The Levant is the cultural and geographic region east of the Mediterranean sea, south of the Anatolian Peninsula, west of the Iranian plateau, and north of the Arabian Desert. The region has many names like the Fertile Crescent, Eastern Mediterranean, Syria (region), Mashriq which is the Arabic word for Levant. The Eastern Mediterranean Muslims, Christians, Circassians and Christian Maronite Cypriots populations speak Levantine Arabic also known as Mediterranean Arabic (شامي). These populations share not only the language, but the geographic position, cuisine, some customs, and a very long history.