Middle East

English

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Middle East

Wikipedia

Etymology

From middle +‎ East formed in English, modeled on Far East and Near East. First use appears c. 1876.

Proper noun

the Middle East

(geopolitics) The geopolitical region at the intersection of Asia, Africa and Europe, comprising West Asia excluding the South Caucasus and additionally including all of Egypt and all of Turkey.
- 2025 May 7, Alayna Treene, “Trump planning to change how US refers to Persian Gulf”, in CNN‎^[1]:
  The expected announcement is tied to his trip to the Middle East next week, where he’ll visit Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, the officials said.
(geopolitics, dated) The region between the Near East and the Far East.
- 1920 April 21, House of Commons, quoting Austen Chamberlain, “Budget proposals, Committee of Ways and Means”, in The Parliamentary Debates, volume 128, page 455:
  Well, what may happen in the Middle East? I agree there are uncertainties, but when he was condemning the policy of the Government with regard to the Turkish peace, had he thought for a moment of the financial effect of the policy which he advocated?

Synonyms

Mideast

Derived terms

Descendants

→ Arabic: الشَّرْق الْأَوْسَط (aš-šarq al-ʔawsaṭ) (calque)
→ Azerbaijani: Orta Şərq (calque)
→ Belarusian: Сярэ́дні Усхо́д (Sjarédni Usxód) (calque)
→ Catalan: Orient Mitjà (calque)
→ Czech: Střední východ (calque)
→ Dutch: Midden-Oosten (calque)
→ French: Moyen-Orient (calque)
→ German: Mittlerer Osten (calque)
→ Greek: Μέση Ανατολή (Mési Anatolí) (calque)
→ Italian: Medio Oriente (calque)
→ Kazakh: Орта Шығыс (Orta Şyğys) (calque)
→ Macedonian: Среден Исток (Sreden Istok) (calque)
→ Norwegian: Midtøsten (calque)
→ Persian: خاورمیانه (xâvar-e-miyâne) (calque)
→ Polish: Środkowy Wschód (calque)
→ Portuguese: Oriente Médio (calque)
→ Romanian: Orientul Mijlociu (calque)
→ Russian: Сре́дний Восто́к (Srédnij Vostók) (calque)
→ Spanish: Medio Oriente (calque)
→ Swedish: Mellanöstern (calque)
→ Turkish: Orta Doğu (calque)
→ Turkmen: Orta Gündogar (calque)
→ Urdu: مَشْرِقِ وُسْطیٰ (maśriq-e vustā) (calque)
→ Uyghur: ئوتتۇرا شەرق (ottura sherq) (calque)
→ Uzbek: Oʻrta Sharq (calque)

Translations

region comprising Western Asia without the South Caucasus and additionally including all of Egypt and all of Turkey

Afrikaans: Midde-Ooste
Albanian: Lindje e Mesme f, Lindja e Mesme f (definite)
Amharic: መካከለኛው ምሥራቅ (mäkakäläñaw məśraḳ)
Arabic: الشَّرْق الْأَوْسَط (ar) m (aš-šarq al-ʔawsaṭ), مَشْرِق m (mašriq)
Hijazi Arabic: الشرق الأوسط m (aš-šarg al-ʔawsaṭ)
Armenian: Մերձավոր Արեւելք (Merjavor Arewelkʻ), Միջին Արեւելք (hy) (Miǰin Arewelkʻ)
Assyrian Neo-Aramaic: ܡܲܕ݂ܢܚܵܐ ܡܸܨܥܵܝܵܐ m (maḏnḥā miṣˁāyā)
Azerbaijani: Orta Şərq
Belarusian: Блі́зкі Усхо́д m (Blízki Usxód), Сярэ́дні Усхо́д m (Sjarédni Usxód)
Bengali: মধ্যপ্রাচ্য (bn) (moddhopracco)
Bulgarian: Бли́зък И́зток m (Blízǎk Íztok)
Burmese: အရှေ့အလယ်ပိုင်းဒေသ (a.hre.a.laipuing:desa.)
Catalan: Orient Mitjà m
Chinese:
Cantonese: 中東 / 中东 (zung¹ dung¹)

Hokkien: 中東 / 中东 (Tiong-tang)

