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80-720: The Zanclean flood or Zanclean deluge is theorized to have refilled the Mediterranean Sea 5.33 million years ago. This flooding ended the Messinian salinity crisis and reconnected the Mediterranean Sea to the Atlantic Ocean, although it is possible that even before the flood there were partial connections to the Atlantic Ocean. The re-connection marks the beginning of the Zanclean age which

160-554: A ria as far inland as Aswan , some 900 km (560 mi) upstream from the modern coast. The Zanclean flood resulted in the final isolation of numerous Mediterranean islands such as Crete , resulting in speciation of animals found there. On the other hand, the formation of the Gibraltar Strait prevented land animals from crossing over between Africa and Europe. Further the reconnection allowed sea animals such as cetaceans and their ancestors and pinnipeds to colonize

240-693: A flood from the Mediterranean into the Black Sea through the Bosporus . In his book Historia Naturalis , Pliny the Elder mentions a legend that Hercules dug the Straits of Gibraltar between the Mediterranean and the Atlantic Ocean, connecting the two. The actual Zanclean flood theory however only arose during the 1970s, when it became clear that salt deposits and a widespread erosion surface in

320-561: A mix of Mediterranean and Atlantic species. The Alboran Sea is habitat for the largest population of bottlenose dolphins and the last population of harbour porpoises in the western Mediterranean, and is the most important feeding grounds for loggerhead sea turtles in Europe. The Alboran sea also hosts important commercial fisheries , including sardines and swordfish . In 2003, the World Wildlife Fund raised concerns about

400-515: A period of some 600,000 years during the Messinian salinity crisis before being refilled by the Zanclean flood about 5.3 million years ago. The Mediterranean Sea covers an area of about 2,500,000 km (970,000 sq mi), representing 0.7% of the global ocean surface, but its connection to the Atlantic via the Strait of Gibraltar —the narrow strait that connects the Atlantic Ocean to

480-535: A thousand times larger than the discharge of the Amazon River and ten times as much as the Missoula floods . This flood would have descended a relatively gentle ramp into the Mediterranean basin, not as a giant waterfall . Later simulations using more explicit geography constrain the flow to about 100 sverdrup, which is about 100,000,000 cubic metres per second (3.5 × 10 cu ft/s). They further indicate

560-413: Is 284 m (932 ft) at its deepest point, and the deeper Espartel Sill farther west. The narrowest part of the strait is located east of either sill, and it is considerably deeper than the sills. It is possible that these sills were formed after the flood through gravity-induced movement of neighbouring terrain. The Zanclean flood caused a major change in the environment of the Mediterranean basin;

640-720: Is 5,109 ± 1 m (16,762 ± 3 ft) in the Calypso Deep in the Ionian Sea . It lies between latitudes 30° and 46° N and longitudes 6° W and 36° E . Its west–east length, from the Strait of Gibraltar to the Gulf of Alexandretta , on the southeastern coast of Turkey , is about 4,000 kilometres (2,500 mi). The north–south length varies greatly between different shorelines and whether only straight routes are considered. Also including longitudinal changes,

720-619: Is a calque of the Latin name, from μέσος ( mésos , "in the middle") and γήινος ( gḗinos , "of the earth"), from γῆ ( gê , "land, earth"). The original meaning may have been 'the sea in the middle of the earth', rather than 'the sea enclosed by land'. Ancient Iranians called it the "Roman Sea", and in Classical Persian texts , it was called Daryāy-e Rōm (دریای روم), which may be from Middle Persian form, Zrēh ī Hrōm (𐭦𐭫𐭩𐭤 𐭩 𐭤𐭫𐭥𐭬). The Carthaginians called it

