Mediterranean Map/List of Mediterranean Countries

The Mediterranean identifies countries that have a coastline or cultural similarity. It consists of states such as Spain, Portugal, Italy, Slovenia, and Malta. In Mediterranean countries economic growth is slow and the national income is low compared to Western and Northern Europe. Italy is the most advanced industry in these countries.

France is a Mediterranean country because the South of France has a Mediterranean Sea coastline. It is also considered as a Mediterranean country due to its historical and cultural similarities.

A color-coded map showing countries around the Mediterranean Sea, with European countries to the north and African countries to the south.
Mediterranean Countries Map

List of Mediterranean Countries

Here is a complete list of all mediterranean countries:

  • Albania
  • Bosnia and Herzegovina
  • Gibraltar
  • Algeria
  • Morocco
  • France
  • Croatia
  • Montenegro
  • Cyprus
  • North Cyprus Turkish Republic
  • Libya
  • Lebanon
  • Egypt
  • Malta
  • Monaco
  • Slovenia
  • Syria
  • Tunisia
  • Turkey
  • Vatican City
  • Greece
  • Spain
  • Israel
  • Italy

Characteristic of Mediterranean

The Mediterranean is the largest inland sea in the world.

Its surface area is 2,499,350 km2, its length is 3,860 km, the widest place is 1,610 km, its deepest point is 4,405 m.

The Mediterranean, which is surrounded by Asia, Africa, and Europe, connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the Strait of Gibraltar, to the Black Sea through the Sea of Marmara and the Straits, and to the Red Sea through the Suez Canal.

The seas bound to the Mediterranean are the Tyrrhenian, Adriatic, Ionian and Aegean seas.

The width of 140 km between Sicily and the Bon Cape of Tunisia divides the Mediterranean into two as east and west. The salinity is very high compared to the Atlantic Ocean. Tidal events show very small changes.

Coasts are usually mountainous, often earthquakes and volcanic events are seen. From the south, hot, dry, sirokko, from the north, cold, dry, mistral and bora local winds are seen.

Geology of the Mediterranean

A scenic view of a coastal landscape with a cliff overlooking a clear blue sea, a beach visible in the cove, and flowering shrubs in the foreground.

During the Triassic period (about 200 million years ago), the land mass of the world was divided into two mainlands of almost the same size: Laurasia in the north, Gondwana in the south.

When the masses of Laurasia and Gondwana formed and disintegrated, these two mainlands were filled with the Tethyan Sea. The Sea of Tethyan, the origin of the Mediterranean Sea, was extended without interruption along the present Mediterranean, Middle East, the Persian Gulf, and the Indian Ocean.

The last form of the Mediterranean today was formed by the pressure of the north, which began at the end of the Cretaceous period (about 65 million years ago) and lasted until the end of the Miocene period (13 million years ago). This mass also formed the curved mountain ranges surrounding the present Mediterranean Sea, causing the sedimentary masses in the Tethyan Sea to compress, bend and swell.

Hydrology of the Mediterranean

A coastal seascape with clear turquoise waters in the foreground and rocky cliffs with caves in the background under a blue sky with a small cloud.

The hydrology and water structure of the Mediterranean is under the influence of the high evaporation rate of the high temperature of the basin.

The only connection of the Mediterranean with the Atlantic Ocean is the narrow Strait of Gibraltar. 97.1% of the water structure coming to the Mediterranean is provided with this connection, the remaining part is formed by precipitation (1.8%), waters flowing from Black Sea (0.7%) and rivers.

The water structure lost by the Mediterranean is 93.3% through the Gibraltar Strait, 6.4% by evaporation and 0.3% by the water flowing into the Black Sea. The rate of water lost by evaporation is higher than the rate of precipitation, which is the main reason for the high salinity rate.

Temperature changes in the Mediterranean Basin are reflected in the waters. Surface water temperature in the western basins in winter 12 ° C-14 ° C, in the eastern basins 14 ° C-17 ° C; The temperature during the summer months is between 22 ° C-25 ° C in the west and 25 ° C-28 ° C in the east.

Flora, Natural Life, and Natural Resources

A yellow flower with green foliage overlooks clear blue water with visible rocks, under bright daylight.

The Mediterranean climate is cool and rainy in winter, warm and dry in the summer has revealed an extraordinary vegetation. The main vegetation in the dryest parts of the basin was formed by the post-glacial period forests leaving their places in the scrub vegetation. This vegetation, which consists of countless species, adapts to hot and dry summer months with its thin leaves that reduce evaporation. Region-specific, large tree species are conifers, olive and oak trees.

