subject: The Mediterranean [print this page] The Mediterranean The Mediterranean
The Mediterranean is the name for the sea in southern Europe. It is almost entirely enclosed by land except a small corridor connection, which is only 14 km (9 mi) wide, with the Atlantic Ocean, called the Strait of Gibraltar. On the east part it is connected to the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea, via the Dardanelles and the Bosporus channels. The man-made Suez Canal in the southeast connects it to the Red Sea.
The name Mediterranean comes from the latin mediterraneus (in Greek it is Mesogeios),which means 'inland' or 'in the middle of the earth'. This is due to the fact that it was the center of the known world, but also because it is completely surrounded by land. It is often called the Eurafrican Mediterranean sea or the European Mediterranean sea to distinguish it from other Mediterranean seas. The land around it is called the Mediterranean region, and it refers to Anatolia and Europe on the north side, Africa on the south, and the Levant on the east.
The average depth is 1500 meters (0.93 mi) and the deepest recorded spot is 5267 meters (3273 mi) the Calypso Deep in the Ionian Sea. It covers an area of 2.5 million km.
The history of this region is vital for understanding the origins of many modern societies, because in the ancient times it was the most important route for merchants and travelers for trade and cultural exchange between various nations: the Greek, Mesopotamians, Phoenician, Egyptians, Illyrian, Carthaginian, Illyrian, Slavic, Levantine, Moorish, and Turkish.
