Saudi ArabiaSaudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the Arab world, and the largest in West Asia and the Middle East. It is bordered by the Red Sea to the west; Jordan, Iraq, and Kuwait to the north; the Persian Gulf, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates to the east; Oman to the southeast; and Yemen to the south.
SheikhSheikh (pronounced ʃeɪk or ʃiːk ; شيخ DIN ʃajx, commonly ʃeːx, plural شيوخ DIN ʃujuːx) is an honorific title in the Arabic language, literally meaning "Elder"; in a monarchical context it is also translated as "Lord/Master". It commonly designates a chief of a tribe or a royal family member in Arabian countries, or a Muslim religious scholar. It is also used as an honorary title by people claiming to be descended (either patrilineally or matrilineally) from Hasan ibn Ali or Husayn ibn Ali, grandsons of the Islamic prophet Muhammad.
CaliphateA caliphate or khilāfah (خِلَافَة, xi'laːfah) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with the title of caliph (ˈkælɪf,_ˈkeɪ-; خَلِيفَة xæ'liː'fæh, ), a person considered a political-religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of the entire Muslim world (ummah). Historically, the caliphates were polities based on Islam which developed into multi-ethnic trans-national empires.
BedouinThe Bedouin, Beduin, or Bedu (ˈbɛduɪn; بَدْو, singular بَدَوِي badawī) are pastorally nomadic Arab tribes who have historically inhabited the desert regions in the Arabian Peninsula, North Africa, the Levant, and Mesopotamia. The Bedouin originated in the Syrian Desert and Arabian Desert but spread across the rest of the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa after the spread of Islam. The English word bedouin comes from the Arabic badawī, which means "desert dweller", and is traditionally contrasted with ḥāḍir, the term for sedentary people.
AxumAxum, or Aksum (pronounced: ˈɑːkˈsuːm), is a town in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia with a population of 66,900 residents (as of 2015). It is the site of the historic capital of the Aksumite Empire, a naval and trading power that ruled the whole region in addition parts of West Asia as Saudi Arabia, and Yemen. It ruled the region from about 400 BCE into the 10th century. Axum is located in the Central Zone of the Tigray Region, near the base of the Adwa mountains.
Arab worldThe Arab world (اَلْعَالَمُ الْعَرَبِيُّ al-ʿālam al-ʿarabī), formally the Arab homeland (اَلْوَطَنُ الْعَرَبِيُّ al-waṭan al-ʿarabī), also known as the Arab nation (اَلْأُمَّةُ الْعَرَبِيَّةُ al-ummah al-ʿarabīyyah), the Arabsphere, or the Arab states, comprises a vast group of countries, mainly located in West Asia and North Africa. While the majority of people in the Arab world are ethnically Arab, there are also significant populations of other ethnic groups such as Berbers, Kurds, Somalis and Nubians, among other groups.
Strait of HormuzThe Strait of Hormuz (hɔrˈmuːz تنگه هرمز Tangeh-ye Hormoz , مَضيق هُرمُز Maḍīq Hurmuz, or مَضيق باب السلام Madīq Bab Al Salam ["the door of peace"]) is a strait between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. It provides the only sea passage from the Persian Gulf to the open ocean and is one of the world's most strategically important choke points. On the north coast lies Iran, and on the south coast lies the Musandam peninsula, shared by the United Arab Emirates and Musandam Governorate, an exclave of Oman.
Arabian DesertThe Arabian Desert (ٱلصَّحْرَاء ٱلْعَرَبِيَّة) is a vast desert wilderness in Western Asia that occupies almost the entire Arabian Peninsula. It stretches from Yemen to the Persian Gulf and Oman to Jordan and Iraq. It occupies most of the Arabian Peninsula, with an area of . It is the fifth largest desert in the world, and the largest in Asia. At its center is Ar-Rub' al-Khali (The Empty Quarter), one of the largest continuous bodies of sand in the world. It is an extension of the Sahara Desert.
MyrrhMyrrh (mɜːr; from an unidentified ancient Semitic language, see § Etymology) is a gum-resin extracted from a number of small, thorny tree species of the genus Commiphora. Myrrh resin has been used throughout history as a perfume, incense and medicine. Myrrh mixed with posca or wine was widely used in many ancient cultures to produce pleasurable feelings and as an analgesic. When a wound on a tree penetrates through the bark and into the sapwood, the tree secretes a resin. Myrrh gum, like frankincense, is such a resin.
Fatimid CaliphateThe Fatimid Caliphate was an Ismaili Shi'a caliphate extant from the tenth to the twelfth centuries AD. Spanning a large area of North Africa, it ranged from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Red Sea in the east. The Fatimids, a dynasty of Arab origin, trace their ancestry to Muhammad's daughter Fatima and her husband ‘Ali b. Abi Talib, the first Shi‘a imam. The Fatimids were acknowledged as the rightful Imams by different Isma‘ili communities, as well as by denominations in many other Muslim lands and adjacent regions.
