Levant
The Levant is an approximate historical geographical term referring to an area in Southwest Asia south of the Taurus Mountains roughly bounded by the Mediterranean Sea in the west, and the Zagros Mountains in the east. It generally does not include Asia Minor, (except at times Cilicia), the Caucasus Mountains, or any part of the Arabian Peninsula. Sometimes the Sinai is included. The area is sometimes called the Near East.The term "Levant", from (Latin levare to rise), refers to the direction of the rising sun, from the perspective of Greek and Roman peoples. The similarity to "Lebanon" is just casual.
The term first began to appear in English in the 16th century, along with the first English merchant adventurers in the region and is typically only used in conjunction with prehistoric or early historical references (similar to "Mesopotamia", a territory which the Levant includes), as when discussing the Crusades.
The name Levantines was applied to people of Italian (Venetians and Genoese), French or of other Mediterranean origin who lived in Asia Minor during the time that area had been conquered by the Ottoman Empire. These people were for the majority descendants of the Crusader States or traders.
See also: Turkey, Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Egypt, Syria, Lebanon; History of Levant
Levante was also used in Spanish for a region in the Mediterranean coast covering today's Comunidad Valenciana and RegiÃÂón de Murcia. They are on the East from Madrid.
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