﻿THE 
  AEAB 
  VILLAGE 
  COMMUNITY 
  OF 
  THE 
  MIDDLE 
  EAST 
  

  

  By 
  Afif 
  I. 
  Tannous 
  

   Office 
  of 
  Foreign 
  Agricultural 
  Relatiotis, 
  U. 
  S. 
  Department 
  of 
  Agriculture 
  

  

  [With 
  14 
  plates] 
  

   THE 
  REGION 
  AND 
  THE 
  PEOPLE 
  

  

  Despite 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  it 
  consists 
  of 
  five 
  political 
  entities 
  — 
  Palestine, 
  

   Trans-Jordan, 
  Lebanon, 
  Syria 
  and 
  Iraq 
  — 
  the 
  region 
  under 
  considera- 
  

   tion 
  is 
  in 
  reality 
  one 
  cultural 
  unit. 
  Its 
  geographic 
  boundaries 
  are 
  

   determined 
  by 
  the 
  Mediterranean 
  Sea 
  on 
  the 
  west, 
  forming 
  a 
  coast 
  line 
  

   of 
  about 
  750 
  kilometers 
  ; 
  the 
  Sinai 
  and 
  Arabian 
  deserts 
  and 
  the 
  Persian 
  

   Gulf 
  on 
  the 
  south; 
  the 
  Kurdistan 
  Mountains 
  on 
  the 
  east; 
  and 
  the 
  

   Taurus 
  Mountains 
  of 
  Turkey 
  on 
  the 
  north. 
  These 
  boundaries 
  enclose 
  

   an 
  area 
  of 
  about 
  770,000 
  square 
  kilometers 
  (300,000 
  square 
  miles), 
  of 
  

   which 
  not 
  more 
  than 
  85,000 
  square 
  kilometers 
  (32,000 
  square 
  miles) 
  are 
  

   under 
  cultivation 
  by 
  village 
  settlements. 
  The 
  rest 
  of 
  the 
  area 
  consists 
  

   of 
  arid, 
  sandy 
  deserts 
  and 
  semiarid 
  plateaus 
  over 
  which 
  the 
  nomadic 
  

   Bedouins 
  graze 
  their 
  herds. 
  

  

  An 
  interesting 
  variety 
  of 
  topographical 
  and 
  climatic 
  features 
  is 
  en- 
  

   countered 
  as 
  one 
  moves 
  inland 
  from 
  the 
  seashore. 
  A 
  narrow 
  coastal 
  

   plain, 
  with 
  high 
  soil 
  fertility 
  and 
  an 
  altitude 
  of 
  less 
  than 
  100 
  meters 
  

   (about 
  330 
  feet), 
  stretches 
  from 
  the 
  Egyptian 
  frontier 
  in 
  the 
  south 
  to 
  

   the 
  Turkish 
  frontier 
  in 
  the 
  north. 
  In 
  most 
  places 
  the 
  coastal 
  strip 
  

   does 
  not 
  exceed 
  1 
  or 
  2 
  kilometers 
  in 
  width. 
  Parallel 
  with 
  the 
  coast 
  

   and 
  rising 
  abruptly 
  from 
  it, 
  extends 
  a 
  rugged 
  mountain 
  range, 
  reach- 
  

   ing 
  its 
  maximum 
  height 
  of 
  over 
  3,000 
  meters 
  (over 
  10,000 
  feet) 
  in 
  the 
  

   Lebanon 
  section. 
  To 
  the 
  east 
  of, 
  and 
  parallel 
  with, 
  the 
  Lebanon 
  

   Mountains 
  rises 
  the 
  equally 
  rugged 
  but 
  slightly 
  lower 
  Anti-Lebanon 
  

   Range. 
  Between 
  the 
  two 
  ranges 
  lies 
  the 
  high 
  and 
  fertile 
  plateau 
  of 
  

   Bika'. 
  In 
  contrast 
  with 
  these 
  high 
  mountains 
  is 
  the 
  Jordan 
  valley 
  

   depression 
  in 
  Palestine, 
  with 
  an 
  altitude 
  of 
  about 
  100-300 
  meters 
  (330- 
  

   990 
  feet) 
  below 
  sea 
  level. 
  In 
  the 
  northeastern 
  corner 
  of 
  the 
  region 
  

   stands 
  the 
  third 
  significant 
  mountain 
  range, 
  which 
  is 
  a 
  continuation 
  of 
  

   the 
  Taurus 
  and 
  Kurdistan 
  Ranges. 
  The 
  remaining 
  greater 
  portion 
  

   of 
  the 
  region 
  consists 
  of 
  extensive 
  semiarid 
  plains 
  and 
  plateaus. 
  The 
  

   only 
  two 
  extensive 
  river 
  valleys 
  are 
  those 
  of 
  the 
  Tigris 
  and 
  Euphrates, 
  

  

  523 
  

  

  