Ryder Ethnic Groups Cloze Notes

Ethnic Group
• This is a group of people who share a common culture.

• They are identified on the basis of religion, race , or national origin.
• Ethnic groups can have many things in common:
• Shared history, common ancestry , language, religion,
traditions, beliefs, holidays, food, etc.
• These characteristics have been part of their community for

Generations.
• All of these things make up a common culture that is shared by the
members of the ethnic group.
• Three major ethnic groups in the Middle East are the Arabs, Persians, and
Kurds.
Religious Group
• This is a group of people who share a belief system.
• .A religious group is identified based on common religious beliefs and
practices.
• They believe in the same gods (or gods) and have a common sacred text with a
specific set of rules about how to live.
• Religious groups have many things in common:

• God(s), prophets, prayers, history, sacred
, religious laws, holy days, etc.
• People from different ethnic groups may share the same religion; however,
they may be from different.
• Three major religious groups in the Middle East are Jews, Muslims,
and Christians.
ARABS
Location
• The majority of people in the Middle East are Arabs .
• Arabs also live in the United States, Canada, parts of northern Africa, and
Europe.
Ancestry
• Arabs of Southwest Asia believe themselves to be descendants of
Abraham through his son Ishmael.
• Arabs make up the Majority of the people who live throughout the Middle East.
© Brain Wrinkles
Religion
• Most Arabs practice Islam, while small numbers of Arabs practice other
religions.
• Not all Arabs are Muslims, and not all Muslims, are Arabs.
• Islam consists mostly of t wo dif f erent groups .
• The majority of Muslims practice Sunni Islam, and most others practice
Shi’a Islam.
• Sunnis and Shi’a disagree about who is in charge of the Muslim world.
• Sunni Islam dominates in most Arab areas, especially in North Africa .

• Shi’a Islam is dominant among the Arab population in southern Iraq, Lebanon,
Kuwait, Bahrain, northern Syria, & northern Yemen.
Language
• Most Arabs, whether they are Muslim or Christian, speak Arabic.
PERSIANS
Location
• Most Persians live in Iraq and make up about half of Iran’s current population.
• The country of Persia became known as Iran in 1935 .
• Some Persians can also be found living in Afghanistan, Tajikistan,
Uzbekistan, Pakistan, and the Xinjiang province of China.
Ancestry
• The Persians lived in Iran before the arrival in Islam in the 7th century.
• The Persians’ ancestors were Indo-Europeans who migrated from central
Europe and Southern Russia and formed a great empire.
Religion
• Most Persians in Iran practice Shi’a Islam, but some are Sunni and other
religions.
• Persian women have faced many challenges as a result of strict cultural and
religious practices.
Language
• Persians speak a language called Farsi (or Persian).
• It is one of the oldest languages that is still spoken today!
© Brain Wrinkles
KURDS
Location
• The Kurds are an ethnic group that originated as a semi-nomadic, people.
• Kurds now live in the mountains of Turkey, Syria, Iraq, and Iran.
• Kurds form almost 20% of the population of the population.
• Many Kurds live in an area of northern Iraq called Kurdistan (not a
separate country).
• The Kurds are the largest ethnic group in the without a country of their own.
• There is a strong nationalist movement among the Kurds for their own
nation.
• This has caused conflict with the countries in which Kurdish people live, and
Iraq and Turkey have both Suppressed the Kurds and their traditions.
Ancestry
• Kurds of Southwest Asia believe themselves to be descendants of the
Medes, an ancient Iranian people.
• In fact, Kurds share many aspects of their culture with Iranians.
Religion
• Like the Arabs, the Kurds are overwhelmingly Muslim, and the great
majority are Sunni; only 5% are Shi’a.
• Kurdish Muslims tend to be less strict about certain Islamic practices.
• For example, there are fewer laws for how Kurdish women should
dress than there are for Iranian and Arab women.
Language
• Kurdish is an Indo-European language related to Farsi
(Persian) and other Iranian languages.
• There are many different dialects of Kurdish spoken throughout Southwest
Asia.
© Brain Wrinkles

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Ethnic Group

• This is a group of people who share a common culture.

• These characteristics have been part of their community for

• Religious groups have many things in common:

• Sunni Islam dominates in most Arab areas, especially in North Africa .

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