The Southwest Asia reference article from the English Wikipedia on 24-Apr-2004
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Southwest Asia

A map showing Southwest Asia - The term Enlarge

A map showing Southwest Asia - The term "Middle East" is more often used to refer to both Southwest Asia and some North African countries

Southwest Asia, or West Asia, is the southwestern part of Asia.

The region is sometimes considered synonymous with the Middle East, but usually the term Middle East includes North African countries and the part of Egypt in North Africa. Geographers that were annoyed with the ambiguity of the term "Middle East" tried to popularize the word "Southwest Asia", but with little success. The government and media in India use "West Asia" to refer to the region.

The countries and territories in Southwest Asia include:

Sometimes the following countries are defined as in Southwest Asia: Anatolia, Levant, and Mesopotamia are subregions of Southwest Asia.

For the history of countries in Southwest Asia, see History of the Middle East