800-582: Is known as al-Baḥr [al-Abyaḍ] al-Mutawassiṭ ( البحر [الأبيض] المتوسط ) 'the [White] Middle Sea'. In Islamic and older Arabic literature, it was Baḥr al-Rūm ( بحر الروم ) or al- Baḥr al-Rūmī ( بحر الرومي ) 'the Sea of the Romans' or 'the Roman Sea' or Baḥr al-šām ( بحر الشام ) or al-Baḥr al-šāmī ( البحر الشامي ) ("the Sea of Syria"). At first, that name referred only to the eastern Mediterranean, but

880-656: Is the name given to the earliest age on the geologic time scale of the Pliocene . According to this model, water from the Atlantic Ocean refilled the dried-up basin through the modern-day Strait of Gibraltar . Ninety percent of the Mediterranean Basin flooding occurred abruptly during a period estimated to have been between several months and two years, following low water discharges that could have lasted for several thousand years. Sea level rise in

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960-486: Is uncertain, with one possibility being a flood around 5.33 million years ago; the end of the Messinian / Miocene and beginning of the Zanclean / Pliocene is usually associated with the flood. The main Zanclean flood may have been preceded by an earlier smaller flood event, and the presence of deep sea terraces has been used to infer that the refilling of the Mediterranean occurred in several pulses. Complete refilling of

1040-576: The African and Eurasian Plates when the Tethys Ocean closed. Reoccurring earthquakes at a depth of about 600 km (370 mi) indicate that this subduction is ongoing and that complex interactions between the lithosphere and mantle are forming the region. The internal zones are made of Late Paleozoic to Triassic rocks that were piled up during the Tertiary and has been extended since

1120-589: The Alboran Channel before splitting into several branches that end in the Algero-Balear basin. The channel has a U-like shape in its starting region, which is consistent with its formation during a giant flood. The formation of the channel mobilized about 1,000 cubic kilometres (240 cu mi) of rock, which was deposited in the Alboran Sea in the form of giant submarine bars. The sector of

1200-747: The Algeciras Basin . The infilling of the basin created tectonic stresses, which would have influenced the development of the Apennine Mountains . Similar floods have occurred elsewhere on Earth throughout history; examples include the Bonneville flood in North America, during which Lake Bonneville overflowed through Red Rock Pass into the Snake River Basin , and the Black Sea deluge hypothesis that postulates

1280-510: The Black Sea . In Persian, the name was translated as Baḥr-i Safīd , which was also used in later Ottoman Turkish . Similarly, in 19th century Greek, the name was Άσπρη Θάλασσα ( áspri thálassa ; "white sea"). According to Johann Knobloch, in classical antiquity , cultures in the Levant used colours to refer to the cardinal points: black referred to the north (explaining the name Black Sea ), yellow or blue to east, red to south (e.g.,

1360-515: The Ionian Sea through Sicily and the Noto submarine canyon offshore Avola ; the spillover flood had a magnitude comparable to the flood in the Strait of Gibraltar. The rates at which the Mediterranean filled during the flood were more than enough to trigger substantial induced seismicity . Resulting large landslides would have sufficed to create large tsunamis with wave heights reaching 100 m (330 ft), evidence of which has been found in

1440-624: The Italian Lakes (Po). While the Mediterranean watershed is bordered by other river basins in Europe, it is essentially bordered by endorheic basins or deserts elsewhere. The following countries are in the Mediterranean drainage basin while not having a coastline on the Mediterranean Sea: The following countries have a coastline on the Mediterranean Sea: Several other territories also border

1520-735: The Italian city-states like Amalfi and Genoa before the Crusades, according to the Cairo Geniza documents. A document dated 996 mentions Amalfian merchants living in Cairo . Another letter states that the Genoese had traded with Alexandria . The caliph al-Mustansir had allowed Amalfian merchants to reside in Jerusalem about 1060 in place of the Latin hospice . The Crusades led to

1600-520: The Paratethys north of the Mediterranean. The Zanclean flood occurred when the Strait of Gibraltar opened. Tectonic subsidence of the Gibraltar region may have lowered the sill until it breached. The exact triggering event is not known with certainty; faulting or sea level rise are debatable. The most widely accepted hypothesis is that a stream flowing into the Mediterranean eroded through

