Qatif
Encyclopedia
Qatif or Al-Qatif is a governorate and urban area
located in Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia
. It extends from Ras Tanura
and Jubail
in the north to Dammam
in the south, and from the Persian Gulf
in the east to King Fahd International Airport
in the west. This region has its own municipality and includes the Qatif downtown and many other smaller cities and towns.
Qatif is one of the oldest settlements in the eastern side of the Arabian peninsula, its history going back to 3500 BC. Qatifi people used to work as merchants, farmers, and fishers. However, in recent years, after the discovery of oil and establishment of Jubail Industrial City, most of Qatifi's people are working in oil, industry, public services, education and health care sectors.
(in his famous Ba'yya), and others. The word "Khatty" became the preferred "kenning
" for "spear" in traditional poetic writing until the dawn of the modern era, supposedly because the region was famous for spear making, just as "muhannad" ("of India
") was the preferred kenning for "sword". The older name also survives as the eponym of several well-known local families ("Al-Khatti", spelled variously in English).
Qatif functioned for centuries as the main town and port in this region of the Persian Gulf. In fact, it was called Cateus by the Greeks, and some early European maps even labeled the entire present-day Persian Gulf as the Sea of El Catif or Katif. Qatif oasis and the nearby island of Tarout are some of the most interesting tourist and archeological sites in the Kingdom, which reflects the importance of the eastern part of the Arabian Peninsula in the past.
Until 1521 and Ottoman
rule, Qatif belonged to the historical region known as the Province of Bahrain, along with Al-Hasa
and the present-day Bahrain
islands.
In 899 the Qarmatians
conquered the region with the oases of Qatif and Al-Hasa
. They declared themselves independent and reigned from al-Mu'miniya near modern Hofuf
until 1071. The Buyids of western Persia raided Qatif in 988. From 1071 until 1253 the Uyunids ruled the region first from the city of "al-Hasa" (predecessor to modern Hofuf) and later from Qatif. In 1253 the Usfurids rose from Al-Hasa and ruled during the struggle of Qays with the Hormuz
for control of the coast. Probably at about this time, Qatif became the main port for the mainland surpassing 'Uqair
in importance for the trade and thus became the capital of the Usfurids. Ibn Battuta
, visited Qatif in 1331 and found it a large and prosperous city inhabited by Arab tribes whom he described as "extremist Shi`is" (rafidiyya Ghulat
). Power shifted in 1440 to the Jabrids of the Al-Hasa oasis. In 1515 the Portuguese
conquered Hormuz and sacked Qatif in 1520, killing the Jabrid ruler Muqrin ibn Zamil
. The Portuguese invaded the island of Bahrain and stayed there for the next eighty years. The ruler of Basra extended his power to Qatif in 1524 but ultimately in 1549 the Ottomans
took over the whole region, building forts at Qatif and 'Uqair, though they could not expel the Portuguese from the island of Bahrain. In 1680 the Al Humayd of the Banu Khalid took the by now weak garrison of the Ottomans in Hofuf. In a battle at Ghuraymil, south of Qatif, the Banu Khalid lost their rule to the new "First Saudi State
" in 1790. In 1818 the Saudi State was destroyed in the Ottoman-Saudi War and the commander of the mostly Egyptian troops, Ibrahim Pasha
, took control of Hofuf, only to evacuate it the next year and return to the west coast. The Humayd regained control until the Banu Khalid were finally defeated in 1830 by the "Second Saudi State" who now took control of the whole region. The Ottomans moved in again in 1871 not to be expelled until 1913 when Ibn Saud finally established the Saudi rule in the Eastern Province.
and a day before called-for "day of rage" protests across Saudi Arabia, 'dozens' of Shias attended a rally in the city centre calling for political reforms in the kingdom and the release of prisoners allegedly held without charge for more than 14 years. All protests are illegal and the government had previously warned against this action. Police opened fire on the protestors, injuring three, and there were reports of stun grenade
s being used as well as many more injuries from police use of batons
.
in public.
As of 2009, the total population of Qatif was 474,573. Qatif has one of the lowest numbers of non-Saudi residents in the kingdom (only 59,808) .
Qatifi people are likely to work in the oil industry (Saudi Aramco
, Schlumberger
, Halliburton
and Baker Hughes
) Some of the employees have moved to Dhahran
where these companies are located, but the majority still reside in Qatif and go to Dhahran by cars or Saudi Aramco buses in about 30 minutes journey. others work in Aramco refineries in Ras Tanura. and Others work in the petrochemical companies in Jubail (80 km from Qatif), some go everyday and some have moved to Jubail. SABIC
is the larget employer in Qatif, However, some Qatifi are also working in other oil, petrochemical, and engineering companies located in Dhahran, Khobar, Dammam, Ras Tanura, or Jubail. Some of Qatifi people work in public services, healthcare and education.