The majority of fish communities and shellfish living in the Atlantic Ocean live in the Mediterranean. Bottom fishes are coral, shield, tonguefish, whiting, rockfish. Predatory fishes; stingrays, sharks, scabbard, snake-fish.

In the river deltas, mullet, anchovies, sprat, mackerel are seen. In various layers of water, Acorns, mussels, lobsters, hermit crabs, shrimp are the main living species. However, in the recent years, unregulated hunting, trawl, dynamite throwing, intensive pollution have greatly compromised life.

There are oil fields in Italy (Sicily), Egypt, Spain, off the coast of Tunisia, natural gas deposits in the Adriatic Sea.

History of Mediterranean

The Mediterranean coast became the center of various and powerful civilizations starting from the ancient times. The Romans, Greeks, Sicilians, and Carthaginians followed the Phoenicians who first opened their trade and transportation routes. In order to maintain commercial superiority, it was inevitable to oversee the Mediterranean.

During the Roman Empire, the Mediterranean was a Roman lake; then the Byzantines, the Arabs, the Vandals, and the Goths took advantage of their occupation of North Africa and Italy and began the war of supremacy. The Crusades against Arabs reaching Spain through Africa in the 7th century was a reaction. During the Ottoman Empire, Turks dominated the Mediterranean by dealing with the powerful fleets of the age such as Spanish, Italian, French, Venice, and Malta.

Towards the end of the 16th century, the British, who benefited from the destruction of each other for the superiority of the Mediterranean nations, entered the region. The Suez Canal, which opened in 1869, increased the trade importance of the Mediterranean in terms of linking Europe to South Asia and the Far East. At the end of World War I, the British were no longer the greatest power in the world. During the Second World War, the Germans tried to take over the Mediterranean.

The development of technology is threatened by intense pollution in the Mediterranean, as in many parts of the world, as a result of various accidents, industrial wastes and uncontrolled ships carrying crude oil and chemical products. Some studies are carried out on this subject and the countries that have coasts to the Mediterranean come together and take common measures.

Subdivision of Mediterranean

The Mediterranean sea consists of the following subdivisions:

  • Alboran Sea, between Spain and Morocco
  • Balearic Sea, between Spain and the Balearic Islands
  • Ligurian Sea, between the islands of Corsica and Sardinia
  • Tyrrhenian Sea, between Sardinia, Italy Peninsula and Sicily
  • Adriatic Sea, between the peninsula of Italy and the Balkan Peninsula
  • Ionian Sea, between Italy, Greece, and Albania
  • Libyan Sea, between Libya and Crete
  • The Aegean Sea, between Greece and Turkey
  • The sea of Crete, North of Crete
  • Thracian Sea, North Aegea
  • Myrtoan Sea, between the Cyclades and Mora Peninsula
  • Marmara Sea, between the Aegean Sea and the Black Sea
  • Sicilian Sea, between Turkey and the Northern Cyprus
Aerial view of a coastal landscape with clear turquoise waters, a white boat, sandy beaches, and green vegetation.

Straits of Mediterranean

Here is a list of the straits of the mediterranean sea:

  • Straits of Gibraltar, between Spain and Morocco
  • Strait of Messina, between Italy Peninsula and Sicily
  • Bonifacio Strait, between Corsica and Sardinia
  • Strait of Sicily, between Sicily and Tunisia
  • Otranto Strait, between Italy and Albania
  • Hellespont, between the Sea of Marmara and the Aegean Sea
  • Bosphorus, between the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea
Aerial view of a coastal city with a prominent rock formation overlooking the sea and urban area, under a clear blue sky.

Gulfs of Mediterranean

List of the gulfs of the mediterranean:

  • Saros Bay, north of Turkey
  • Lions Bay, south of France
  • Taranto Bay, south of Italy
  • Antalya Bay, south of Turkey
  • Sirte Bay, north of Libya
  • Gabes Bay, east of Tunisia
  • Mersin Bay, south of Turkey
  • Edremit Bay, northwest of Turkey
  • Izmir Bay, west of Turkey
  • Gokova Bay, southwest of Turkey
  • Iskenderun Bay, south of Turkey
  • Fethiye Bay, south of Turkey
  • Marmaris Bay, south of Turkey
  • Izmit Bay, norhtwest of Turkey
A coastal fortress with stone walls and a few trees, surrounded by calm blue waters under a clear sky.