The Middle East (also known as the "Near East" by Europeans) is the area of Southwest Asia. The Balkan states (areas near Greece) were once considered to be part of the Ottoman Empire but have since been stripped of their "Middle East" association. The Ottoman Empire touches five major bodies of water, the Caspian, Black, Mediterranean, and Red Seas, as well as the Persian Gulf.

Most Middle Eastern empires, (the Ottomans were no exception) had the chief parts of their population within a few miles from river valleys. The major rivers in the Middle East are the Nile (in Egypt) and the Tigris-Euphrates Rivers (in present day Turkey, Syria, and Iraq). Most river transport in those times was "one-way." Rivers' currents were generally too strong to sail against. The Nile River was the one exception, which partially explains why the Egyptians were particularly powerful in ancient times.

The...