Al Lith () is a city in the
Tihamah region on the coast of the
Red Sea
The Red Sea ( ar, البحر الأحمر - بحر القلزم, translit=Modern: al-Baḥr al-ʾAḥmar, Medieval: Baḥr al-Qulzum; or ; Coptic: ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϩⲁϩ ''Phiom Enhah'' or ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϣⲁⲣⲓ ''Phiom ǹšari''; ...
south west of the holy city of
Mecca
Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow ...
. It is the fifth largest city in population in
Makkah Province, and it is one of the large sea ports of the Kingdom of
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...
on the Red Sea, and Miqat Yalamlam is located north of it. The estimated population of Al Lith is over 72,000 people.
Geography
It is located 180 km to the south west from the holy city of Mecca, and 190 km south of Jeddah. Its northern villages are just 90 km away from Mecca. It extends to
Hejaz mountains and Adham and Taif cities to the east and extends as far south as
Al Qunfudah city. The international coastal road Jeddah - Jizan passes by it.
Climate
Al Lith has a
hot desert climate
The desert climate or arid climate (in the Köppen climate classification ''BWh'' and ''BWk''), is a dry climate sub-type in which there is a severe excess of evaporation over precipitation. The typically bald, rocky, or sandy surfaces in desert ...
(
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...
''BWh'').
History and profile
Al Lith got its name from the Valley of Leith, which is located at the east of it near Ghumayqah village. Al Lith today is a commercial port that receives pilgrims and goods from all corners of the world. In the past, it used to be a large commercial port that receives ships from
Jizan
Jazan ( ar, جازان, Jāzān), also spelled ''Jizan'' ( ar, جيزان, Jīzān), ''Gizan'' or ''Gazan'', is a port city and the capital of Jizan Region, which lies in the southwest corner of Saudi Arabia and directly north of the border with ...
,
Yemen
Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, north and ...
, and the coast of Africa and exporting those goods after that to Mecca and
Jeddah.
The Al Lith area boasts prominent
underwater diving
Underwater diving, as a human activity, is the practice of descending below the water's surface to interact with the environment. It is also often referred to as diving, an ambiguous term with several possible meanings, depending on contex ...
sites.
See also
*
List of cities and towns in Saudi Arabia
References
{{Authority control
1925 establishments in Saudi Arabia
Populated places established in 1925
Lith
Lith
Geography of Saudi Arabia
Port cities in the Arabian Peninsula
Port cities and towns in Saudi Arabia
Port cities and towns of the Red Sea
Underwater diving sites in Saudi Arabia