question 24

Hosni Mubarak was overthrown as the leader of which nation in 2011?

A)Iraq
B)Libya
C)Turkey
D)Iran
E)Egypt

Question 25

What is the Hajj?

A)the sacred book of Islam
B)the pilgrimage to the Holy Land that many Christians make during their lifetime
C)the pilgrimage to the Western Wall in Jerusalem that many Jews make during their lifetime
D)the pilgrimage to Muhammed's birthplace (Makkah)that every Muslim is supposed to make during his or her lifetime
E)the month-long fast that Muslims must undertake each year

Question 26

Which of the following statements most accurately describes the pattern of domestication in Southwest Asia and North Africa?

A)Experimentation with wild wheat and barley 10,000 years ago was accompanied simultaneously by domestication of cattle, sheep, and goats, which eventually led to establishing farming villages.
B)Experimentation with wild wheat and barley 5,000 years ago was accompanied simultaneously by domestication of cattle, sheep, and goats, which led to the establishment of farming villages.
C)Experimentation with wild wheat and barley 10,000 years ago led to farm settlements and domestication of cattle, sheep, and goats.
D)Experimentation with wild cattle, sheep, and goats 10,000 years ago led to pastoral nomadism, and later to domestication of wheat and barley and the establishment of farm settlements.
E)Experimentation with wild wheat and barley 5,000 years ago was accompanied simultaneously by domestication of cattle, sheep, and goats. Farming villages and pastoral nomadism developed together.

Question 27

You would be most likely to see a Shiite Muslim in which country?

A)Cyprus
B)Turkey
C)Egypt
D)Morocco
E)Iran

Question 28

Which of the following religions arose in North Africa/Southwest Asia?

A)Shinto
B)Buddhism and Hinduism
C)Judaism, Christianity, and Islam
D)Hinduism and Sikhism
E)Animism

Question 29

An influx of foreign workers into the United Arab Emirates has had what demographic impact?

A)it has created an extraordinary gender imbalance with far more males than females
B)a rise in birth rates
C)a rise in the elderly population
D)a decrease in birth rates
E)a rise in birth rates and an extraordinary gender imbalance with far more females than males

Question 30

What world region has been a "powerful draw" as a destination of migration for people in Southwest Asia and North Africa who are looking for opportunity?

A)Australia and Oceania
B)the Russian Domain
C)Europe
D)North America
E)East Asia

Question 31

People making a Hajj (pilgrimage)to Makkah (Mecca)and Medinah (Medina)must travel to which country of Southwest Asia and North Africa?

A)Israel
B)Jordan
C)Egypt
D)Saudi Arabia
E)Iraq

Question 32

What religion was the first monotheistic religion of Southwest Asia and North Africa?

A)Buddhism
B)Christianity
C)Judaism
D)Baha'i
E)Islam

Question 33

In which contemporary country of Southwest Asia and North Africa is Mesopotamia located?

A)Turkey
B)Iraq
C)Lebanon
D)Syria
E)Iran

Question 34

Which of the following is NOT one of the five pillars of Islam?

A)making charitable contributions
B)fasting during the month of Ramadan between dawn and dusk
C)praying five times a day to Makkah
D)making a pilgrimage to Jerusalem
E)accepting that Muhammed was a prophet

Question 35

What is transhumance?

A)the movement of humans from transition zones of agriculture to more inhabitable lowlands
B)agriculture that relies on evapotranspiration
C)the movement of livestock from urban regions to rural areas where more grass is available for animal consumption
D)agriculture in dry areas, made possible by irrigation
E)seasonal movement of livestock to cooler, greener high-country pastures in the summer and returning them to lowland valleys during the winter

Question 36

What is a medina?

A)The walled urban core of an Islamic city; it is dominated by a central mosque.
B)A mound built on the outskirts of Islamic cities in Southwest Asia and North Africa; it is a burial ground.
C)The name for capital city in Southwest Asia and North Africa.
D)The erosional materials left behind in Southwest Asia and North Africa after ancient lakes and rivers dried up.
E)The temporary settlements of families engaged in pastoral nomadism in Southwest Asia and North Africa.

Question 37

Islam

A)originated in present-day Saudi Arabia.
B)holds that Jesus was a false prophet.
C)began within a few decades of the death of Jesus.
D)originated in Europe.
E)says that there will be many more true prophets in the future.

Question 38

What type of subsistence agriculture depends on the seasonal movement of livestock for their livelihood?

A)pastoral nomadism
B)shifting cultivation
C)pastoralism
D)slash-and-burn
E)plantation agriculture

Question 39

The world's tallest skyscraper is now located in which city?

A)Cairo, Egypt
B)Dubai, United Arab Emirates
C)Istanbul, Turkey
D)Baghdad, Iraq
E)Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Question 40

What nation has had almost half of its entire population displaced by 2016 due to civil war and sectarian conflict?