. Qatif Fish Market is the largest in the middle east
. Qatif villages are known to have many date palms and other fruits
Saudi Aramco
(the Saudi national oil company) completed the development of Qatif Project in October 2004, consisting facilities to produce, process and transport 500,000 bpd of blended Arabian Light crude oil from the Qatif field and 300,000 bpd of Arabian Medium crude oil from the offshore Abu Sa'fah field (The total is 800,000 bdp), plus 370 million standard cubic feet per day of associated gas.
, the distance from the terminal to the city center is just 30 km (18.6 mi).
which runs across Qatif, and Abu Hadriyah Highway
which serves as a western border for Qatif and separates it from King Fahd International Airport
.
It is also close to the causeway that connects the kingdom with the nation of Bahrain
(about 35 miles).
Governorates of Saudi Arabia
||Governorates are the second level of regional administration within Saudi Arabia. Each of Saudi Arabia's 13 emirates is sub-divided into governorates. Governorates are further sub-divided into sub-governorates , though some sub-governorates report directly to the emirate capital rather than to...
located in Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
. It extends from Ras Tanura
Ras Tanura
Ras Tanura is a city in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia located on a peninsula extending into the Persian Gulf...
and Jubail
Jubail
Jubail , is a city in the Eastern province on the Persian Gulf coast of Saudi Arabia. It consists of the Old Town of Al Jubail, which was originally a small fishing village, up to 1975 and the new industrial area....
in the north to Dammam
Dammam
Dammam is the capital of the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia, the most oil-rich region in the world. The judicial and administrative bodies of the province and several government departments are located in the city. Dammam is the largest city in the Eastern Province and third largest in Saudi...
in the south, and from the Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
in the east to King Fahd International Airport
King Fahd International Airport
King Fahd International Airport is located 20 kilometers northwest of Dammam, Saudi Arabia. It is the largest airport in the world in terms of land area . The airport's basic infrastructure was complete by the end of 1990, which allowed the Allied forces engaged in the first Gulf War in early...
in the west. This region has its own municipality and includes the Qatif downtown and many other smaller cities and towns.
Qatif is one of the oldest settlements in the eastern side of the Arabian peninsula, its history going back to 3500 BC. Qatifi people used to work as merchants, farmers, and fishers. However, in recent years, after the discovery of oil and establishment of Jubail Industrial City, most of Qatifi's people are working in oil, industry, public services, education and health care sectors.
History
The historic oasis area shows its first archeological evidence of settlement beginning about 3500 BC. It was known by other names, such as Al-Khatt , immortalized in the poetry of `Antara ibn Shaddad, Tarafa ibn Al-`Abd, Bashar ibn BurdBashar ibn Burd
Bashār ibn Burd nicknamed "al-Mura'ath" meaning the wattled, was a poet in the late Umayyad and the early Abbasid periods. Bashar was of Persian origin; his grandfather was taken as a captive to Iraq, his father was a freedman of the Uqayl tribe. Some Arab scholars considered Bashar the first...
(in his famous Ba'yya), and others. The word "Khatty" became the preferred "kenning
Kenning
A kenning is a type of literary trope, specifically circumlocution, in the form of a compound that employs figurative language in place of a more concrete single-word noun. Kennings are strongly associated with Old Norse and later Icelandic and Anglo-Saxon poetry...
" for "spear" in traditional poetic writing until the dawn of the modern era, supposedly because the region was famous for spear making, just as "muhannad" ("of India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
") was the preferred kenning for "sword". The older name also survives as the eponym of several well-known local families ("Al-Khatti", spelled variously in English).
Qatif functioned for centuries as the main town and port in this region of the Persian Gulf. In fact, it was called Cateus by the Greeks, and some early European maps even labeled the entire present-day Persian Gulf as the Sea of El Catif or Katif. Qatif oasis and the nearby island of Tarout are some of the most interesting tourist and archeological sites in the Kingdom, which reflects the importance of the eastern part of the Arabian Peninsula in the past.
