Middle Eastern studies (sometimes referred to as
Near Eastern studies) is a name given to a number of academic programs associated with the study of the history, culture, politics, economies, and geography of the
Middle East, an area that is generally interpreted to cover a range of nations including
Israel,
Lebanon,
Palestine,
Jordan,
Egypt,
Iraq,
Iran,
Turkey,
Syria,
Saudi Arabia,
Yemen, and
Oman. It is considered a form of
area studies, taking an overtly interdisciplinary approach to the study of a region. In this sense Middle Eastern Studies is a far broader and less traditional field than classical
Islamic Studies.