Encyclopedia of the Middle East

A growing knowledge base of the Middle East: countries, people, organizations, conflicts and history.

Entries: 500
Countries covered: 20/20

Recently revised

Idea, faith or movement · IranZoroastrianismZoroastrianism is an ancient Iranian religion associated with the prophet Zarathustra. Centered on Ahura Mazda and the moral choice between truth and deceit, it shaped pre-Islamic Iran and survives among communities whose religious practice faces legal limits under the Iranian regime.
Person · IsraelZiyad al-NakhalahZiyad al-Nakhalah has led the Islamic Jihad terrorist organization since 2018. A founder of its armed wing, he has cultivated ties with the Iranian regime and called for attacks across Israel.
Idea, faith or movement · IsraelZionismZionism is the Jewish national movement for self-determination in the Land of Israel. Rooted in centuries of attachment to Zion, it organized immigration, community building and political action that culminated in Israel’s independence in 1948.
Person · IsraelZe'ev JabotinskyZe'ev Jabotinsky (1880–1940) founded Revisionist Zionism and Betar, campaigned for a Jewish Legion during World War I, and articulated a doctrine of deterrence in his 1923 essay “The Iron Wall.” His movement shaped Jewish defense before independence and the later Israeli Right.
Person · United Arab EmiratesZayed bin Sultan Al NahyanZayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan ruled Abu Dhabi from 1966 and founded the United Arab Emirates in 1971, serving as its first president until his death in 2004. His record includes the federation’s development and his principal funding of the Zayed Center, which spread Holocaust denial before its closure in 2003.
Place · KurdistanZakhoZakho is a major town in Duhok Province, within the Kurdistan Region of northern Iraq. It was the center of the initial Kurdish safe haven after the Gulf War and has an Aramaic-speaking Jewish heritage.

Entries by country

Index A–Z

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A

C

D

E

F

G

J

L

N

O

P

Q

R

T

U

V

Van, Turkey

W

Y

Z

Topics outside the Middle East link to Encyclopaedia Britannica.