fertile crescent

The Fertile Crescent is a crescent-shaped region in the Middle East that stretches from the Persian Gulf through Mesopotamia and Palestine to the Nile River valley. It includes parts of modern-day Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, southeastern Turkey, western Iran, and sometimes Cyprus and northern Egypt. This area is historically significant as the location where some of the world's first settled farming and early civilizations, such as Sumer in Mesopotamia, arose around 8000 BCE. The region was fertile and agriculturally productive due to the presence of major rivers like the Tigris, Euphrates, and Jordan, supporting the development of irrigation, writing, the wheel, and other early technological advances. The Fertile Crescent is often referred to as "the cradle of civilization" because it was a key birthplace of many foundational aspects of human culture and society.