THE VERY BEST OF QATAR: Small but Dynamic Nation

Qatar is more than just its main city Doha, and how it has preserved its history while embracing modernity. It’s not just about contemporary architecture and tall buildings; it’s not just about beaches and museums; it’s not just about artificial islands or hills created with certain purposes. This small but dynamic nation has a lot more to offer.

Other than Doha, Qatar is peppered with minor towns and cities. Some of these are port cities, while others are more significant since they stand for the thriving oil and gas industry in these regions. Inlets, islands, natural mangroves, golden sands, blue-green waterways, abandoned settlements, archaeological sites that provide a glimpse into the region’s past.

The Origin Story

Small, isolated farmsteads, stone tools, and ornamented pottery are the earliest traces of a continuous human presence in Qatar, dating to the sixth millennium BCE. These towns are a part of the so-called “Ubaid period,” which gets its name from the southern Mesopotamian region where the earliest examples of this kind of painted pottery were found. This suggests that these early inhabitants were acquainted with the region that is today Iraq. Given the presence of inland wells and the cultivation of wild cereal crops, it is thought that this time period had substantially higher rainfall levels in eastern Arabia than it does today.

Despite the fact that the Gulf is home to numerous Bronze Age sites, Qatar has only yielded a small number of Bronze Age artefacts. The Al Khor Region on Qatar’s western coast and the Ras Brouq peninsula to the west are home to the majority of the most significant sites. Qatar was first mentioned by the Ottomans in 1555, when they included it in their 1550s-era occupation of the Ottoman province of Al Hasa. During the 16th century, there was intense rivalry between the Portuguese and the Ottomans, especially in relation to Bahrain, which the Portuguese held between 1521 and 1602. However, the Sheikh of the Banu Khalid tribe drove the Ottomans out of Al Hasa in the 1670s, ending all Ottoman influence in Qatar.

The Al-Naim, also known as the Al-Hawala, was a tribal confederation of seafaring Arabs from the Iranian side of the Gulf that is known to have inhabited the area prior to the eighteenth century. In the 18th century, members of the ‘Utub tribal confederacy—which included the tribal tribes Al-Sabah, Al-Khalifa, Al-Fadhil, and Al-Jalahimah—took control of Kuwait, Qatar, and Bahrain. Despite coming from central Arabia, the majority of the communities in the ‘Utub eventually became maritime and began using boats as their main mode of transportation.

Despite the scant archaeological and historical evidence for their existence, a small number of 17th-century settlements are known to have been inhabited. There was a vast network of villages at the end of the 18th century, especially along the northern shore of the Qatar peninsula. The nearly complete eradication of the Portuguese population and the influx of merchants from the Netherlands, France, and England were two of the most major changes during the 18th century. These countries had been present in the Gulf during the 17th century, but as rivalry grew during the 1700s, it led to a British monopoly that was practically complete by the beginning of the 19th century. The foundation for Qatar’s modern history was thus laid.

Al Khor

The northernmost city in Qatar is called Al Khor. It is one of Qatar’s major oil and gas centres and the capital of the Al Khor and Al Thakira Municipality. When the city was founded in 1972, one of Qatar’s primary sources of income was the pearl trade. Al Khor was formerly a small, remote community that thrived on fishing and pearl diving, but it is now one of Qatar’s major cities after Doha, covering an area of around 16,000 square metres. Al Khor, however, is a veritable goldmine of interesting activities and sights.

The ancient Ain Hleetan Well, the Al Khor Towers, the Thakira Mangroves, Purple Island, Al Farkiah Beach, and last but not least, the Al Khor Park and Zoo and the Al Bayt Stadium, where the opening FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 match will take place, are just a few of the region’s vibrant natural wonders.