1680-715: The Punic Wars in the 3rd and 2nd centuries BC, the Roman Republic defeated the Carthaginians to become the preeminent power in the Mediterranean. When Augustus founded the Roman Empire , the Romans referred to the Mediterranean as Mare Nostrum ("Our Sea"). For the next 400 years, the Roman Empire completely controlled the Mediterranean Sea and virtually all its coastal regions from Gibraltar to

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1760-641: The Red Sea ) and white to west. That would explain the Bulgarian Byalo More , the Turkish Akdeniz , and the Arab nomenclature described above, lit. "White Sea". Major ancient civilizations were located around the Mediterranean. The sea provided routes for trade, colonization, and war, as well as food (from fishing and the gathering of other seafood) for numerous communities throughout

1840-559: The Roman Empire , Mare Nostrum ("Our Sea"). The term Mare Mediterrāneum appears later: Solinus apparently used this in the 3rd century, but the earliest extant witness to it is in the 6th century, in Isidore of Seville . It means 'in the middle of land, inland' in Latin , a compound of medius ("middle"), terra ("land, earth"), and -āneus ("having the nature of"). The modern Greek name Μεσόγειος Θάλασσα ( mesógeios ; "inland")

1920-528: The "Syrian Sea". In ancient Syrian texts, Phoenician epics and in the Hebrew Bible , it was primarily known as the "Great Sea", הים הגדול HaYam HaGadol , ( Numbers ; Book of Joshua ; Ezekiel ) or simply as "The Sea" ( 1 Kings ). However, it has also been called the "Hinder Sea" because of its location on the west coast of the region of Syria or the Holy Land (and therefore behind a person facing

2000-579: The 16th century and also maintained naval bases in southern France (1543–1544), Algeria and Tunisia. Barbarossa , the Ottoman captain is a symbol of this domination with the victory of the Battle of Preveza (1538). The Battle of Djerba (1560) marked the apex of Ottoman naval domination in the eastern Mediterranean. As the naval prowess of the European powers increased, they confronted Ottoman expansion in

2080-524: The 7th century, and with it the religion of Islam , which soon swept across from the east; at its greatest extent, the Arabs, under the Umayyads , controlled most of the Mediterranean region and left a lasting footprint on its eastern and southern shores. A variety of foodstuffs, spices and crops were introduced to the western Mediterranean's Spain and Sicily during Arab rule, via the commercial networks of

2160-616: The Alboran Sea. The Gibraltar Arc is made up of the Baetic Cordillera of Southern Spain and the Rif Mountains of Morocco. These mountains, known to ecologists as the Baetic-Rifan complex, comprise one of the Mediterranean's biodiversity hotspots ; like the Alboran Sea, the Baetic-Rifan complex represents a transition between the Mediterranean and Atlantic ( Macaronesian ) ecological zones. The moderating influence of

2240-464: The Early Miocene . The seafloor is morphologically complex with several sub-basins, including three main sub-basins named West, East, and South Alboran Basins, ridges, and seamounts. The most prominent structure in the Alboran Sea is the 180 km long (110 mi) Alboran Ridge which stretches southwest from the volcanic Alborán Island. Surface currents in the Alboran Sea, influenced by

2320-513: The Ionian Sea. While it was at first assumed that the filling of the eastern Mediterranean would have taken thousands of years, later estimates of the size of the Strait of Gibraltar channel implied that it would have taken much less, potentially less than a year until reconnection. A large flood is not the only explanation for the reconnection of the Mediterranean with the Atlantic and concomitant environmental changes; more gradual reflooding of

2400-655: The Islamic world. These include sugarcane, rice, cotton, alfalfa, oranges, lemons, apricots, spinach, eggplants, carrots, saffron and bananas. The Arabs also continued extensive cultivation and production of olive oil (the Spanish words for 'oil' and 'olive'— aceite and aceituna , respectively—are derived from the Arabic al-zait , meaning 'olive juice'), and pomegranates (the heraldic symbol of Granada) from classical Greco-Roman times. The Arab invasions disrupted

