Liwa Oasis

Liwa Oasis

وَاحَـة لِـيْـوَا
Liwa Oasis وَاحَـة لِـيْـوَا
Oasis
	A falaj in Qasr Al Sarab, Liwa Oasis.
	Liwa Oasis Location of Mezairaa, UAE. Considered the largest town in Liwa Oasis
	Coordinates: 23°07′56″N 53°47′48″E / 23.13231°N 53.79662°E
Country	United Arab Emirates
Emirate	Abu Dhabi
Municipal region	Al Gharbia
Government
• Type	Absolute monarchy
• Emir	Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan
• Ruler's Representative of the Western Region of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi	Hamdan bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan
Population (2019)
• Total	20,192
Time zone	UTC+4 (UAE Standard Time)

The Liwa Oasis (Arabic: وَاحَـة لِـيْـوَا, romanized: Wāḥat Līwā) is a large oasis area in the Western Region of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates.^[2]

Geography

Liwa Oasis is about 97.6 km (60.6 miles) south of the Persian Gulf coast and 150 km (93 miles) southwest of the city of Abu Dhabi, on the northern edge of Rub' al Khali desert. It is centered around 23°08′N 53°46′E / 23.133°N 53.767°E / 23.133; 53.767 and stretches about 100 km (62 miles) east-west, along an arch curved to the north. It consists of some 50 villages. The geographic and economic center of the oasis is Muzayri`, where the highway from Abu Dhabi enters the oasis and then divides to the east (65 km (40 miles) to the easternmost village, Mahdar Bin `Usayyan) and west (45 km (28 miles) to the westernmost village, `Aradah). According to the census of population of 2005, the population was 20,196.^[2] Earlier estimates judging from satellite images which gauged the population at 50,000 to 150,000, were too high.^[3] The villages of Liwa Oasis are the southernmost settlements of Abu Dhabi and of the United Arab Emirates. The southern border of Abu Dhabi with Saudi Arabia, which runs at a distance between 16 and 35 km (9.9 and 21.7 miles) to the Oasis, is a straight line in the Rub al Khali desert, which is largely uninhabited. Mahdar Bin `Usayyan is the southernmost village of the Emirates, and also the easternmost of the oasis. 10 km (6.2 miles) south of the border, and 40 km (25 miles) south of the eastern part of the oasis is the Saudi oil facility Shaybah. However, there is no road linking Liwa Oasis and Shaybah, and no border crossing. A modern, multi-lane highway connects the oasis area to the capital, Abu Dhabi.

Villages

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The USGS Geographic Names Database^[4] lists 39 populated places in the area of the oasis, which are listed from west to east in the following table.