A)Yemen
B)Syria
C)Iraq
D)Iran
E)Sudan

Question 41

In which part of Israel has some land been returned to Palestinian control, but new Israeli settlements have also been allowed?

A)the Dead Sea
B)Bethlehem
C)Sinai Peninsula
D)Gaza Strip
E)the West Bank

Question 42

Iran was formerly known by what name?

A)Greater Middle East
B)Persia
C)British Palestine
D)Transjordan
E)Ottoman Empire

Question 43

In which country in Southwest Asia and North Africa did the Arab Spring begin?

A)Iraq
B)Tunisia
C)Egypt
D)Israel
E)Lebanon

Question 44

The Sykes-Picot Agreement

A)allowed Europeans to create the modern state of Saudi Arabia
B)proposed English and French spheres of influence within the Middle East as the Ottoman Empire disintegrated
C)allowed for the building of the Suez Canal
D)was signed by Iraq and Iran
E)allowed for Turkey and Iran to become independent of Saudi Arabia

Question 45

You are in Cairo, Egypt. Which language will you most likely hear spoken?

A)Arabic
B)Hebrew
C)Berber
D)Farsi
E)Turkish

Question 46

What percent of the Middle East and North Africa is currently Christian?

A)0)4%
B)94%
C)14%
D)4%
E)40%

Question 47

The three most commonly spoken languages in the Middle East and North Africa are

A)Arabic, Kurdish and Persian (Farsi)
B)Arabic, Kurdish and Hebrew
C)Arabic, Hebrew and Turkish
D)Arabic, Turkish and Persian (Farsi)
E)Arabic, Berber and Turkish

Question 48

In which of the following countries has Saudi Arabia intervened directly to stop a Shiite extremist government from expanding its base of support?

A)Yemen
B)Kuwait
C)Bahrain
D)Oman
E)Iraq

Question 49

Which of the following statements is FALSE regarding the Syrian Civil War?

A)Israeli forces have occupied much of southern Syria to provide a defensive buffer against ISIL expansion
B)ISIL gained control of wide swaths of Syrian territory in the east
C)Syria has witnessed the destruction of many of its cultural and historical landmarks
D)Russia has come to the military aid of the Assad regime
E)millions of Syrians have been displaced and more than 220,000 have been killed as a direct result of the war

Question 50

You will find Berber people in the highland regions of which nation?

A)Cyprus
B)Turkey
C)Egypt
D)Morocco
E)Iran

Question 51

The Houthi militants in Yemen are largely supported by which nation?

A)Israel
B)Russia
C)Egypt
D)Iran
E)Saudi Arabia

Question 52

What was the result of the 1967 Six Day War?

A)Israel and Egypt signed a peace treaty in which they agreed to joint ownership of the Sinai Peninsula
B)Israel gained the Gaza Strip, the Golan Heights and the West Bank
C)the defeat of Israel at the hands of a multilateral Arab invasion force
D)Israel was forced to surrender its claim over Jerusalem
E)the cessation of hostilities between Iran and Iraq

Question 53

Which nation in the region has a deep split between Sunni and Shiite sects of Islam?

A)Turkey
B)Iran
C)Egypt
D)Morocco
E)Iraq

Question 54

Food will be prepared kosher-style in which of the following nations?

A)Egypt
B)Israel
C)Iraq
D)Iran
E)Morocco

Question 55

Which of the following was NOT a root cause of the Arab Spring uprisings which began in 2010?

A)government campaigns to curtail Islamist movements
B)widespread government corruption
C)limited opportunities for democracy and free elections
D)widespread poverty and unemployment, especially among young people
E)rapidly rising food prices

Question 56

Which two bodies of water were connected by the construction of the Suez Canal?

A)Black Sea and the Persian Gulf
B)Mediterranean Sea and Black Sea
C)Mediterranean Sea and Red Sea
D)Black Sea and Red Sea
E)Persian Gulf and Red Sea

Question 57

Which nation in the Middle East has experienced ongoing sectarian violence between Sunni and Shi'ite Muslims since it was occupied by the American military from 2004-2011?

A)Israel
B)Iraq
C)Saudi Arabia
D)Turkey
E)Iran

Question 58

Coptic Christians make up a significant minority of the population of which nation?

A)Iran
B)Turkey
C)Israel
D)Egypt
E)Saudi Arabia

Question 59

Most countries in Southwest Asia and North Africa had achieved independence by which decade?

A)1950s
B)1940s
C)1910s
D)1930s
E)1920s

Question 60

In which city of Southwest Asia and North Africa are there important religious sites for Judaism, Christianity, and Islam?

A)Baghdad, Iraq
B)Istanbul, Turkey
C)Makkah, Saudi Arabia
D)Jerusalem, Israel
E)Damascus, Syria

Question 61

Which country of Southwest Asia and North Africa is the poorest on the Arabian Peninsula?

