agricultureVillage farming began to spread across Southwest Asia shortly after 10,000 bp, and in less than 1,000 years settled farming cultures were widespread in the region. Notably, the intensive harvesting of wild grains first appeared well before the Epipaleolithic Period. At the Ohalo II site in Israel (c. 23,000 bp), a small group of Upper Paleolithic people lived in brush shelters and...
physiographySouthwest Asia, like much of southern Asia, is made up of an ancient platform—the northern fragments of Gondwanaland—in which sloping plains occur in the marginal downwarps. Its principal components are the Arabian Peninsula and Mesopotamia.
prehistoric migration centresThe two primary prehistoric centres from which migrations of modern human populations over the continent took place were Southwest Asia and a region comprising the Mongolian plateaus and North China.
religionSouthwest Asia (the Middle East) is the cradle of three great monotheistic systems: Judaism and its offshoots Christianity and Islam. Judaism, founded in the eastern Mediterranean region some 4,000 years ago, posits a covenant relationship between God—the source of divine law—and humankind. Most Asian Jews now live in Israel, although there are small Jewish communities in various...
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