The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia occupies the majority of the Arabian Peninsula and has two coastlines: a long west coast on the Red Sea and a shorter east coast on the Persian Gulf. Following the collapse of the Ottoman (Turkish) Empire at the end of World War I, a complicated series of wars led in 1932 to the unification of the country, named for its founder King Abdul Aziz ibn Saud. Saudi Arabia is divided into 13 regions. This page describes lighthouses in the six regions facing the west coast. Jeddah, on the central portion of the coast, is the most important port and the gateway to the holy city of Mecca. Other ports include Dhiba, Yanbu and Jīzān. Very little Internet information is available on the navigational aids of the kingdom. Jeddah has a light on the spectacular harbor control tower shown at right, but most of the other known lights are on islands or reefs offshore. The Arabic word for a lighthouse is mnarh or manara (منارة). Ra's is a cape, jazīrat is an island, minā is a harbor, and shi'b is a reef. Lighthouses in Saudi Arabia are maintained by the Saudi Ports Authority. ARLHS numbers are from the ARLHS World List of Lights. Lights of the Red Sea were formerly included in volume E of the Admiralty List of Lights & Fog Signals, but in 2013 they were moved to volume D with new numbers. U.S. NGA List numbers are from Publication 112.
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![]() Jīzān Harbor Light, Jīzān, January 2021 Google Maps street view by Y. Rahal |
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![]() Shi'b Mismārī (Mismari Reef) Light, Red Sea Google Maps satellite view |
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![]() Yanbu South Light, Red Sea Google Maps satellite view |
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![]() Shi'b ash-Sharm Light, September 2007 ex-Panoramio photo copyright blend buena; used by permission |
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![]() Johnson Point Light, Strait of Tīrān, August 2023 ex-Google Maps photo by Ophir Baer |
Information available on lost lighthouses:
Notable faux lighthouses:
Adjoining pages: North: Jordan | South: Yemen
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Posted January 5, 2008. Checked and revised November 30, 2024. Lighthouses: 24. Site copyright 2024 Russ Rowlett and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.