The Near East is a term commonly used by archaeologists and historians, less commonly by journalists and commentators, to refer to the region encompassing the Levant (modern Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon), Asia Minor (modern Turkey), Mesopotamia (Iraq and eastern Syria), and the Iranian Plateau (Iran, Afghanistan and western Pakistan). The alternative term Middle East — used colloquially and by journalists — is not used by Near Eastern archaeologists and historians due to its vague nature. An alternative non-Eurocentric designation in recent years has been 'Southwest Asia', although this term has yet to achieve widespread use.
Egypt, although part of the African continent, is generally considered to be part of the Near East region. Its inclusion is due to the substantial interactions it has had with other Near Eastern states throughout ancient, medieval and modern times.
See also
The content of this page is retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Near_East under GFDL
