Saguia el-Hamra ( , ) is the northern geographic region of

Western Sahara Western Sahara is a territorial dispute, disputed territory in Maghreb, North-western Africa. It has a surface area of . Approximately 30% of the territory () is controlled by the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR); the remaining 70% is ...

. It was, with

Río de Oro Río de Oro (, Spanish for "River of Gold"; , , often transliterated as ''Oued Edhahab'') is the southern geographic region of Western Sahara. It was, with Saguia el-Hamra, one of the two territories that formed the Spanish province of S ...

, one of the two territories that formed the

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

province of

Spanish Sahara Spanish Sahara (; ), officially the Spanish Possessions in the Sahara from 1884 to 1958, then Province of the Sahara between 1958 and 1976, was the name used for the modern territory of Western Sahara when it was occupied and ruled by Spain bet ...

after 1969. Its name comes from a waterway that goes through the capital. The wadi is inhabited by the Oulad Tidrarin Sahrawi tribe. Occupying the northern part of

, it lay between the 26th parallel north and 27°50'N. The city of

Cape Bojador Cape Bojador (, Arabic transliteration, trans. ''Rā's Būjādūr''; , ''Bujdur''; Spanish language, Spanish and ; ) is a headland on the west coast of Western Sahara, at 26° 07' 37"N, 14° 29' 57"W (various sources give various locations: this ...

served to divide the regions. Its colonial capital was

El Aaiún Laayoune or El Aaiún (, Latn, ar, al-ʕuyūn , , ) is the largest city of the disputed territory of Western Sahara, with a population of 271,344 in 2023. The city is the ''de jure'' capital of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, though it ...

(Laâyoune), and it also included the city of

Smara Smāra (also romanized Semara, , ; ) is a city in the Moroccan-controlled part of Western Sahara, with a population of 57,035 recorded in the 2014 Moroccan census. It is served by Smara Airport and Smara bus station. History The largest city in ...

. The territory takes its name from an intermittent river, the

Saguia el-Hamra Saguia el-Hamra ( , ) is the northern geographic region of Western Sahara. It was, with Río de Oro, one of the two territories that formed the Spanish province of Spanish Sahara after 1969. Its name comes from a waterway that goes through the ca ...

, the route of which runs west from south of

El Farsia Farsia (, ), is an isolated village in Western Sahara, situated within the Moroccan-occupied territories. It was occupied by the Moroccan military on October 31, 1975, after Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: ...

to reach the Atlantic at

Laayoune Laayoune or El Aaiún (, Latn, ar, al-ʕuyūn , , ) is the largest city of the disputed territory of Western Sahara, with a population of 271,344 in 2023. The city is the ''de jure'' capital of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, though it ...

. The area is roughly , making it approximately a third of the entire Western Sahara.

References

Former Spanish colonies Geography of Western Sahara States and territories established in 1969 States and territories disestablished in 1975 Arabic words and phrases Spanish Sahara {{WesternSahara-geo-stub