Al Murabba

Not to be confused with New Murabba.

Al-Murabba (Arabic: المربع, romanized: al-murabbaʿ, lit. 'the square') is a historic neighborhood in central Riyadh, Saudi Arabia,^[1] located west of al-Wazarat and north of al-Futah in the sub-municipality of al-Malaz. Its name reportedly comes from a broken square-shaped dry well around which the Murabba Palace was built and from where latter's name gets derived as well.^[2][3] It is situated in close proximity to the al-Batʼha commercial area and the Qasr al-Hukm District. Al-Murabba has lent its name to the New Murabba project, a planned downtown and real estate development in northwestern Riyadh. The neighborhood hosts a large presence of overseas Egyptian community.^[4]

Al-Murabba المربع
Neighbourhood
The National Museum of Saudi Arabia, 2012
Coordinates: 24°38′46″N 46°42′36″E
Country	Saudi Arabia
City	Riyadh
Government
• Body	Al Malaz Sub-Municipality
Area
• Total	4.88 km2 (1.88 sq mi)
Language
• Official	Arabic

History

After the unification of Saudi Arabia, King Abdulaziz ordered building of palaces outside the former city walls of Old Riyadh, marking one of the preludes for the subsequent expansions of Riyadh.^[5][6] One of the places he chose was in the Murabba neighborhood in 1937 to build the Murabba Palace. According to Saudi historian Mansour al-Assaf, there was a square-shaped dry well in the neighborhood, from which the area derives its name 'al-Murabba' (lit. the square).^[2][3] In 1969, the Riyadh Water Tower was inaugurated in the neighborhood.^[7] In 1999, the King Abdulaziz Historical Center which contained the Abdulaziz's former Murabba Palace and the National Museum was inaugurated by King Fahd to commemorate the 100th anniversary (in terms of Hijri calendar) of Abdulaziz's capturing of Riyadh in 1902.^[8]

Legacy

In February 2023, crown prince Mohammed bin Salman announced a new downtown project in northwest of Riyadh, known as the New Murabba, named after the neighborhood. He also unveiled the project of Mukaab, a 400-meter (1,300 ft) cuboidal skyscraper located in the New Murabba and is modeled after the cuboidal layout of the Murabba Palace.^[9][10][11]

Gallery

• 
  A walkway along the road crossing the historical center
• 
  The One Hundred Palm Trees Park in Al Murabba
• 
  Inside Al Murabba Fort
• 
  The Murabba Fort building
• 
  Crowne Plaza Riyadh Palace, 2023

See also

• Al-Batʼha
• Al Malazz (Riyadh)
• King Abdulaziz Historical Center

References

1. الإدارة العامة للنظافة. clean.alriyadh.gov.sa. 19 April 2015. Archived from the original on 19 April 2015. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
2. بالفيديو.. العساف: "بئر معطلة" وراء تسمية حي المربع بهذا الاسم. صحيفة صدى الالكترونية. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
3. ليست نسبة للقصر.. تعرف على أصل تسمية حي المربع في الرياض. غرب الإخبــارية (in Arabic). Retrieved 4 September 2022.
4. عبد الله محمد (24 September 2006). الهنود حول المطاعم. alyaum (in Arabic). Retrieved 11 December 2023.
5. حي المربع .. مَهَّدَ من خارج السور القديم نهضة الرياض الحديثة. جريدة المدينة (in Arabic). 15 April 2021. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
6. "حي المربع" الانطلاقة والازدهار لباقي أجزاء العاصمة بدأت من هنا. www.alriyadh.com (in Arabic). 23 March 2007. Retrieved 5 September 2022.
7. كازينو الرياض - م. بدر بن ناصر الحمدان. www.al-jazirah.com. Archived from the original on 10 September 2024. Retrieved 5 September 2022.
8. المتحف الوطني في الرياض.. بوابة جزيرة العرب إلى التاريخ,. archive.aawsat.com. Archived from the original on 10 September 2024. Retrieved 5 September 2022.
9. من المربع القديم للجديد.. الـ"داون تاون" الأحدث عالمياً. www.alriyadh.com (in Arabic). 18 February 2023. Archived from the original on 31 March 2023. Retrieved 31 March 2023.
10. «المربع» بين زمنين في تاريخ العاصمة السعودية. الشرق الأوسط (in Arabic). Archived from the original on 7 April 2023. Retrieved 31 March 2023.
11. العبوش, قحطان. السعودية.. قصر المربع الطيني القديم يكتسب شهرة عالمية عبر مشروع جديد. إرم نيوز (in Arabic). Archived from the original on 31 March 2023. Retrieved 31 March 2023.