Ask a 10-year-old where the Arab world starts and stops, and the answer is usually vague. These seven maps fix that.
Map 1: The 22 Arab League countries
From Morocco in the west to Oman in the east. From Syria in the north to Comoros in the south. Stretched across three continents — Africa, Asia, and a tiny bit of Europe (the Canary Islands are Spanish, but Morocco claims Ceuta and Melilla border territory).
Map 2: Rivers and rain
Only three major rivers serve the Arab world: the Nile, the Tigris, and the Euphrates. Most Arab land gets less than 250mm of rain per year — which is why water rights are THE geopolitical story of the region.
Map 3: The Sahara
The world's largest hot desert is almost entirely in Arab countries — Morocco, Algeria, Libya, Egypt, Mauritania, Mali, and Sudan. It's as big as the United States.
Map 4: Oil and gas
The Gulf — Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Iraq — sits on roughly half of the world's proven oil reserves. Libya and Algeria add significant share.
Map 5: The trade routes
The Strait of Hormuz (between UAE and Iran) handles 20% of the world's oil. The Suez Canal handles 12% of global trade. Both are Arab-region chokepoints.
Map 6: Population density
The Nile Delta is one of the most densely populated places on Earth. The Empty Quarter (Rub' al-Khali), a desert shared by Saudi Arabia, UAE, Oman, and Yemen, is one of the least.
Map 7: Dialects
Egyptian Arabic, Levantine Arabic, Maghrebi Arabic, Gulf Arabic, Yemeni Arabic — mutually intelligible at levels ranging from 60% to 95%. Modern Standard Arabic is the common thread.