2480-602: The Levant, being the only state in history to ever do so, being given the nickname "Roman Lake". The Western Roman Empire collapsed around 476 AD. The east was again dominant as Roman power lived on in the Byzantine Empire formed in the 4th century from the eastern half of the Roman Empire . Though the Eastern Roman Empire would continue to hold almost all of the Mediterranean, another power arose in

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2560-452: The Mediterranean Sea (from west to east): Alboran Sea Its average depth is 445 metres (1,460 ft) and maximum depth is 1,500 metres (4,900 ft). The International Hydrographic Organization defines the limits of the Alboran Sea as follows: On the West. The Eastern limit of the Strait of Gibraltar: A line joining from tip ( Europa Point ) of Cap Gibraltar in Europe to

2640-592: The Mediterranean Sea and separates the Iberian Peninsula in Europe from Morocco in Africa —is only 14 km (9 mi) wide. The Mediterranean Sea encompasses a vast number of islands , some of them of volcanic origin. The two largest islands, in both area and population, are Sicily and Sardinia . The Mediterranean Sea has an average depth of 1,500 m (4,900 ft) and the deepest recorded point

2720-852: The Mediterranean Sea is the Nile , which takes its sources in equatorial Africa. The basin of the Nile constitutes about two-thirds of the Mediterranean drainage basin and encompasses areas as high as the Ruwenzori Mountains . Among other important rivers in Africa, are the Moulouya and the Chelif , both on the north side of the Atlas Mountains . In Asia, are the Ceyhan and Seyhan , both on

2800-509: The Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea without ship lock, because the water level is essentially the same. The westernmost point of the Mediterranean is located at the transition from the Alborán Sea to the Strait of Gibraltar, the easternmost point is on the coast of the Gulf of Iskenderun in southeastern Turkey. The northernmost point of the Mediterranean is on the coast of the Gulf of Trieste near Monfalcone in northern Italy while

2880-487: The Mediterranean from the Atlantic. Evidence of the flooding has been obtained on Zanclean-age sediments, both in boreholes and in sediments that were subsequently uplifted and raised above sea level. A sharp erosional surface separates the pre-Zanclean flood surface from the younger deposits, which are always marine in origin. The waters flooding into the Western Mediterranean probably overspilled into

2960-455: The Mediterranean had been emplaced during a prolonged sea level lowstand, and that the subsequent reflooding took place in only a few millennia or less. Mediterranean Sea For other countries, click here . The Mediterranean Sea ( / ˌ m ɛ d ɪ t ə ˈ r eɪ n i ən / MED -ih-tə- RAY -nee-ən ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean , surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on

3040-465: The Mediterranean including reflooding through other water sources is also possible. The absence of a catastrophic flooding event is supported by geological evidence found along the southern margin of the Alboran Sea. On the other hand, deposits found around the Malta Escarpment imply that one intense flood led to the reconnection across the Straits of Sicily. The timing of the Zanclean flood

3120-463: The Mediterranean may have taken about a decade. The Zanclean flood created the Strait of Gibraltar ; it is doubtful that tectonic or volcanic events could have created the strait since the main plate boundaries do not run through the strait and there is little seismic activity in its area. The current morphology of the strait is characterized by two aquatic sills : the Camarinal Sill , which

3200-525: The Mediterranean towards East Africa and Asia. This led to a preference for the Mediterranean countries and their ports like Trieste with direct connections to Central and Eastern Europe experienced a rapid economic rise. In the 20th century, the 1st and 2nd World Wars as well as the Suez Crisis and the Cold War led to a shift of trade routes to the European northern ports, which changed again towards

3280-423: The Sicily Sill (located at the present Straits of Sicily ) formed a barrier separating its basin from the Eastern Mediterranean basin that probably overflowed through the Noto Canyon across the Malta Escarpment ; in addition a sill may have existed in the eastern Alboran Sea at this time. During the flooding across the Noto Canyon, vortices and reverse flows occurred, and large amounts of sediments were emplaced in

