<P> The ancient Near East was the home of early civilizations within a region roughly corresponding to the modern Middle East : Mesopotamia ( modern Iraq , southeast Turkey , southwest Iran , northeastern Syria and Kuwait ) , ancient Egypt , ancient Iran ( Elam , Media , Parthia and Persia ) , Anatolia / Asia Minor and Armenian Highlands ( Turkey 's Eastern Anatolia Region , Armenia , northwestern Iran , southern Georgia , and western Azerbaijan ) , the Levant ( modern Syria , Lebanon , Palestine , Israel , and Jordan ) , Cyprus and the Arabian Peninsula . The ancient Near East is studied in the fields of Near Eastern archaeology and ancient history . </P>
the near eastern area that was known in the ancient world as persia is today called
Iran