Islam is the dominant religion in the Middle East. Christianity and Judaism also have their origins in the region. The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi. Historically, several religions have been practiced by the communities in the Middle East such as Zoroastrianism, Samaritanism, and Manichaeism.
The great religion in Arab countries is, of course, Islam. But Islam is also divided into different sub groups. The largest group are the Sunnis, who form the majority in many Arab countries. In addition to the Sunnis there are many smaller groups, such as the Shiites.
The group that is mostly forgotten when talking about religions in Arab countries is that of Christians. There are several groups of Christians in Arab countries, and wars in these countries have led to the deportation, murder or flight of Christians to America. In the case of Syria, a few Christians have come to Europe.
What Languages Are Spoken In The Middle East? 1 Arabic. 2 Hebrew. 3 Turkish. 4 Persian. 5 Russian. 6 English.
Persian . Another language commonly spoken in the Middle East is Persian which is primarily spoken in Iran and in several countries that border the country. More than 100 million people speak the Persian language all over the world. In the Middle East, Iran is the only nation that uses Persian as its official language.
Arabic . One of the most commonly spoken languages in the Middle East is Arabic which is native to the region. Some of the nations where Arabic is most widely spoken include Iraq, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia. Some Arabic dialects are spoken throughout the region with Modern Standard Arabic being the official language in several countries.
One of the most commonly spoken Hebrew dialects is Samaritan Hebrew which is primarily used by the Samaritans in their religious activities. Other dialects emerged as a result of the interaction between Hebrew and other languages such as Spanish, Russian and Arabic.
One of the main ways through which Hebrew spread throughout the Middle East is by the intermarriage of the native speakers and other communities.
Some Arabic dialects are spoken throughout the region with Modern Standard Arabic being the official language in several countries. Historical evidence indicates that Arabic originated in the region and was primarily spoken by nomadic communities. Arabic spread throughout the Middle East as a result of intermarriage between ...
The Middle East is one of the most linguistically diverse regions with more than 60 languages being spoken in the region including Arabic, Greek, and Kurdish. Most of the languages spoken in the Middle East are native to the region while others were introduced from other parts of the world.
The Middle East is a geographical region comprised of 17 nations that cover territory in both Asia and Africa. The region spans an area of roughly 2,782,860 square miles, and in 2010 it was home to more than 370 million people. The Middle East is one of the most linguistically diverse regions with more than 60 languages being spoken in ...
The most widespread religion in the Middle East is Islam. Apart from being the largest religion in the Middle East, it is also one of the largest religions in the world. Research indicates that close to 94% of Middle East's population belonged to Islam.
In the modern era, the Middle East is considered to be a religiously diverse region due to a large number of religions, both major and minor, that are practiced in the region. The Middle East is also home to a significant number of people who are not affiliated with any religious group.
Globally, there are less than 100,000 practitioners of the religion. The practices and beliefs of Mandaeism are similar to those of other religions practiced in the Middle East such as Christianity and Judaism. Joseph Kiprop May 22 2019 in Society.
The two main sects of Islam, Shia Islam and Sunni Islam, are widely practiced in the Middle East with Sunni Islam having a larger following of the two.
The spread of Islam is closely linked with the history of the Middle East as the converts established some caliphates with their own laws based on Islamic law. In the modern era, most of the nations in the Middle East also use Islamic law as the basis of their legal system. The two main sects of Islam, Shia Islam and Sunni Islam, ...
Judaism. Judaism, which also traces its roots to the region, is also practiced in the Middle East. Judaism is considered to be the most ancient of the Abrahamic faiths. Some of the central figures in Judaism such as Abraham and Sarah were believed to have lived within present-day Iraq. Another Middle Eastern country that is often mentioned in ...
During the early 20 th century, Christians accounted for only 20% of the region's populations. The only Middle Eastern nation that has a Christian majority is Cyprus where more than 70% of the country's population is made up of Christians. The most popular Christian denomination in Cyprus is Eastern Orthodox Christianity with the Greek residents ...
Middle Eastern worldviews and basic religious thought. The concept of the sacred. Views of man and society. Views of basic values and ends of human life. Myths as the basic mode of religious thought. Association of religion with the arts and sciences. The role of magic. Religious practices and institutions.
Middle Eastern religion, any of the religious beliefs, attitudes, and practices developed in the ancient Middle East(extending geographically from Iranto Egypt and from Anatolia and the Aegean Seato the Arabian Peninsulaand temporally from about 3000 to 330 bc, when Alexander the Greatconquered much of the area).
The Roman poet Virgil’sAeneidand Ecloguesreflect Egyptian, Semitic, and Anatolian, as well as Greek, antecedents. The Greek biographer Plutarch’sDe Iside et Osiride (“Concerning Isis and Osiris”) is still the best description of the Egyptian mythof Isis and Osiris and of the cult of the dead.