A)Saudi Arabia
B)Kuwait
C)United Arab Emirates
D)Yemen
E)Dubai

Question 62

Which nation in the region recently inaugurated a major solar power plant called the Noor-1?

A)United Arab Emirates
B)Libya
C)Saudi Arabia
D)Morocco
E)Iran

Question 63

Which nation in the region has the largest reserves of natural gas?

A)Iraq
B)Libya
C)United Arab Emirates
D)Iran
E)Saudi Arabia

Question 64

Saudi Arabia contains approximately percent of the world's known oil supplies.

A)20
B)10
C)5
D)40
E)50

Question 65

Which nation of the Middle East has attempted, albeit unsuccessfully, to gain membership into the European Union?

A)Morocco
B)Israel
C)Lebanon
D)Iran
E)Turkey

Question 66

Which nation in the region has the highest percentage of its GDP on military expenditures?

A)Israel
B)Morocco
C)Egypt
D)Saudi Arabia
E)Iran

Question 67

Which of the following statements is TRUE about the political geography of Iraq?

A)Sunni Arabs dominate southern Iraq while Shi'ite Arabs dominate northern Iraq
B)Kurdish separatists dominate the northern third of Iraq while Sunni Arabs dominate the remainder of Iraq
C)southern Iraq is dominated by separatist Kurdish nationalists, while northern Iraq is largely dominated by Sunni Arabs
D)Kurdish separatists dominate the northern third of Iraq while Shi'ite Arabs dominate the remainder of Iraq
E)Kurdish separatists dominate the northern third of Iraq while Sunni Arabs dominate the central and western part of Iraq, and Shi'ite Arabs are most numerous in the southern half of the country, south of Baghdad

Question 68

Which city in the Middle East has emerged as one of the busiest centers of global air travel?

A)Cairo
B)Istanbul
C)Dubai
D)Beirut
E)Tehran

Question 69

Which nation does not have significant oil reserves?

A)Saudi Arabia
B)Iran
C)Iraq
D)United Arab Emirates
E)Morocco

Question 70

The brain drain

A)is the practice of providing scholarships to students in poor countries, enabling them to study abroad and gain a better education which later upon their return they can utilize their skills in their homeland.
B)is when highly centralized governments actively recruit the best and the brightest individuals for jobs in the national capital, leaving few behind in the villages.
C)occurs in extremely poor nations where there schooling is limited thus preventing school-age children from reaching their potential.
D)is the selective practice of only providing males education after primary school.
E)occurs when bright young people migrate to foreign lands in search of better jobs.

Question 71

The ethnolinguistic region known as Kurdistan straddles the frontier of which three nations?

A)Egypt, Jordan and Israel
B)Iran, Iraq and Turkey
C)Iraq, Syria and Jordan
D)Saudi Arabia, Yemen and Oman
E)Iran, Iraq and Kuwait

Question 72

In what parts of Southwest Asia and North Africa would you expect the least rain to fall? The most? Why?

Question 73

Which two nations in the region gain significant revenue from foreign tourists but have seen the number of visitors fall in recent years due to political instability?

A)Syria and Lebanon
B)Egypt and Turkey
C)Saudi Arabia and Yemen
D)Iran and Iraq
E)Lebanon and Libya

Question 74

Hezbollah is active in which nation of the Middle East?

A)Lebanon
B)Yemen
C)Egypt
D)Saudi Arabia
E)Turkey

Question 75

Which nation has a well-developed IT sector and has become a global center for high-tech computer and telecommunications products?

A)Saudi Arabia
B)United Arab Emirates
C)Kuwait
D)Lebanon
E)Israel

Question 76

This nation, despite its massive oil wealth, scores low on issues dealing with women's rights.

A)Saudi Arabia
B)Israel
C)Jordan
D)Turkey
E)Iran

Question 77

Which nation of the Middle East has been a hotbed of fundamentalist Islam and may have financed anti-American terrorist organizations, including al-Qaeda?

A)Syria
B)Iraq
C)Israel
D)Saudi Arabia
E)Iran

Question 78

The Middle East and North Africa contain 7% of the global population but hold roughly what percent of the world's proven oil reserves?

A)50%
B)5%
C)25%
D)15%
E)85%

Question 79

Which two nations in the region have a very low HDI, with low life expectancies and high infant mortality rates?

A)Saudi Arabia and Oman
B)Algeria and Morocco
C)Israel and Jordan
D)Sudan and Yemen
E)Turkey and Iran

Question 80

Which of two countries of Southwest Asia and North Africa have the most diversified economies, and are not reliant on oil?

A)Turkey and Israel
B)Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates
C)Saudi Arabia and Oman
D)Morocco and Algeria
E)Qatar and Bahrain