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3360-408: The Strait of Gibraltar until it captured the Atlantic Ocean and that the Strait did not exist before this erosion event. During the flood, a channel formed across the Strait of Gibraltar, which starts at the Camarinal Sill in the Strait of Gibraltar. The channel is eroded into the seafloor of the Alboran Sea , splits around the Vizconde de Eza high of the Alboran Sea and eventually connects with

3440-437: The Zanclean channel that passes through the Camarinal Sill may have a different origin, however. Whether the Zanclean flood occurred gradually or as a catastrophic event is controversial, but it was instantaneous by geological standards. The magnitude of a catastrophic flood has been simulated by modelling. One single-dimensional model assumes a catastrophic flood of more than 10–100 sverdrup . Another estimate assumes that after

3520-406: The ages. The earliest advanced civilizations in the Mediterranean were the Egyptians and the Minoans , who traded extensively with each other. Other notable civilizations that appeared somewhat later are the Hittites and other Anatolian peoples , the Phoenicians , and Mycenean Greece . Around 1200 BC the eastern Mediterranean was greatly affected by the Bronze Age Collapse , which resulted in

3600-407: The area as generic Mediterranean Sea, in the Western Basin. It does not recognize the label Sea of Sardinia . Note 2: Thracian Sea and Myrtoan Sea are seas that are part of the Aegean Sea . Note 3: The Black Sea is not considered part of it. The International Hydrographic Organization defines the limits of the Mediterranean Sea as follows: Stretching from the Strait of Gibraltar in

3680-440: The basin may have reached rates at times greater than ten metres per day (thirty feet per day). Based on the erosion features preserved until modern times under the Pliocene sediment, Garcia-Castellanos et al. estimate that water rushed down a drop of more than 1,000 metres (3,000 ft) with a maximum discharge of about 100 million cubic metres per second (3.5 billion cubic feet per second), about 1,000 times that of

3760-419: The continental "Lago Mare" facies was replaced by Zanclean deep sea deposits. The flood may have affected global climate, considering that the much smaller flood triggered when Lake Agassiz drained did result in a cold period. The hypothesized remote effects reached as far as the Loyalty Ridge next to New Caledonia in the Southern Hemisphere. Rising sea levels made the deeply incised Nile river become

3840-445: The continental slopes. The Nile and Rhône carved deep canyons during this time. Water levels in the Mediterranean during this time dropped by kilometres. The exact magnitude of the drop, and whether it was symmetric between the Western Mediterranean and the Eastern Mediterranean , is unclear; it is possible that interconnected seas remained on the floor of the Mediterranean. The presence of Atlantic fish in Messinian deposits and

3920-512: The destruction of many cities and trade routes. The most notable Mediterranean civilizations in classical antiquity were the Greek city states and the Phoenicians , both of which extensively colonized the coastlines of the Mediterranean. Darius I of Persia , who conquered Ancient Egypt, built a canal linking the Red Sea to the Nile, and thus the Mediterranean. Darius's canal was wide enough for two triremes to pass each other with oars extended and required four days to traverse. Following

4000-437: The east by the Levant in West Asia , on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Europe , on the south by North Africa , and on the west almost by the Morocco–Spain border . The Mediterranean has played a central role in the history of Western civilization . Geological evidence indicates that around 5.9 million years ago, the Mediterranean was cut off from the Atlantic and was partly or completely desiccated over

4080-420: The east), which is sometimes translated as "Western Sea". Another name was the "Sea of the Philistines ", ( Book of Exodus ), from the people inhabiting a large portion of its shores near the Israelites . In Modern Hebrew , it is called הים התיכון HaYam HaTikhon 'the Middle Sea'. In Classic Persian texts was called Daryāy-e Šām (دریای شام) "The Western Sea" or "Syrian Sea". In Modern Standard Arabic , it

