Mediterranean Sea

Mediterranean Sea
The shores were settled in prehistoric times. Ever since, many people have entered the region from the continental interiors, mixed
their physical and cultural traits

The Mediterranean is the world's largest inland sea. It lies between the continents of Europe and Africa and is bounded on the east by the westernmost stretches of Asia. Its length is about 4,025 km (2,500 mi); its average width, 805 km (500 mi); and its area, about 2,965,500 km² (1,145,000 mi²). The greatest depth, 5,092 m (16,706 ft), is in the Matapan Trench of the Ionian Basin. The mean depth is about 1,525 m (5,000 ft).

The name is derived from the Latin medius ("middle") and terra ("earth," or "land"), indicating that the sea was once believed by the civilizations of that region to be at the center of the world. Bordering the Mediterranean are, counterclockwise, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Israel, Lebanon, Syria, Turkey, Greece, Albania, Montenegro, Bosnia and Hercegovina, Croatia, Slovenia, Italy, Monaco, France, and Spain.

Island states within the sea are Malta and Cyprus. Other large islands, from west to east, are the Balearic Islands, Corsica, Sardinia, Sicily, and Crete, lying in the Ligurian, Tyrrhenian, Adriatic, Ionian, and Aegean seas. The Mediterranean is linked to the Atlantic Ocean by the Strait of Gibraltar, to the Black Sea by the Turkish straits (Dardanelles and Bosporus), and to the Red Sea by the Suez Canal.

The Mediterranean shores were settled in prehistoric times. Ever since, many people have entered the region from the continental interiors, mixed their physical and cultural traits, and developed new ones.

The entire coastline and continental shelves are littered with the ruins of earlier civilizations, some of which developed into great empires, expanding far beyond the basin itself. For millennia, the products of the region have been exported throughout the known world, and the Mediterranean countries have in turn served as a vast receiving house for staples and luxury goods. Because of its critical location at the juncture of three continents, and because of the "stepping-stone" islands, the many fine harbors, and the rich cities and countries on its shores, the Mediterranean Sea has long been of strategic importance. The Strait of Gibraltar, the Turkish straits, and the Suez Canal are among the world's most important marine passageways.

Mediterranean
history, economy, environment, more...

Mediterranean
Mediterranean Brief History Mediterranean Sea Environment
Economy
Geology and Climate
Strait of Gibraltar
Crete
Sicily
Sardinia
Corsica
Balearic Islands