Mandarin: 中東 / 中东 (zh) (Zhōngdōng)
Corsican: Mediu Oriente m
Crimean Tatar: Orta Şarq
Czech: Blízký východ (cs) m, Střední východ m
Danish: Mellemøsten (da) n
Dutch: Midden-Oosten (nl) n
Esperanto: Mezoriento, Meza Oriento
Estonian: Lähis-Ida
Finnish: Lähi-itä (fi)
French: Moyen-Orient (fr) m
Galician: Oriente Medio m
Georgian: ახლო აღმოსავლეთი (axlo aɣmosavleti), შუა აღმოსავლეთი (šua aɣmosavleti)
German: Naher Osten (de) m, Mittlerer Osten m
Greek: Μέση Ανατολή (el) f (Mési Anatolí)
Hebrew: הַמִּזְרָח הַתִּיכוֹן (he) m (ha-mizrákh ha-tikhón)
Hindi: मध्य पूर्व m (madhya pūrv), मध्यपूर्व (hi) m (madhyapūrv)
Hungarian: Közel-Kelet (hu)
Icelandic: Mið-Austurlönd n
Indonesian: Timur Tengah (id)
Irish: an Meánoirthear m
Italian: Medio Oriente (it) m
Japanese: 中東 (ja) (ちゅうとう, Chūtō)
Kalmyk: Өөрхн Дорд үзг (Öörxn Dord üzg)
Kazakh: Орта Шығыс (Orta Şyğys)
Khmer: មជ្ឈិមបូព៌ា (macchɨm boupiə)
Korean: 중동(中東) (ko) (Jungdong)
Kurdish:
Central Kurdish: ڕۆژھەڵاتی ناوەڕاست (rojhellatî nawerrast)

Northern Kurdish: Rojhilata Navîn (ku)
Kyrgyz: Орто Чыгыш (Orto Cıgış)
Lao: ຕາເວັນອອກກາງ (tā wen ʼǭk kāng)
Latin: Oriens Medius m, Medius Oriens m
Latvian: Tuvie Austrumi m
Lithuanian: Viduriniai Rytai m pl
Low German: Nohe Ossen
Macedonian: Близок Исток m (Blizok Istok), Среден Исток m (Sreden Istok)
Malay: Timur Tengah (ms)
Maori: Rāwhiti Waenga
Marathi: मध्यपूर्व m (madhyapūrva)
Mongolian:
Cyrillic: Ойрхи Дорнод (Ojrxi Dornod)
Norman: Mouoyen Orient m
Norwegian:
Bokmål: Midtøsten (no) n

Nynorsk: Midtausten n
Pashto: منځنی ختيځ m (manjanǝy xatij)
Persian:
Iranian Persian: خاوَرِمِیانِه (xâvaremiyâne)
Polish: Bliski Wschód (pl), Środkowy Wschód (pl) m
Portuguese: Oriente Médio (pt) m, Médio Oriente (pt) m
Romanian: Orientul Mijlociu n
Russian: Сре́дний Восто́к m (Srédnij Vostók), Бли́жний Восто́к (ru) m (Blížnij Vostók)
Scottish Gaelic: an Ear Mheadhan f
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: Блиски Исток m, Средњи Исток m

Roman: Bliski Istok m, Srednji Istok m
Slovak: Blízky východ m, Stredný východ m
Slovene: Bližnji vzhod m, Srednji vzhod m
Sotho: Botjhabela Bohare
Spanish: Oriente Medio (es) m, Medio Oriente (es) m
Swedish: Mellanöstern (sv) n
Tagalog: Gitnang Silangan
Tajik: Ховари Миёна (Xovar-i Miyona)
Tatar: Урта Көнчыгыш (Urta Könçığış)
Thai: ตะวันออกกลาง (th) (dtà-wan-ɔ̀ɔk-glaang)
Tibetan: ཤར་གླིང་དབུས་མ (shar gling dbus ma)
Tigrinya: ማእከላይ ምብራቕ (maʾkälay məbrax̣)
Turkish: Orta Doğu (tr)
Turkmen: Orta Gündogar
Ukrainian: Сере́дній Схід m (Serédnij Sxid), Бли́зький Схід m (Blýzʹkyj Sxid)
Urdu: مَشْرِقِ وُسْطیٰ m (maśriq-i vustā)
Uyghur: ئوتتۇرا شەرق (ottura sherq)
Uzbek: Oʻrta Sharq
Vietnamese: Trung Đông (vi) (中東)
Welsh: Dwyrain Canol m
Yiddish: מיטעלער מיזרח m (miteler mizrekh), מיטל מזרח m (mitl mizrekh)

References

“Middle East, n.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, March 2002.