PRESENT-DAY SYRIA constitutes only a small portion of the ancient geographical Syria. Until the twentieth century, when Western powers began to carve out the rough contours of the contemporary states of Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, and Israel, the whole of the settled region at the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea was called Syria, the name given by the ancient Greeks to the land bridge that links three continents. For this reason, historians and political scientists usually use the term syria/sy_glos.asp#Greater"> Greater Syria (see Glossary) to denote the area in the prestate period.
Historically, Greater Syria rarely ruled itself, primarily because of its vulnerable position