History of the Middle East brought major protests, uprisings, and revolutions to several Middle Eastern countries, followed by prolonged civil wars in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, and Libya. In 2014, a terrorist group and self-proclaimed caliphate calling itself the Islamic State made rapid territorial gains in western Iraq and eastern Syria, prompting international military intervention. At its peak, the group controlled an area containing an estimated 2.8 to 8 million people, 98% of which was lost by December 2017. By country: General: Works cited History of the Middle East Home to the Cradle of Civilization, the Middle East (usually interchangeable with the Near East) has seen
Origin of the Kurds or of "Corduene". The name "Kurds" (Arabic "Kurd", plural "Akrad") is used throughout the medieval period, from the Islamic conquests, also as a generic term for Iranian nomadic tribes by the Arabs. There are different theories about the origin of name "Kurd". According to one theory, it originates in Middle Persian as 𐭪𐭥𐭫𐭲 "kwrt-", a term for "nomad; tent-dweller". After the Muslim conquest of Persia, this term is adopted into Arabic as "kurd-", and was used specifically of nomadic tribes. As for the Middle Persian noun "kwrt-" originating in an ancient toponym, it has been argued that it may ultimately