Everything about Al-qatif totally explained
» For other uses, see Katif.
Qatif or
Al-Qatif (also spelled
Qateef or
Al-Qateef;
Al-Qaṭīf) is a historic, coastal
oasis region located on the western shore of the
Persian Gulf in the
Eastern Province of
Saudi Arabia. It extends from
Ras Tanura and
Jubail in the north to
Dammam in the south, from
Persian Gulf in the east to
King Fahad International Airport in the west. It covers a large area that includes the town of Qatif as well many smaller towns and villages.
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 (
Arabic:
الخَطّ), immortalized in the poetry of
`Antara ibn Shaddad,
Tarafa ibn Al-`Abd,
Bashar ibn Burd (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 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". 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 becam 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 ultimatly in 1549 the
Ottomans took over the whole region, building forts at Qatif and 'Uqair, though they couldn't expell 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.
Climate
Qatif enjoys a continental climate with temperatures approaching 50 degrees Celsius (120 F) in the summer and an average humidity of 90%. In winter, temperatures range between 18 and 25 degrees Celsius. 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 center of
Shia Islam in Saudi Arabia. The community celebrates
Ashura and other Shia days of remembrance in open, lively seasons. However, the community has lived in somewhat precarious relations with the Sunni government and the larger, more powerful
Wahhabi and
Sunni communities of the kingdom, and has many times suffered from discrimination.
As of 2004, the total population of Qatif was 474,573; ranking as one of the ten most populated counties in Saudi Arabia. Qatif has one of the lowest numbers of non-Saudi residents in the kingdom (only 59,808).
Districts
List of towns and villages forming Qatif county:
Economy
Traditionally reliant on agriculture, Qatif has become famous in the oil industry recently, mainly due to the giant
Qatif project, which produces 800,000 barrels of oil each day, making Qatif possibly the most oil-producing city in the world. Other petroleum industries within the city include gas separator plants and pipeline facilities. Pipelines are distributed around Qatif area which had been an obstacle for urban expanding that lead to remove farms or building artificial lands on the sea.
In addition to its involvement in the oil industry and commerce, the Qatif region has a thriving agricultural sector, producing a wide range of crops, including dates (especially the khlass, khunaizi, maji, hallao, and khsab al-asfour varieties), limes, bananas, grapes, pomegranates, figs, tomatoes, okra, radishes, and onions. Qatif is also the main supplier of fish to the kingdom as well as the largest fishing center in the gulf region.
Qatif is well-known for its traditional markets (
suqs) such as the weekly Thursday Market "Suq Alkhamees" and "Suq Waqif".
The Qatif coastline is rich with shrimp and many varieties of
fish, especially the safi (
Siganus species), kan`ad (
Scomberomorus commerson), hamoor (
grouper), shi`ri, badeh, and mayd varieties. It has the largest fish market in the kingdom and the gulf region.
Transport
Qatif enjoys excellent connections with other Saudi urban centres by highway; it's also close to the causeway that connects the kingdom with the nation of
Bahrain. Air service is provided at the near by
King Fahd International Airport.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Al-qatif'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://qatif.totallyexplained.com">Qatif Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
)