Anatolia the Mediterranean, Greeks in Late Antiquity came to use the name Μικρὰ Ἀσία ("Mikrá Asía") or Asia Minor, meaning "Lesser Asia" to refer to present-day Anatolia. The English-language name "Anatolia" itself derives from the Greek ("") meaning “the East” or more literally “sunrise” (comparable to the Latin-derived terms "levant" and "orient"). The precise reference of this term has varied over time, perhaps originally referring to the Aeolian, Ionian and Dorian colonies on the west coast of Asia Minor. In the Byzantine Empire, the Anatolic Theme (Ἀνατολικόν θέμα) was a "theme" covering the western and central parts of Turkey's present-day Central
Little League World Series (Asia-Pacific and Middle East Region) with African teams joining the Europe and Africa Region (formerly Europe Region, which also includes Israel and Turkey). In 2001, the Far East Region split into the Asia and Pacific regions. The Asia Region comprised Little Leagues from mainland Asia. The list below lists each country's participant in the Asia Region Tournament between 2001 and 2006. Each year's winner is indicated in green. Two teams from the Asia Region won the Little League World Series — Tokyo in and . In 2001, the Far East Region split into the Asia and Pacific regions. The list below lists each country's participant