Village	Arabic	Coordinates
`Aradah	عرادة	22°59′00″N 53°26′00″E / 22.98333°N 53.43333°E / 22.98333; 53.43333
Milqatah	ملقطة	23°04′00″N 53°32′00″E / 23.06667°N 53.53333°E / 23.06667; 53.53333
Al-`Idd	العيد	23°04′48″N 53°33′02″E / 23.08000°N 53.55056°E / 23.08000; 53.55056
Al-Mariyah al-Gharbiyah	المارية الغربية	23°06′12″N 53°34′48″E / 23.10333°N 53.58000°E / 23.10333; 53.58000
Humar	حمار	23°05′04″N 53°35′03″E / 23.08444°N 53.58417°E / 23.08444; 53.58417
Khannur	خنور	23°06′14″N 53°36′05″E / 23.10389°N 53.60139°E / 23.10389; 53.60139
Hamarur	حمرور	23°06′00″N 53°36′31″E / 23.10000°N 53.60861°E / 23.10000; 53.60861
Taraq	طرق	23°06′50″N 53°36′41″E / 23.11389°N 53.61139°E / 23.11389; 53.61139
Mujib	مجيب	23°07′00″N 53°41′00″E / 23.11667°N 53.68333°E / 23.11667; 53.68333
Kayyah	جيه	23°09′30″N 53°41′05″E / 23.15833°N 53.68472°E / 23.15833; 53.68472
Zuwayhir	ظويهر	23°08′22″N 53°41′36″E / 23.13944°N 53.69333°E / 23.13944; 53.69333
Wafd	وفد	23°06′20″N 53°42′50″E / 23.10556°N 53.71389°E / 23.10556; 53.71389
Umm al Qurayn	أم القرين	23°06′00″N 53°43′00″E / 23.10000°N 53.71667°E / 23.10000; 53.71667
Qutuf	قطوف	23°06′36″N 53°43′29″E / 23.11000°N 53.72472°E / 23.11000; 53.72472
Al-Atir	العاطر	23°09′50″N 53°44′07″E / 23.16389°N 53.73528°E / 23.16389; 53.73528
Al-Mariyah	المارية	23°08′30″N 53°44′30″E / 23.14167°N 53.74167°E / 23.14167; 53.74167
Dhafeer	ظفير	23°07′50″N 53°45′37″E / 23.13056°N 53.76028°E / 23.13056; 53.76028
Jayf	جيف	23°09′44″N 53°46′28″E / 23.16222°N 53.77444°E / 23.16222; 53.77444
Muzayri	مظيري	23°08′19″N 53°47′14″E / 23.13861°N 53.78722°E / 23.13861; 53.78722
Nafir	نافر	23°06′00″N 53°48′00″E / 23.10000°N 53.80000°E / 23.10000; 53.80000
Huwaylah	حويلة	23°09′19″N 53°49′26″E / 23.15528°N 53.82389°E / 23.15528; 53.82389
Qurmidah	قرمدة	23°07′08″N 53°49′42″E / 23.11889°N 53.82833°E / 23.11889; 53.82833
Hafif	هفيف \ حفيف	23°08′52″N 53°50′29″E / 23.14778°N 53.84139°E / 23.14778; 53.84139
`Attab	عتاب	23°09′14″N 53°52′46″E / 23.15389°N 53.87944°E / 23.15389; 53.87944
Shah	شاه	23°08′33″N 53°54′51″E / 23.14250°N 53.91417°E / 23.14250; 53.91417
Huwaytayn	حويتين	23°06′51″N 53°55′52″E / 23.11417°N 53.93111°E / 23.11417; 53.93111
Sabkhah	صبخة	23°07′50″N 53°59′11″E / 23.13056°N 53.98639°E / 23.13056; 53.98639
Al-Hadhi	الهذي	23°06′57″N 53°59′48″E / 23.11583°N 53.99667°E / 23.11583; 53.99667
Tharwaniyah	ثروانية	23°05′00″N 54°01′00″E / 23.08333°N 54.01667°E / 23.08333; 54.01667
Al Mashrub	المشرب	23°04′00″N 54°01′00″E / 23.06667°N 54.01667°E / 23.06667; 54.01667
An-Nashshash	النشاش	23°05′00″N 54°02′00″E / 23.08333°N 54.03333°E / 23.08333; 54.03333
Dahin	داهن	23°04′00″N 54°05′00″E / 23.06667°N 54.08333°E / 23.06667; 54.08333
Wadhil	واظل	23°03′00″N 54°08′00″E / 23.05000°N 54.13333°E / 23.05000; 54.13333
Mawsil	موصل	23°01′00″N 54°09′00″E / 23.01667°N 54.15000°E / 23.01667; 54.15000
Al-Khis	الخيس	23°00′00″N 54°12′00″E / 23.00000°N 54.20000°E / 23.00000; 54.20000
Quwaysah	قويسة	22°59′00″N 54°14′00″E / 22.98333°N 54.23333°E / 22.98333; 54.23333
Hamim	حميم	22°58′00″N 54°18′00″E / 22.96667°N 54.30000°E / 22.96667; 54.30000
Jurayrah	جريرة	22°57′00″N 54°19′00″E / 22.95000°N 54.31667°E / 22.95000; 54.31667
Mahdar Bin `Usayyan	مهدر بن عصيان	22°56′00″N 54°19′00″E / 22.93333°N 54.31667°E / 22.93333; 54.31667

Economy

An important traditional branch of the economy is date farming. There is a widespread use of drip irrigation and greenhouses. The importance of tourism is on the rise. There are several hotels in the area including the Liwa Hotel in Muzayri`, Tilal Liwa Hotel, the Liwa Rest House in the same village and run by the government of Abu Dhabi, and the resort Qasr Al Sarab.^[5]

The nearby Moreeb dune (22°59′N 53°47′E / 22.983°N 53.783°E / 22.983; 53.783), 22 kilometres (14 miles) south of Muzayri`, is 300 metres (980 feet) high, and is one of the largest dunes in the world. It attracts people every year during the Liwa festival,^[6] where a large number of international and local visitors come to see the off-road and Liwa Moreeb Dune Festival, camel racing events.

History

The oasis is the place of birth of the ruling families of Abu Dhabi and Dubai. In 1793, the ruling family Al Nahyan moved their residence from Liwa to Abu Dhabi.^[7]

Traditionally, men from Liwa (Bani Yas tribe) were pearl divers on the coast during the summer months. Pearl diving offered an additional source of income.

The British explorer Wilfred Thesiger first arrived in Liwa around mid December 1946 in his first crossing of the Rub' Al Khali (Empty Quarter) desert.^[8]^[9] This was followed by a second visit by Thesiger in early March 1948 during his second crossing of the Rub' Al Khali (Empty Quarter) desert.^[8]^[10]

In popular culture

Desert scenes of East of Liwa Oasis, in the Rub' Al Khali desert, was the set of in the 2015 film Star Wars: The Force Awakens and it was used to represent Jakku, a desert planet.^[11]

Desert scenes in the 2020 film Sonic the Hedgehog were filmed in Liwa Oasis.^[12]

Desert scenes of the desert landscape of Liwa was filmed to represent the planet Arrakis in the 2021 film Dune^[13] and 2024 film Dune: Part Two.^[14]