Until 1521 and Ottoman
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
rule, Qatif belonged to the historical region known as the Province of Bahrain, along with Al-Hasa
Al-Hasa
Al-Ahsa is the largest governorate in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province, named after Al-Ahsa oasis. The name Al-Ahsa is also given to the biggest city in the region, Hofuf. In classic Arabic, Ahsa means the sound of water underground. It has one of the largest oases in the world with Date Palms of...
and the present-day Bahrain
Bahrain
' , officially the Kingdom of Bahrain , is a small island state near the western shores of the Persian Gulf. It is ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family. The population in 2010 stood at 1,214,705, including 235,108 non-nationals. Formerly an emirate, Bahrain was declared a kingdom in 2002.Bahrain is...
islands.
In 899 the Qarmatians
Qarmatians
The Qarmatians were a Shi'a Ismaili group centered in eastern Arabia, where they attempted to established a utopian republic in 899 CE. They are most famed for their revolt against the Abbasid Caliphate...
conquered the region with the oases of Qatif and Al-Hasa
Al-Hasa
Al-Ahsa is the largest governorate in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province, named after Al-Ahsa oasis. The name Al-Ahsa is also given to the biggest city in the region, Hofuf. In classic Arabic, Ahsa means the sound of water underground. It has one of the largest oases in the world with Date Palms of...
. They declared themselves independent and reigned from al-Mu'miniya near modern Hofuf
Hofuf
Al-Hofuf is the major urban center in the Al-Ahsa Oasis in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia.- Overview :...
until 1071. The Buyids of western Persia raided Qatif in 988. From 1071 until 1253 the Uyunids ruled the region first from the city of "al-Hasa" (predecessor to modern Hofuf) and later from Qatif. In 1253 the Usfurids rose from Al-Hasa and ruled during the struggle of Qays with the Hormuz
Ormus
The Kingdom of Ormus was a 10th to 17th century kingdom located within the Persian Gulf and extending as far as the Strait of Hormuz...
for control of the coast. Probably at about this time, Qatif became the main port for the mainland surpassing 'Uqair
Uqair
Uqair is an ancient fort of Islamic origin, located in the Eastern province of Saudi Arabia. It is alternatively spelled Al-'Uqair, Uqayr, and Ogair, all Latin transliterations of the same Arabic word. It has been linked by some to the ancient city of Gerrha mentioned in Greek and Roman sources...
in importance for the trade and thus became the capital of the Usfurids. Ibn Battuta
Ibn Battuta
Abu Abdullah Muhammad Ibn Battuta , or simply Ibn Battuta, also known as Shams ad–Din , was a Muslim Moroccan Berber explorer, known for his extensive travels published in the Rihla...
, visited Qatif in 1331 and found it a large and prosperous city inhabited by Arab tribes whom he described as "extremist Shi`is" (rafidiyya Ghulat
Ghulat
Ghulāt , is a term used in the theology of Shia Islam to describe some minority Muslim groups who either ascribe divine characteristics to a member of Muhammad's family , or hold beliefs deemed deviant by mainstream Shi'i theology...
). Power shifted in 1440 to the Jabrids of the Al-Hasa oasis. In 1515 the Portuguese
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
conquered Hormuz and sacked Qatif in 1520, killing the Jabrid ruler Muqrin ibn Zamil
Muqrin ibn Zamil
Muqrin ibn Zamil , the ruler of eastern Arabia, including al-Hasa, al-Qatif, and Bahrain, and the last Jabrid ruler of Bahrain. He was defeated in battle by an invading Portuguese force that conquerered the islands of Bahrain in 1521. Having been captured in battle, King Muqrin died from his...
. The Portuguese invaded the island of Bahrain and stayed there for the next eighty years. The ruler of Basra extended his power to Qatif in 1524 but ultimately in 1549 the Ottomans
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
took over the whole region, building forts at Qatif and 'Uqair, though they could not expel the Portuguese from the island of Bahrain. In 1680 the Al Humayd of the Banu Khalid took the by now weak garrison of the Ottomans in Hofuf. In a battle at Ghuraymil, south of Qatif, the Banu Khalid lost their rule to the new "First Saudi State
First Saudi State
The First Saudi State was established in the year 1744 when imam Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab and Prince Muhammad ibn Saud formed an alliance to establish a religious & political sovereignty determined to cleanse the Arabian Peninsula of heretical practices and deviations from orthodox Islam...
" in 1790. In 1818 the Saudi State was destroyed in the Ottoman-Saudi War and the commander of the mostly Egyptian troops, Ibrahim Pasha
Ibrahim Pasha of Egypt
Ibrahim Pasha was the eldest son of Muhammad Ali, the Wāli and unrecognised Khedive of Egypt and Sudan. He served as a general in the Egyptian army that his father established during his reign, taking his first command of Egyptian forces was when he was merely a teenager...
