The United Arab Emirates is a federation of seven Arab states on the south side of the Persian Gulf and the northeastern corner of the Arabian Peninsula. During the late 19th century six of these states signed protection agreements with Britain and became known as the Trucial States. After Fujairah joined the group in 1952 they formed a Trucial States Council, and in 1971-72 the Council members combined to form the independent federation. The Emirates, as the country is often known, extend in an arc eastward from the base of the Qatar Peninsula, encompassing the southern coast of the Gulf. The easternmost emirate, Fujairah, is outside the Gulf: its coastline faces east on the Gulf of Oman. From west to east the seven states are Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Ash-Shariqah (Sharjah), Ajman, Umm al-Quwain, Ras al-Khaimah, and Fujairah. Abu Dhabi is by far the largest of the emirates in area and includes more than half of the federation's coastline. Dubai, however, is the most populous of the seven. The total population of the Emirates is about ten million. A note on nomenclature: the Persian Gulf (as it is usually known in the West) is called the Arabian Gulf in Arabia and the Gulf of Fars in Iran. The International Hydrographic Organization calls it the Gulf of Iran and many commentators avoid all nomenclatural problems by calling it simply "The Gulf". The Arabic word for a lighthouse is mnarh or manara (منارة). Ra's is the word for a cape or headland, jazīrat is an island, and minā is a harbor. Each state in the federation has its own navigation or port authority to maintain aids to navigation. Offshore navigational aids in the Gulf are maintained by the Middle East Navigation Aids Service (MENAS), based in Bahrain. Special thanks to Ian Atkinson for information on the history of Arabian Gulf lights. ARLHS numbers are from the ARLHS World List of Lights. Admiralty numbers are from volume D of the Admiralty List of Lights & Fog Signals. U.S. NGA List numbers are from Publication 112.
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![]() Yasat Ali Light, Abu Dhabi, 2012 photo contributed by Andrew Hawkins |
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![]() Khor Bateen West Breakwater Light, Abu Dhabi, September 2009 ex-Panoramio photo copyright Imran Ali Rajput; used by permission |
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![]() Fujairah Light, Fujairah photo copyright Douglas Cameron; used by permission |
Information available on lost lighthouses:
Notable faux lighthouses:
Adjoining pages: North: Southwestern Iran | East: Oman | West: Qatar
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Posted February 20, 2006. Checked and revised November 6, 2024. Lighthouses: 20. Site copyright 2024 Russ Rowlett and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.