The Eastern Region (), officially known as Al Ain Region (),
is one of three
Municipal Regions in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. It forms the southeastern part of the
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...
.
Its main settlement is the eponymous city of
Al Ain
Al Ain () is a city in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, and the seat of the administrative division of the Al Ain Region. The city is Oman–United Arab Emirates border, bordered to the east by the Omani town of Al-Buraimi. Al A ...
, located on the country's border with
Oman
Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is a country located on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia and the Middle East. It shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Oman’s coastline ...
, about from the city of
Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. The city is the seat of the Abu Dhabi Central Capital District, the capital city of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and the UAE's List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most popu ...
, the capital of the Emirate and country.
Compared to
the Western Region, it is also a rather remote region of the Emirate,
but smaller by area, and is not known to hold reserves of gas or
petroleum
Petroleum, also known as crude oil or simply oil, is a naturally occurring, yellowish-black liquid chemical mixture found in geological formations, consisting mainly of hydrocarbons. The term ''petroleum'' refers both to naturally occurring un ...
,
but is agriculturally important.
History and prehistory
The city of Al-Ain, part of a
historical region
History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the Human history, human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some t ...
which also includes the adjacent Omani town of
Al-Buraimi,
is noted for its forts, oases, ''
aflāj'' (underground water channels), and archaeological sites such as those of
Hili and
Rumailah. Sites outside the city include
Jebel Hafeet and Al-A'ankah Fort.
Sheikh
Sheikh ( , , , , ''shuyūkh'' ) is an honorific title in the Arabic language, literally meaning "elder (administrative title), elder". It commonly designates a tribal chief or a Muslim ulama, scholar. Though this title generally refers to me ...
Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan had been the Ruler's Representative in this region, before becoming the
Ruler of Abu Dhabi and
President of the United Arab Emirates.
In March 2017, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahyan renamed the region as Al Ain Region.
Demographics and settlements
As of 2009, the population of the region was estimated at 890,000.
Aside from the main city, there are about 20 settlements which are governed by the region's municipal body, that is
Al Ain Municipality. Most of them are estimated to have populations of no more than 10,000. They include:
*
Al-Faqa' (partly in the
Emirate of Dubai,
on the
road
A road is a thoroughfare used primarily for movement of traffic. Roads differ from streets, whose primary use is local access. They also differ from stroads, which combine the features of streets and roads. Most modern roads are paved.
Th ...
from Al-Ain to
Dubai
Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...
)
* Al-Hayer
* Al-Qu'a
* Al-Shwaib (on the road to
Al Madam in the
Emirate of Sharjah)
* Al-Wagan
* Al-Yahar
*
Mezyad
* Nahel
* Remah
* Sa'ah
*
Sweihan
See also
*
Abu Dhabi Region
*
Al Ain International Airport
*
Al-Buraimi Governorate (adjacent)
*
Ash Sharqiyah (disambiguation)
*
Lake Zakher
*
List of tourist attractions in the United Arab Emirates
*
Wildlife of the United Arab Emirates
References
External links
Al Ain Region to host Arab's first adventure tourism conference
{{Abu Dhabi
Municipal regions in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi
Tawam, Eastern Arabia