, took control of Hofuf, only to evacuate it the next year and return to the west coast. The Humayd regained control until the Banu Khalid were finally defeated in 1830 by the "Second Saudi State" who now took control of the whole region. The Ottomans moved in again in 1871 not to be expelled until 1913 when Ibn Saud finally established the Saudi rule in the Eastern Province.
Protests
On 10 March 2011, in the wake of protests and uprisings against authoritarian regimes in other Arab countries2010–2011 Middle East and North Africa protests
The Arab Spring , otherwise known as the Arab Awakening, is a revolutionary wave of demonstrations and protests occurring in the Arab world that began on Saturday, 18 December 2010...
and a day before called-for "day of rage" protests across Saudi Arabia, 'dozens' of Shias attended a rally in the city centre calling for political reforms in the kingdom and the release of prisoners allegedly held without charge for more than 14 years. All protests are illegal and the government had previously warned against this action. Police opened fire on the protestors, injuring three, and there were reports of stun grenade
Stun grenade
A stun grenade, also known as a flash grenade or a flashbang, is a non-lethal weapon. The first devices like this were created in the 1960s at the order of the British Special Air Service as an incapacitant....
s being used as well as many more injuries from police use of batons
Baton (law enforcement)
A truncheon or baton is essentially a club of less than arm's length made of wood, plastic, or metal...
.
Climate
Qatif enjoys a continental climate with temperatures approaching 49 degrees Celsius (120.2 F) in the summer and an average humidity of 75%. In winter, temperatures range between 2 and 18 degrees Celsius (36F and 64F). During the months of May and June, warm seasonal winds called albwarh affect the region. The rest of the year, the moist southern winds, or alcos, bring humidity. There is little rainfall.Demographics
The Qatif region is the largest concentration of Shia Islam in Saudi Arabia however less than 5% of Qatif are Sunni Muslims. Since 2005, the government has eased the restrictions on commemorating Day of AshuraDay of Ashura
The Day of Ashura is on the 10th day of Muharram in the Islamic calendar and marks the climax of the Remembrance of Muharram.It is commemorated by Shia Muslims as a day of mourning for the martyrdom of Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad at the Battle of Karbala on 10...
in public.
As of 2009, the total population of Qatif was 474,573. Qatif has one of the lowest numbers of non-Saudi residents in the kingdom (only 59,808) .
Qatifi people are likely to work in the oil industry (Saudi Aramco
Saudi Aramco
Saudi Aramco , officially the Saudi Arabian Oil Company, is the national oil company of Saudi Arabia.Saudi Aramco is the world's largest and most valuable privately-held company, with estimates of its value in 2011 to be $7 trillion USD.Saudi Aramco has both the largest proven crude oil reserves,...
, Schlumberger
Schlumberger
Schlumberger Limited is the world's largest oilfield services company. Schlumberger employs over 110,000 people of more than 140 nationalities working in approximately 80 countries...
, Halliburton
Halliburton
Halliburton is the world's second largest oilfield services corporation with operations in more than 70 countries. It has hundreds of subsidiaries, affiliates, branches, brands and divisions worldwide and employs over 50,000 people....
and Baker Hughes
Baker Hughes
Baker Hughes Baker Hughes provides the world's oil & gas industry with products and services for drilling, formation evaluation, completion, production and reservoir consulting. Baker Hughes operates in over 90 countries worldwide mainly based in countries with a mature petroleum industry as is...
) Some of the employees have moved to Dhahran
Dhahran
Dhahran is a city located in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province, and is a major administrative center for the Saudi oil industry. Large oil reserves were first identified in the Dhahran area in 1931, and in 1935 Standard Oil of California drilled the first commercially viable oil well...
where these companies are located, but the majority still reside in Qatif and go to Dhahran by cars or Saudi Aramco buses in about 30 minutes journey. others work in Aramco refineries in Ras Tanura. and Others work in the petrochemical companies in Jubail (80 km from Qatif), some go everyday and some have moved to Jubail. SABIC
SABIC
SABIC is a diversified manufacturing company, active in chemicals and intermediates, industrial polymers, fertilizers and metals. It is the largest public company in Saudi Arabia as listed in Tadawul, but the Saudi government still owns 70% of its shares...
is the larget employer in Qatif, However, some Qatifi are also working in other oil, petrochemical, and engineering companies located in Dhahran, Khobar, Dammam, Ras Tanura, or Jubail. Some of Qatifi people work in public services, healthcare and education.