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4160-443: The entire Mediterranean. Once, most of the trade between Western Europe and the East was passing through the region , but after the 1490s the development of a sea route to the Indian Ocean allowed the importation of Asian spices and other goods through the Atlantic ports of western Europe. The sea remained strategically important. British mastery of Gibraltar ensured their influence in Africa and Southwest Asia. Especially after

4240-474: The first breach of the sill, the flowing water eroded the threshold and formed the channel across the Gibraltar strait, increasing the flow of water which in turn increased the erosion until water levels rose enough in the Mediterranean to slow the flood. Under such a scenario, a peak discharge of over 100,000,000 cubic metres per second (3.5 × 10 cu ft/s) occurred with water velocities of over 40 metres per second (130 ft/s); such flow rates are about

4320-399: The flourishing of trade between Europe and the outremer region. Genoa, Venice and Pisa created colonies in regions controlled by the Crusaders and came to control the trade with the Orient. These colonies also allowed them to trade with the Eastern world. Though the fall of the Crusader states and attempts at banning of trade relations with Muslim states by the Popes temporarily disrupted

4400-405: The formation of large gyres in the Alboran Sea during the flooding and that the flood eroded the Camarinal Sill at a rate of 0.4–0.7 metres per day (1.3–2.3 ft/d). The exact size of the flood is dependent on the pre-flood water levels in the Mediterranean and higher water levels there would result in a much smaller flood. The flood affected only the Western Mediterranean at first, because

4480-436: The immediate coastline on all sides of the Mediterranean tends to have strong maritime moderation. The sea was an important route for merchants and travellers of ancient times, facilitating trade and cultural exchange between the peoples of the region. The history of the Mediterranean region is crucial to understanding the origins and development of many modern societies. The Roman Empire maintained nautical hegemony over

4560-588: The major ranges bordering Southern Europe. Total annual precipitation is significantly higher on the European part of the Mediterranean basin, especially near the Alps (the 'water tower of Europe') and other high mountain ranges. As a consequence, the river discharges of the Rhône and Po are similar to that of the Nile, despite the latter having a much larger basin. These are the only three rivers with an average discharge of over 1,000 m /s (35,000 cu ft/s). Among large natural fresh bodies of water are Lake Victoria (Nile basin), Lake Geneva (Rhône), and

4640-414: The migrants and arrest the traffickers of immigrants. In 2015, more than one million migrants crossed the Mediterranean Sea into Europe. Italy was particularly affected by the European migrant crisis . Since 2013, over 700,000 migrants have landed in Italy, mainly sub-Saharan Africans. The Mediterranean Sea connects: The 163 km (101 mi) long artificial Suez Canal in the southeast connects

4720-435: The naval battles of Abukir (1799, Battle of the Nile ) and Trafalgar (1805), the British had for a long time strengthened their dominance in the Mediterranean. Wars included Naval warfare in the Mediterranean during World War I and Mediterranean theatre of World War II . With the opening of the lockless Suez Canal in 1869, the flow of trade between Europe and Asia changed fundamentally. The fastest route now led through

4800-428: The number of drowned refugees in the region as a direct result of the policies. An Azerbaijani official described the sea as "a burial ground ... where people die". Following the 2013 Lampedusa migrant shipwreck , the Italian government decided to strengthen the national system for the patrolling of the Mediterranean Sea by authorising " Operation Mare Nostrum ", a military and humanitarian mission in order to rescue

4880-451: The present-day Amazon River . Studies of the underground structures at the Gibraltar Strait show that the flooding channel descended gradually toward the bottom of the basin rather than forming a steep waterfall. The geologic history of the Mediterranean is governed by plate tectonics involving the African Plate , the Arabian Plate and the Eurasian Plate which shrank the previously existing Tethys Ocean until its western part became