The Greek satirist Lucian’sDe Dea Syra(“Concerning the Syrian Goddess”) is of enduring value for an understanding of Canaanite religion. The writings of Herodotus, the 5th-century-bcGreek historian, remain an indispensable source for the cultural history and religion of the ancient Middle East.
A fragment (dating from about 1400 bc) of that Babylonian epic has been found at Megiddoin Israel, showing that the Mesopotamian version was current in Palestine before the Hebrews, under Joshua, conquered the land about 1200 bc.
While this article treats only those religions of Middle Eastern antiquity that have not survived to modern times, special attention is given in the introduction to their role as antecedentsof the major Western religions (i.e.,Judaism, Christianity, and Islām), all of which originated in the region.
And owing to the discovery of texts from Ugarit, the Homeric epic of the Greeks is now firmly linked to Middle Eastern literature. The HebrewBibleis still the most important single source for knowledge of the ancient Middle East, reflecting life from Egypt to Iran, and from the Bronze Agebeginnings to the Hellenistic Age.
The group that is mostly forgotten when talking about religions in Arab countries is that of Christians. There are several groups of Christians in Arab countries, and wars in these countries have led to the deportation, murder or flight of Christians to America. In the case of Syria, a few Christians have come to Europe.
The great religion in Arab countries is, of course, Islam. But Islam is also divided into different sub groups. The largest group are the Sunnis, who form the majority in many Arab countries. In addition to the Sunnis there are many smaller groups, such as the Shiites.
The “Arab Spring” led to Islamisation and suppressed other religions such as the Copts in Egypt and the Yazidis, especially in northern Iraq and northern Syria. Today there are few or no Jews left in many Arab countries, most having emigrated to Israel. ——————————————————————————————————————————–. Sunnis (ahl as-sunna / أهل السنة): Sunnis form ...
Christians are divided into different groups. Catholics and Protestants are familiar names, of course. In Egypt Copts were one of the most important Christian groups. In addition to the Christian groups, there are also smaller groups of religious communities, such as the Yazidis. Today, many Yazidis have emigrated to other countries.
Sunnis (ahl as-sunna / أهل السنة): Sunnis form a majority of Muslims in most Muslim countries (with the exception of Iran, Iraq, Oman, Lebanon and Bahrain). Sunnis accept the successors of the caliphs after Muhammad’s death.
As with any people, the Arabs look to the past for their sense of identity. Arab history is tied to tribalism and the nomadic life of the desert. Although in most places the nomadic lifestyle has all but disappeared, the influence of the desert and especially the importance of tribal identity are still prominent today.
Tribal life in the desert helps explain many of the characteristics of modern day Middle East such the food that is eaten and clothing that is worn. It is also the root of many of the values that people place importance upon such as ancestry, pride, loyalty and honour.
3. Family First. One of the characteristics of many family-centred cultures is that of favouritism and nepotism.
Political elites in the Middle East exploit religion, using sectarianism as a means to keep the religious factions to which they adhere in power, and to maximise their control of wealth and political influence. Religious texts and narratives of historical victimhood and grievances, and even conspiracy theories, are used to further this end.
Sectarianism remains a powerful political, social and cultural force, and the source of most conflicts in the Middle East. Many of the current conflicts in the region have deep historical roots – most notably the ongoing Arab-Israeli conflict and the Sunni-Shi’a division.
In a region where dictatorship, sectarianism and sectarian politics are often the main contributors to conflict and violence, plans to democratise and empower human rights frameworks in the Middle East will take time, but are the only lasting way forward for this troubled region.
Following the Arab Spring, the debate on whether or not Islam is compatible with human rights forced many governments in the region to introduce important reforms, particularly in Egypt and Saudi Arabia. However, the general trend is still slow or resistant to change in the entire region.
The Arab Spring reignited a debate within the Middle East and in academic circles about the universality of human rights and their compatibility, or incompatibility, with culture and religion. Although the Arab Spring was marked by the rise of Political Islam movements, it also opened the door to discussions on topics that had long been taboo, ...
There remains an urgent need for radical reforms, especially in the fields of freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) and women’s rights, to contain and hopefully reverse the rapid deterioration and destabilisation which is not only affecting the Middle East, but the entire international community also. In a region where dictatorship, sectarianism and ...
Despite the fact that the three ‘Abrahamic Religions’ – Judaism, Christianity and Islam – share many spiritual and cultural similarities, the relationship between these religions in the Middle East has been shaped by competition, conflict and resentment. In the case of the Sunni-Shi’a divide, intolerance and violence remain ...