Wadi Asimah

Wadi Asimah is a seasonal watercourse in the Hajar Mountains of Ras Al Khaimah in the United Arab Emirates. It runs broadly westward from the village of Asimah to join the Wadi Fara, its confluence forming the locus between Wadi Fara and Wadi Sidr.

Wadi Asimah
Wadi Asimah
Coordinates: 25°25′17″N 56°5′48″E
Country	United Arab Emirates
Emirate	Ras Al Khaimah
Elevation	401 m (1,318 ft)

A popular location for day trippers and offroading, Wadi Asimah is notable for its lush greenery and agriculture.^[1] It is the site of the 'Sultan's Gardens', an area of abundant oleander, grasses, palm groves and pools that often (and unusually) harbours water year-round, as well as providing a nesting ground for heron.^[2] In winter, the mountainous wadi will receive heavy rainfall, leading to flash floods, and has even seen hail on occasion.^[3]

The villages of Asimah and Mawrid and the course of the Wadi Asimah were traditionally settled by members of the Mazari tribe.^[4]

Geology and archaeology

Wadi Asimah is both a geologically and archaeologically rich area, with thick fluvial deposits and archaeological sites.^[5] Wadi Asimah has lent its name to the 'Asimah Window', an area of isoclinally folded metacherts formed by metamorphic events.^[6]

The archaeology of the area of Wadi Asimah yields signs of human habitation from the Neolithic to the present. Prehistoric incised arrowheads have been found in the area,^[7] which is also the site of an Umm Al Nar settlement, with finds including a bronze goblet, socketed spear-heads and dagger blades. A number of tombs from the late Umm Al Nar period were located at the edges of the wadi.^[8] Iron Age finds have also been made in the wadi.^[9]

Gallery

• 
  Falaj Ghayli, a surface irrigation waterway in a palm grove on the edges of the Wadi Asimah
• 
  Oleander in the Wadi Asimah
• 
  The 'Sultan's Gardens' in the Wadi Asimah is an area of year-round water, unusual in the wadis of the Hajar Mountains
• 
  Day trippers pass abundant water in the Wadi Asimah in the summer months

See also

• List of wadis of the United Arab Emirates

References

1. "51 to try: Outdoor adventures". Time Out Dubai. 15 February 2010.
2. "The Emirates Weekend Offroad Guide". Khaleej Times. No. Winter 95/96. 1995. p. 38.
3. "Hail falls on eastern UAE as forecasters warn of tropical storm". The National. 20 October 2019. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
4. Lancaster, William, 1938- (2011). Honour is in contentment : life before oil in Ras al-Khaimah (UAE) and some neighbouring regions. Lancaster, Fidelity. Berlin: De Gruyter. p. 191. ISBN 978-3-11-022340-8. OCLC 763160662.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
5. "FIELDTRIP TO JEBEL FAYA, MASSAFI TECTONIC WINDOW AND WADI ASIMAH". Sharjah University.
6. Bucher, Martin (1991), "Mineral Equilibria in Metagabbros: Evidence for Polymetamorphic Evolution of the Asimah Window, Northern Oman Mountains, United Arab Emirates", Ophiolite Genesis and Evolution of the Oceanic Lithosphere, Petrology and Structural Geology, vol. 5, Dordrecht: Springer Netherlands, pp. 543–571, doi:10.1007/978-94-011-3358-6_27, ISBN 978-94-010-5484-3, retrieved 2020-10-22
7. Magee, Peter (1998). "The chronology and regional context of late prehistoric incised arrowheads in southeastern Arabia". Arabian Archaeology and Epigraphy. 9 (1): 1–12. doi:10.1111/j.1600-0471.1998.tb00108.x. ISSN 1600-0471.
8. "Introduction to the Archaeology of RAK". www.rakheritage.rak.ae. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
9. Tourenq, Christophe (December 2009). "Characterisation of the Wadi Wurayah Catchment Basin, the First Mountain Protected Area in the United Arab Emirates". International Journal of Ecology and Environmental Sciences.