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4960-415: The present-day Mediterranean. For reasons not clearly established, during the late Miocene the Mediterranean was severed from the Atlantic Ocean . It partly dried up when the Guadalhorce and Rifian corridors that had previously connected the Mediterranean to the Atlantic closed. This triggered the Messinian Salinity Crisis with the formation of thick salt deposits on the former seafloor and erosion of

5040-426: The prevailing winds, flow eastward, bringing water from the Atlantic into the Mediterranean; deeper subsurface currents flow westward, carrying saltier Mediterranean water over the Gibraltar sill into the Atlantic. Thus there is typically a vertical rotary circulation, also known as a gyre , in the Alboran Sea as a result of this exchange of water. The Alboran Sea is a transition zone between ocean and sea, containing

5120-474: The region when the Battle of Lepanto (1571) checked the power of the Ottoman Navy . This was the last naval battle to be fought primarily between galleys . The Barbary pirates of Northwest Africa preyed on Christian shipping and coastlines in the Western Mediterranean Sea. According to Robert Davis, from the 16th to 19th centuries, pirates captured 1 million to 1.25 million Europeans as slaves. The development of oceanic shipping began to affect

5200-468: The sea for centuries and is the only state to have ever controlled all of its coast. The countries surrounding the Mediterranean and its marginal seas in clockwise order are Spain , France , Monaco , Italy , Slovenia , Croatia , Bosnia and Herzegovina , Montenegro , Albania , Greece , Turkey , Syria , Lebanon , Israel , Palestine ( Gaza Strip ), Egypt , Libya , Tunisia , Algeria , and Morocco ; Cyprus and Malta are island countries in

5280-435: The sea, including the eponymous Isla de Alborán . Most, even those close to the African shore, belong to Spain. The Alboran domain, the seafloor beneath the Alboran Sea (known as the internal zones) together with the surrounding mountains (known as the external zones; the Gibraltar Arc and Atlas Mountains ), is mostly made of continental crust and marks the westernmost terminus of the terranes that were subducted between

5360-458: The sea. In addition, Northern Cyprus ( de facto state ) and two overseas territories of the United Kingdom ( Akrotiri and Dhekelia , and Gibraltar ) also have coastlines along the Mediterranean Sea. The drainage basin encompasses a large number of other countries, the Nile being the longest river ending in the Mediterranean Sea. The Ancient Egyptians called the Mediterranean Wadj-wr/Wadj-Wer/Wadj-Ur. This term (literally "great green")

5440-423: The shortest shipping route between the multinational Gulf of Trieste and the Libyan coastline of the Gulf of Sidra is about 1,900 kilometres (1,200 mi). The water temperatures are mild in winter and warm in summer and give name to the Mediterranean climate type due to the majority of precipitation falling in the cooler months. Its southern and eastern coastlines are lined with hot deserts not far inland, but

5520-400: The south side of the Taurus Mountains . In Europe, the largest basins are those of the Rhône , Ebro , Po , and Maritsa . The basin of the Rhône is the largest and extends up as far north as the Jura Mountains , encompassing areas even on the north side of the Alps . The basins of the Ebro, Po, and Maritsa, are respectively south of the Pyrenees , Alps, and Balkan Mountains , which are

5600-421: The southern ports through European integration, the activation of the Silk Road and free world trade. In 2013, the Maltese president described the Mediterranean Sea as a "cemetery" due to the large number of migrants who drowned there after their boats capsized. European Parliament president Martin Schulz said in 2014 that Europe's migration policy "turned the Mediterranean into a graveyard", referring to

5680-599: The southernmost point is on the coast of the Gulf of Sidra near the Libyan town of El Agheila . Large islands in the Mediterranean include: The Alpine arc , which also has a great meteorological impact on the Mediterranean area, touches the Mediterranean in the west in the area around Nice . The typical Mediterranean climate has hot, dry summers and mild, rainy winters. Crops of the region include olives , grapes , oranges , tangerines , carobs and cork . The Mediterranean Sea includes 15 marginal seas : Note 1: The International Hydrographic Organization defines