Economy
The Qatif coastline is rich with shrimp and many varieties of fishFish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
. Qatif Fish Market is the largest in the middle east
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
. Qatif villages are known to have many date palms and other fruits
Saudi Aramco
Saudi Aramco
Saudi Aramco , officially the Saudi Arabian Oil Company, is the national oil company of Saudi Arabia.Saudi Aramco is the world's largest and most valuable privately-held company, with estimates of its value in 2011 to be $7 trillion USD.Saudi Aramco has both the largest proven crude oil reserves,...
(the Saudi national oil company) completed the development of Qatif Project in October 2004, consisting facilities to produce, process and transport 500,000 bpd of blended Arabian Light crude oil from the Qatif field and 300,000 bpd of Arabian Medium crude oil from the offshore Abu Sa'fah field (The total is 800,000 bdp), plus 370 million standard cubic feet per day of associated gas.
Tourism
- Qatif is well-known for its traditional markets (suqs) such as the weekly Thursday Market "Suq Alkhamees" and "Suq Waqif"
- Beautiful esplanadeEsplanadeAn esplanade is a long, open, level area, usually next to a river or large body of water, where people may walk. The original meaning of esplanade was a large, open, level area outside fortress or city walls to provide clear fields of fire for the fortress' guns...
along its shore - Tarout Island castle
Airport
Air travel is provided by King Fahd International AirportKing Fahd International Airport
King Fahd International Airport is located 20 kilometers northwest of Dammam, Saudi Arabia. It is the largest airport in the world in terms of land area . The airport's basic infrastructure was complete by the end of 1990, which allowed the Allied forces engaged in the first Gulf War in early...
, the distance from the terminal to the city center is just 30 km (18.6 mi).
Highway
Qatif enjoys excellent connections with other Saudi urban centers through highways mainly the Dhahran-Jubail HighwayDhahran-Jubail Highway
An important highway located in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. It connects Dhahran in the south and Jubail in the north crossing the cities between which are Dammam, Saihat, Qatif, Safwa city and nearby Ras Tanura...
which runs across Qatif, and Abu Hadriyah Highway
Abu Hadriyah Highway
A major highway in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. It extends from King Fahd Causeway to Kuwait borders serving major cities such as Dammam and Jubail....
which serves as a western border for Qatif and separates it from King Fahd International Airport
King Fahd International Airport
King Fahd International Airport is located 20 kilometers northwest of Dammam, Saudi Arabia. It is the largest airport in the world in terms of land area . The airport's basic infrastructure was complete by the end of 1990, which allowed the Allied forces engaged in the first Gulf War in early...
.
It is also close to the causeway that connects the kingdom with the nation of Bahrain
Bahrain
' , officially the Kingdom of Bahrain , is a small island state near the western shores of the Persian Gulf. It is ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family. The population in 2010 stood at 1,214,705, including 235,108 non-nationals. Formerly an emirate, Bahrain was declared a kingdom in 2002.Bahrain is...
(about 35 miles).
Towns and villages
List of towns and villages forming Qatif county:- Al-Qatif city
- Tarout Island
- Umm-Sahik
- Saihat city
- Safwa citySafwa citySafwa is a city located in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. It is located north of Qatif and south of Jubail. Safwa has a population of 70,000.-External links:*...
- SanabesSanabesSanabes is one of the villages in Tarut Island, the biggest island that is located on the east coast Saudi Arabia in the Persian Gulf. Sanabes extends on Tarut beach for about four kilometers which starts from what used to be called the Elementary School of Ammar Ibn Yasser and now Middle school...
- Al-AwamiyahAl-AwamiyahAl-Awamiyah or : is a village situated in the Al-Qatif region in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. It has a population of Almost 25,000 people. Al-Awamiyah is bordered by the Al-Ramis farms to the east and some other farms to the west and the south...
- http://www.awamia.com - Al-Jish- Aljish online forum
- Al-Qudaih
- Al-JaroudiyaAl-JaroudiyaAl-Jaroudiya is a village situated in the Qatif region in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. Other villages in Qatif such as Saihat, Anak, Safwa, Awamiya, Awjam, Qudaih, Khuwailidiya, Al-Jish, Umm Al-Hamam, as well as Tarout Island...
- Al-Jarodiah Site - Umm Al-Hamam
- Al-Taubi
- Al-Khuwailidiya
- Hellat-Muhaish - alhella Site
- Enak
- Al-Awjam
- Al-Malahha
- Al-Rabeeya