Al-Ahsa Oasis

Al-Ahsa is a plural word of "Al-Ḥisā" (Arabic: ٱلْحِسَى‎) which refers to the accumulated sand with an impermeable layer underneath. Thus, when rain comes down, the water will soak through the sand, protected from evaporation by the sand, and be retained by the base layer, forming an aquifer. Hence, the site would become when drilled like a sweet cold spring.[5]

Jawatha Mosque in Al-Ahsa

Al-Ahsa has been inhabited since prehistoric times, due to its abundance of water in an otherwise arid region.[6] Natural fresh-water springs have surfaced at oases in the region for millennia, encouraging human habitation and agricultural efforts (date palm cultivation especially) since prehistoric times. Recently, Al-Ahsa Oasis has been nominated as one of the seven wonders of the world.

Its early history is similar to that of Eastern Arabia. In 899 A.D., the region came under the control of the Qarmatian leader, Abu Tahir al-Jannabi,[7] and was declared independent from the Abbasid Caliphate of Baghdad. Its capital was at al-Mu'miniya near modern Hofuf. By circa 1000, Al-Hasa became the 9th largest city worldwide supporting 100,000 inhabitants.[8] In 1077, the Qarmatian state of Al-Ahsa was overthrown by the Uyunids. Al-Ahsa subsequently fell under the rule of the Bahrani dynasty of the Usfurids, followed by their relatives, the Jabrids, who became one of the most formidable powers in the region, retaking the islands of Bahrain from the princes of Hormuz. The last Jabrid ruler of Bahrain was Muqrin ibn Zamil.

In 1521, the Portuguese Empire conquered the Awal Islands (the islands that comprise present day Bahrain) from the Jabrid ruler Muqrin ibn Zamil, who fell strongly in battle.[9] The Jabrids struggled to maintain their position on the mainland in the face of the Ottomans and their tribal allies, the Muntafiq. In 1550, Al-Ahsa and nearby Qatif came under the sovereignty of the Ottoman Empire with Sultan Suleiman I.[10] Al-Ahsa was nominally the Eyalet of Lahsa in the Ottoman administrative system, and was usually a vassal of the Porte. Qatif was later lost to the Portuguese.

The Ottomans were expelled from Al-Ahsa in 1670,[10] and the region came under the rule of the chiefs of Banu Khalid tribe.

Al-Ahsa, along with Qatif, was incorporated into the Wahhabist Emirate of Diriyah in 1795, but returned to Ottoman control in 1818 with an invasion ordered by Muhammad Ali of Egypt. The Banu Khalid were again installed as rulers of the region but, in 1830, the Emirate of Nejd retook the region.

Direct Ottoman rule was restored in 1871,[10] and Al-Ahsa was placed first under Baghdad Vilayet and with Baghdad's subdivision Basra Vilayet in 1875. In 1913, ibn Saud, the founder of modern Saudi Arabia, annexed Al-Ahsa and Qatif into his domain of Najd.[11]

On December 2, 1922, Percy Cox officially notified Kuwait's Emir Sheikh Ahmad Al-Sabah that Kuwait's borders had been modified.[12] Earlier that year, Major John More, the British representative in Kuwait, had met with Ibn Saud of Saudi Arabia to settle the border issue between Kuwait and Najd. The result of the meeting was the Uqair Protocol of 1922, in which Britain recognized ibn Saud's sovereignty over territories claimed by the emir of Kuwait. Al-Ahsa under the control of the al Saud 3rd country, it was taken from the Ottomans in 1913, bringing him control of the Persian Gulf coast and what would become Saudi Arabia's vast oil reserves.

The oasis of palm trees

Historically, Al-Hasa was one of the few areas in Arabian Peninsula growing rice.[13] In 1938, petroleum deposits were discovered near Dammam,[14][15] resulting in the rapid modernization of the region. By the early 1960s, production levels reached 1 million barrels (160,000 m³) per day. Today, Al-Hasa engulfs the largest conventional oil field in the world, the Ghawar Field.

Al-Hasa is known for its palm trees and dates. Al-Hasa has over 2 million palm trees which produce over 100 thousand tons of dates every year.

Springs

The number of springs and freshwater sources in Al-Hasa oasis range from 60 to 70 like those in Ummsaba'ah, Al-Harrah and Al-Khadod.

Antiquities

Al-Hasa oasis filled with a number of archaeological sites that give witness to the area's importance.

Landmarks

Qasr Ibrahim, built in 1556.[16] [17]

12 locations were defined as the Cultural Landscape of Al-Hasa Oasis (the World Heritage site):[2]

1. Eastern Oasis (الواحة الشرقية)
2. Northern Oasis (الواحة الشمالية)
3. As-Seef (السِيف)
4. Suq Al-Qaysariyah (سوق القيصرية)
5. Qasr Khuzam (قصر خزام)
6. Qasr Sahood (قصر صاهود)
7. Qasr Ibrahim (قصر ابراهيم)
8. Jawatha archaeological site (موقع جواثا الأثري)
9. Jawatha Mosque (مسجد جواثا)
10. Al-'Oyun village (قرية العيون)
11. Ain Qannas archaeological site (موقع عين قناص الأثري)
12. Al-Asfar lake (بحيرة الأصفر)

• List of World Heritage sites in Saudi Arabia

• Tor Eigeland, 1970, The Twice-Used Water, Saudi Aramco World
• Jon Mandaville, 1974, Al-Hasa: Outpost of Empire, Saudi Aramco World
• Al-Ahsa municipality website