List of Middle East Countries

The Middle East region refers to the countries situated in Western Asia, North Africa and partly in Southeast Europe. The following is the list of Countries in the Middle East include Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, UAE and Yemen.

Middle East Countries 2022

CountryCapitalArea (km2)Population 2021Density (per km2)Nominal GDP, bn (2022)CurrencyOfficial Language
Akrotiri and DhekeliaEpiskopi25418,19572N/AEuroEnglish
BahrainManama7801,501,6351,925$44,169Bahraini dinarArabic
CyprusNicosia9,250888,00596$27.726EuroGreek, Turkish
EgyptCairo1,010,407102,678,136102$435.621Egyptian poundArabic
IranTehran1,648,19585,022,54852$1,739,012Iranian rialPersian
IraqBaghdad438,31741,190,70082.7$297.341Iraqi dinarArabic,Kurdish
IsraelJerusalema20,7709,443,420455$520.703Israeli shekelHebrew
JordanAmman92,30011,098,276120$47.745Jordanian dinarArabic
KuwaitKuwait City17,8204,670,713262$186.610Kuwaiti dinarArabic
LebanonBeirut10,4526,769,000648$19.126Lebanese poundArabic
OmanMuscat212,4604,447,40821$110.127Omani rialArabic
PalestineRamallaha6,2205,227,193840$18.698Israeli shekel, Jordanian dinarArabic
QatarDoha11,4372,799,202245$225.716Qatari riyalArabic
Saudi ArabiaRiyadh2,149,69035,013,41416$1.040.166Saudi riyalArabic
SyriaDamascus185,18018,276,00099$60.043Syrian poundArabic
TurkeyAnkara783,56283,614,362107$692.380Turkish liraTurkish
United Arab EmiratesAbu Dhabi82,8809,503,738115$501.354Emirati dirhamArabic
YemenSana'a527,97030,491,00058$28.134Yemeni rialArabic

Middle East Countries

The term "Middle East" was most likely coined by the British India Office in the nineteenth century. However, Alfred Thayer Mahan, an American naval strategist, used the term “Middle East" in 1902 to classify the territory between “Arabia and India." The Middle East is also known as the "Near East," the "Middle East and North Africa" or "MENA," "Arab World," "Islamic World," and "Muslim World." Thirteen of the eighteen Middle Eastern nations are Arab World. Among the countries of the Middle East, Egypt, Iran and Turkey are the most populous countries. Saudi Arabia is the largest country by area in the Middle East. The largest nation in the Middle East, fifth largest in Asia, and second largest in the Arab World is Saudi Arabia. The Gulf of Aqaba divides it from Israel and Egypt, and it is encircled by Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Yemen, Qatar, Bahrain, Jordan, and Iraq. Only this state has borders on both the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf.

Bahrain is the least populated country in the Middle East as well as smallest country by area. According to the number of speakers, the top six languages in the Middle East are Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Kurdish, Hebrew, and Greek. The Afro-Asiatic language family is represented by Arabic and Hebre. The Middle East is well known for its enormous oil reserves in terms of economy. It is also recognized as the birthplace of the three main world religions: Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. The Middle East has been at the core of numerous global challenges and political concerns due to its economic, religious, and geographic location.

The largest cities in the Middle East are Istanbul(Turkey), Cairo (Egypt), Baghdad (Iraq), Tehran (Iran), Alexandria (Egypt), Riyadh (Saudi Arabia), Ankara (Turkey), Dubai (UAE), Jeddah (Saudi Arabia), and Izmir (Turkey). The Middle East is stunning, fantastical, and draws a wide range of ardent travelers. The Middle East has begun to become more well known due to its abundance of breathtaking mainstream and niche tourist destinations. The Middle East has natural beauty, cities that resemble paradises, and a vibrant community and culture. The most loved tourist destinations in the middle east countries are Petra (Jordan), Amadiya (Iraq) ,Dubai (UAE), Tel Aviv (Israel), Istanbul (Turkey), Doha (Qatar), Isfahan (Iran), Baalbek (Lebanon) Cairo (Egypt), Manama (Bahrain), Abu Dhabi (UAE), Damascus (Syria), Beirut (Lebanon), Erbil (Iraq),and Al Balad (Saudi Arabia)