Map of the Middle East, Circa 1914
The region prior to the outbreak of World War I. After the war, modern Middle Eastern states had their borders arbitrarily drawn by European powers.
The maps presented below are only a few that could be used in learning and teaching about Israel and the Middle East.
CIE wishes to thank Aliza Cramer Elias and her team at the Institute for Curriculum Services for allowing CIE to promote the use of the maps that they produced, found here in English and in Spanish.
Diplomacy and war reflect the changing contours of states and borders along the evolution of Israel and the modern Middle East. We wish to thank the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs for allowing us to use some of their published maps. Others were made for CIE use.
Max Fisher has assembled 40 maps of the Middle East from ancient times to the present, each with a brief introduction. This is a first-rate collection with almost no noticeable bias and with a devotion to accuracy.
In addition, Michael Izady’s collection, the Gulf2000 project, focuses on eight countries of the Persian/Arabian Gulf. Izady also lists other map collections, including the Library of Congress, rich in historical items.
The University of Texas also has a fine collection of Middle East maps, most of them drawn from the public-domain collection created by the CIA.
Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs provides contemporary and historical maps of Israel and its neighborhood.
For Spanish-language maps, please click here.
For Hebrew-language maps, please click here.
Map of the Levant Under Ottoman Rule Through World War I
This map shows the Ottoman Empire’s administrative districts before World War I broke out in August 1914 in areas that today are Israel, Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon, Jordan, Syria and part of Iraq.
Map of Sykes-Picot Agreement, 1916
A map showing the Russian-French-English secret agreement that carved up the Middle East into future areas of interest.
Map of San Remo Agreement, 1920
The European agreement that identified the states of the Middle East, 1920.
Map of Peel (Partition) Report for Arab and Jewish States, 1937
A map shows the partition of Palestine proposed by the Peel Commission in 1937.
Mapping West Bank Settlements: Territorial and Political Uncertainties, 2020
Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu has repeatedly declared that he will be putting forward his proposal for West Bank annexation as early as July 1. Yet uncertainties about his plans still abound, indicating that this timetable may not be met despite his assertions to the contrary.
