Nahwa is a territory that forms part of the

Emirate of Sharjah The Emirate of Sharjah (; ar, إِمَارَة ٱلشَّارِقَة ') is one of the emirates of the United Arab Emirates, which covers and has a population of over 1,400,000 (2015). It comprises the capital city of Sharjah, after which i ...

in the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (Middle East, The Middle East). It is ...

. It is a

counter-enclave An enclave is a territory (or a small territory apart of a larger one) that is entirely surrounded by the territory of one other state or entity. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is sometimes used improperly to deno ...

(or second-order

enclave An enclave is a territory (or a small territory apart of a larger one) that is entirely surrounded by the territory of one other state or entity. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is sometimes used improperly to deno ...

) within the

Oman Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of ...

i territory of

Madha The Omani territory of Madha ( ar, مَدْحَاء, madḥāʾ) or ''Wādī Madḥāʾ'' ( ar, وَادِي مَدْحَاء) is an exclave of the Musandam Governorate, enclaved by the United Arab Emirates (UAE); inside it, there is a second-or ...

, which is itself an exclave of Oman and an enclave within the United Arab Emirates. To access the village of Nahwa, one has to take the northernmost road into the Madha enclave south of

Khor Fakkan Khor Fakkan ( ar, خَوْر فَكَّان, Khawr Fakkān) is a city and exclave of the Emirate of Sharjah, located on the east coast of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), facing the Gulf of Oman, and geographically surrounded by the Emirate of F ...

and follow the signs to New Madha. From New Madha, there is a paved but winding road (about ) leading to Nahwa. Entering Nahwa, there is an Emirati police outpost some after the

boundary Boundary or Boundaries may refer to: * Border, in political geography Entertainment * ''Boundaries'' (2016 film), a 2016 Canadian film * ''Boundaries'' (2018 film), a 2018 American-Canadian road trip film *Boundary (cricket), the edge of the pla ...

marker. The village itself is further up the road, on the same side as the police outpost. It consists of about 40 buildings and has its own clinic. This part of the village is called New Nahwa, and there are more houses further down the road in Old Nahwa. The third part of Nahwa is the village of

Shis Shis ( ar, شيص) is the name of a settlement to the East of Sharjah, United Arab Emirates (UAE). It is the westernmost district of Khor Fakkan Municipality. The village of Shis was previously accessed only by a track leading from the East Coast ...

. While the situation is uncommon, Nahwa is not the only

exclave An enclave is a territory (or a small territory apart of a larger one) that is entirely surrounded by the territory of one other state or entity. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is sometimes used improperly to deno ...

in the world surrounded by another enclave; some exclaves of Dutch

Baarle-Nassau Baarle-Nassau () is a municipality and town in the southern Netherlands, located in the province of North Brabant. It had a population of in . The town is the site of a complicated borderline between Belgium and the Netherlands, with 22 small ...

are embedded in Belgian

Baarle-Hertog (; french: Baerle-Duc, ) is a Flanders, Flemish Municipalities of Belgium, municipality of Belgium, much of which consists of a number of small Belgian enclaves fully surrounded by the Netherlands. Parts of are surrounded by the Dutch province ...

enclaves.

History

Nahwa's counter-enclave was formed as a result of

's decision to declare allegiance to Oman instead of Al Qawasim of

Sharjah Sharjah (; ar, ٱلشَّارقَة ', Gulf Arabic: ''aš-Šārja'') is the third-most populous city in the United Arab Emirates, after Dubai and Abu Dhabi, forming part of the Dubai-Sharjah-Ajman metropolitan area. Sharjah is the capital ...

, Al Qawasim of

Ras Al Khaimah Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) ( ar, رَأْس ٱلْخَيْمَة, historically Julfar) is the largest city and capital of the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates. It is the sixth-largest city in UAE after Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Al Ain ...

, or

Al Sharqi The Al Sharqi ( ar, الشرقي) family is the ruling royal family of Fujairah, one of the seven emirates that together comprise the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Founding Fujairah The name derives from the singular of Sharqiyin, long the domi ...

Fujairah Fujairah City ( ar, الفجيرة) is the capital of the emirate of Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates. It is the seventh-largest city in UAE, located on the Gulf of Oman (part of the Indian Ocean). It is the only Emirati capital city on the ...

which today all form part of the United Arab Emirates. In the late 1930s or early 1940s the leaders of the four rival clans who ruled the

Musandam Peninsula The Musandam Peninsula ( ar, جَزِيْرَة مُسَنْدَم \ رَأْس مُسَنْدَم, Jazīrat Musandam / Raʾs Musandam), locally known as Ruus Al Jibal ( ar, رُؤُوْس ٱلْجِبَال, ''Ruʾūs al-Jibāl'' Heads of the Mou ...

(Al Qassimi of Ras Al Khaimah, Al Qassimi of Sharjah, Al Sharqi of Fujairah, and the Bu Said of Oman) gathered a group of village elders of the nearby village of Madha and posed the question as to which

sheikhdom A sheikhdom or sheikdom ( ar, مشيخة 'Mashyakhah'' is a geographical area or a society ruled by a tribal leader called sheikh (Arabic: ). Sheikhdoms exist exclusively within Arab countries, particularly in the Arabian Peninsula (Arab States o ...

the Madhanis would declare allegiance. While Madha chose Oman, Nahwa chose to stay loyal to Al Qawasim of Sharjah, effectively making them a counter enclave within the exclave of Madha. Following consultations between the area's tribes and Julian Walker, the British representative to the Trucial States, the borders were established and later finalized in 1969.

References

External links

Arabian Enclaves and Counter-Enclaves

Some historical background on Madha and Nahwa
Populated places in the Emirate of Sharjah Villages in the United Arab Emirates Oman–United Arab Emirates border crossings Enclaves and exclaves {{UnitedArabEmirates-geo-stub