Muharraq Island

Muharraq
Native name: جزيرة المحرق  (Arabic)
Muharraq
Location of Muharraq Island in Bahrain
Geography
Location Persian Gulf
Coordinates 26°15′N 50°39′E / 26.25°N 50.65°E / 26.25; 50.65Coordinates: 26°15′N 50°39′E / 26.25°N 50.65°E / 26.25; 50.65
Archipelago Bahrain
Adjacent bodies of water Persian Gulf
Total islands 1
Major islands
  • Muharraq
Area 49.3 km2 (19.0 sq mi)
Length 18 km (11.2 mi)
Width 5.5 km (3.42 mi)
Coastline 50 km (31 mi)
Highest elevation 10 m (30 ft)
Highest point Al Muharraq
Administration
Governorate Muharraq Governorate
Largest settlement Al Muharraq (pop. 100000)
Demographics
Demonym Bahraini
Population 200000 [1] (2014)
Pop. density 4,056 /km2 (10,505 /sq mi)
Ethnic groups Bahraini 62.4%, non-Bahraini 37.6%
Additional information
Time zone
ISO code BH-14
Official website www.bahrain.com

Muharraq Island (Arabic: جزيرة المحرق‎), formerly known as Moharek,[2] is the second largest island in the archipelago of Bahrain after Bahrain Island. It has a distance of 4 km (2.5 mi) east of the capital, Manama, on Bahrain Island.

History

It is named after Muharraq City, the former capital of Bahrain. The Al Khalifa dynasty settled there in the nineteenth century and resided there until 1923. The island dominated trade, fishing and especially pearls industries in Bahrain. The Pearl center was made a UNESCO world heritage site in 2012.[3] In recent years, north of Muharraq Island have a major reclamation of some artificial islands like Amwaj Islands. The south of the island, at Hidd district, the new Bahrain International Investment Park of the free zone (BIIP) was built.[4] And in the far south, new Khalifa bin Saruman harbor, which opened in 2009.

Demography

There are several towns and villages located on the Island, including:

Administration

The island belongs to Muharraq Governorate.

Transportation

The island has the 4,000 metres (13,000 ft) Bahrain International Airport (IATA: BAH, ICAO: OBBI) that follows the long east–west axis. The island has the 900 metres (3,000 ft) Muharraq Airfield (ICAO code:none) adjacent to Bahrain International Airport. There are three causeways connecting Muharraq Island with Manama on Bahrain Island:

Citations

Bibliography

  • Wikisource Baynes, T.S., ed. (1878), "Bahrein", Encyclopædia Britannica, 3 (9th ed.), New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, p. 240 .
  • Wikisource Holdich, Thomas Hungerford (1911), "Bahrein Islands", in Chisholm, Hugh, Encyclopædia Britannica, 3 (11th ed.), Cambridge University Press, p. 212 .


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