5760-609: The term was later extended to the whole Mediterranean, it was also called Baḥr al-Maghrib ( بحر المغرب ) ("the Sea of the West"). A name that was used mainly for the western basin. In Turkish , it is the Akdeniz 'the White Sea'; in Ottoman, ﺁق دڭيز , which sometimes means only the Aegean Sea . The origin of the name is not clear, as it is not known in earlier Greek, Byzantine or Islamic sources. It may be to contrast with

5840-576: The tip of the Península de Almina of Ceuta in Africa ( 35°54′N 5°18′W  /  35.900°N 5.300°W  / 35.900; -5.300 ). On the East. A line joining from Cabo de Gata in Andalusia in Europe to Cap Fegalo , near Oran, Algeria in Africa ( 35°36′N 1°12′W  /  35.600°N 1.200°W  / 35.600; -1.200 ). Several small islands dot

5920-672: The trade in western Europe and brought it to a halt. However, the Norsemen developed the trade from Norway to the White Sea , while also trading in luxury goods from Spain and the Mediterranean. The Byzantines in the mid-8th century retook control of the area around the north-eastern part of the Mediterranean. Venetian ships from the 9th century armed themselves to counter the harassment by Arabs while concentrating trade of Asian goods in Venice. The Fatimids maintained trade relations with

6000-600: The trade relations between Western and Eastern Europe while disrupting trade routes with Eastern Asian Empires. This, however, had the indirect effect of promoting trade across the Caspian Sea . The export of grains from Egypt was re-routed towards the Eastern world . Products from East Asian empires, like silk and spices, were carried from Egypt under the Arab rule to ports like Venice and Constantinople by sailors and Jewish merchants. The Viking raids further disrupted

6080-702: The trade with the Orient, it however continued. Europe started to revive, however, as more organized and centralized states began to form in the later Middle Ages after the Renaissance of the 12th century . Ottoman power based in Anatolia continued to grow, and in 1453 extinguished the Byzantine Empire with the Conquest of Constantinople . Ottomans gained control of much of the eastern part sea in

6160-483: The volume of salt deposited during the Messinian Salinity Crisis implies that there was some remnant flow from the Atlantic into the Mediterranean even before the Zanclean flood. Already before the Zanclean flood, increased precipitation and runoff had lowered the salinity of the remnant sea, leading to the deposition of the so-called "Lago Mare" sediments, with some water putatively originating in

6240-657: The west to the entrances to the Dardanelles and the Suez Canal in the east, the Mediterranean Sea is bounded by the coasts of Europe, Africa, and Asia and is divided into two deep basins: The drainage basin of the Mediterranean Sea is particularly heterogeneous and extends much further than the Mediterranean region. Its size has been estimated between 4,000,000 and 5,500,000 km (1,500,000 and 2,100,000 sq mi), depending on whether non-active parts (deserts) are included or not. The longest river ending in

6320-546: The widespread drift net fishing endangering populations of dolphins, turtles, as well as other marine animals. In 2023, the European Union, Morocco, and Algeria agreed to ban bottom fishing practices around Cabliers Bank, protecting the only cold-water coral reef known to be growing in the Mediterranean. An arc of mountains, known as the Gibraltar Arc , wraps around the northern, western and southern sides of

6400-734: Was the name given by the Ancient Egyptians to the semi-solid, semi-aquatic region characterized by papyrus forests to the north of the cultivated Nile delta, and, by extension, the sea beyond. The Ancient Greeks called the Mediterranean simply ἡ θάλασσα ( hē thálassa ; "the Sea") or sometimes ἡ μεγάλη θάλασσα ( hē megálē thálassa ; "the Great Sea"), ἡ ἡμετέρα θάλασσα ( hē hēmetérā thálassa ; "Our Sea"), or ἡ θάλασσα ἡ καθ’ ἡμᾶς ( hē thálassa hē kath’hēmâs ; "the sea around us"). The Romans called it Mare Magnum ("Great Sea") or Mare Internum ("Internal Sea") and, starting with

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