Umm Naʿsan

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UMM NAʿSAN

Second largest of the thirty-three islands in the archipelago that constitutes the State of Bahrain.

Umm Naʿsan occupies some 8.5 square miles (22 sq. km) and lies approximately 2.5 miles (4 km) off the western coast of the main island of Bahrain, the largest in the archipelago. It is reserved for the private use of the ruler. Several small springs provide water for a limited pastureland, and date palm gardens grow along its western shore, gardens planted and stocked with deer and gazelle by Shaykh Hamad ibn Isa Al Khalifa during the 1930s. Ruins dot the surface of the island, lending credence to local legends that it was the seat of the ancient rulers. The causeway from Saudi Arabia to the main island, Bahrain, passes through Umm Naʿsan.


Bibliography


Cottrell, Alvin J., ed. The Persian Gulf States: A General Survey. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1980.

fred h. lawson

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