Maeil Business Newspaper published an article about Korean businessmen living in Arab countries who often use ‘Arab’ or ‘Middle East’ when referring to this denomination in Korea. It is about Won Yo-hwan, a UAE airline pilot and former Maeil Business Reporter who advises us to go to the Middle East with an Arab Airlines expert to find out what’s behind the phrase.
Image above – credit: Arab Academy
Arabs Filling the Market / Photo = DALL.E
When you live in Arab countries, you often use ‘Arab’ or ‘Middle East’ together when referring to this issue in Korea. Usually, it is seen on SNS platforms operated by ordinary people, not experts, but sometimes Korean media seem to use it in a mixture. However, just as ‘Northeast Asia’ and ‘Far East’ are subtly different when referring to Korea, China, and Japan.
The Middle East has something in common that many Arabic-speaking people live and believe in Islam. Many people are confused between these two terms, but in fact, the Middle East and the Arab are different concepts. Since the Middle East also includes countries like Iran, Turkey, and Israel that do not speak Arabic, it is important to understand and use them accurately.
The word Middle East is a geographical location-based term used by European people to distinguish the Asian region from their own perspective. They were divided into Far East, Near East, and Middle East. This distinction stems from European-centered thinking, and there is a limitation in that it does not sufficiently reflect historical and cultural differences in the region. Nevertheless, the term Middle East is still widely used today.
First, let’s get to the point where the two are exactly what the concept is. ‘Arab’ is a linguistic and ethnic concept, meaning Arabic-speaking countries. The current League of Arab States members are 22 countries, including Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Egypt. These countries speak Arabic as their official language, and Quran Arabic is the standard language for mutual communication. The single consciousness of an Arab nation is strong, and the Arab League is formed for political solidarity and economic cooperation.
Images of the 22 countries that make up the Arab League / Photo = Wikipedia
On the other hand, ‘Middle East’ is a regional concept. The Middle East generally includes Iran to Egypt, but its scope has not been clearly defined. Narrowly, it includes Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel, Palestine, Egypt, and broadly includes Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, and Yemen. North Africa’s Libya, Algeria, and Morocco are also seen as part of the Middle East. These broad definitions reflect the diverse linguistic and cultural characteristics of the Middle East.
There are many non-Arabic countries in the Middle East. Turkey speaks Turkish, and Iran speaks Persian (Iran). Israel uses Hebrew and Arabic as its official languages. So if you say “I like you Arabs” to an Iranian person, it’s similar to saying “I like you Chinese” to a Korean person.
A business meeting in the Arab world / Photo =DALL.E
In the Middle East, the term MENA (Middle East and North Africa) is also frequently used. It refers to a region including North African countries in the Middle East, which is widely used in the business context. For example, when a company sets up a local office in charge of the Middle East and North Africa, it is called the “MENA Regional Headquarters.” In addition, if Pakistan is in charge, it is called the MENAP Regional Headquarters, and if Turkey is included, it is called the MENAT Regional Headquarters.
There are also terms “Mashreq” and “Maghreb”. Mishrek refers to the eastern region where the sun rises around Egypt, including Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria. Sometimes it includes countries all over Iraq and the Arabian Peninsula. The Maghreb refers to the western part of the country where the sun sets around Egypt and includes Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, and Tunisia.
Islam is a religious concept, not limited to the Middle East. Even if Arabic is not spoken, regions and countries that believe in Islam are classified as Islamic. In general, the Muslim world refers to an area where a large number of Muslims reside. These include Central Asia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines (Mindanao Island), and China’s Xinjiang Weiual Autonomous Region. Therefore, the Islamic world covers a much wider range than the Middle Eastern countries.
The Organization of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC) is an international organization established for the purpose of mutual cooperation between Islamic countries, with 57 countries participating as member states across four continents. It is the second largest intergovernmental organization after the United Nations. There are about 1.6 billion Muslims worldwide who believe in Islam.
Another useful concept to know is the ‘Gulf Cooperation Council’ (GCC) countries. The GCC is located on the Arabian Peninsula and refers to six oil producers: Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, and Oman, near the Arabian Gulf. In recent years, the importance of the GCC has become greater than that of the Arab League. This is because they are countries with money and supplies overflowing in the Middle East.
The six countries that make up the GCC. They are all rich countries in the Arab world. / Photo = Wikipedia
The GCC is a political-economic cooperation alliance founded in 1981. Looking at the surrounding situation at the time, an Islamic revolution broke out in Iran, neighboring the Arabian Peninsula, toppled the Palestinian monarchy, the former Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan, and the Iran-Iraq War broke out in 1980. Against this backdrop, six oil-producing countries in the Arabian Peninsula have established the GCC to speak out. In the early days of its establishment, joint response and cooperation on the security side were major issues, but since then, cooperation on the economic side, such as the signing of an economic integration agreement, customs union, and monetary union, has been emphasized, spurring efforts to develop into an economic community like the EU in Europe.
As of 2023, the GDP of the six GCC countries is about $2.2 trillion, with a population of about 55 million. After discussing the conclusion of a free trade agreement (FTA) since 2008, the Republic of Korea and the GCC reached a dramatic agreement in 2023, 15 years later. In the future, trade between the two sides is expected to become more active across all industries, including the energy sector.
As such, it is necessary to clearly understand the differences between Arab and Middle East and to take an approach tailored to the characteristics of each region. A good understanding of these differences will lead to more successful results in local businesses as well.
[Won Yo-hwan, UAE airline pilot (former Maeil Business Reporter)]
john.won320@gmail.com
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