Muscat - Muscat, Oman
Click to check upcoming Events 2024-2025 at Muscat - Muscat, Oman
Muscat - Wikipedia
Geography and geology[edit]. Notable landmarks[edit]. Transport in Muscat[edit]. Notable people[edit]. Further reading[edit]. External links[edit].
Muscat is Oman's capital and most populated place. It is also the Governorate of Muscat's seat. According to NCSI, the Muscat Governorate had a total population of 1.4 million at September 2018. The metro area covers approximately 3,500km2 (1,400 sq mi). [4] It also includes six provinces known as wilayats. Muscat has been a major trading port between the west-west since the 1st Century AD. At various times in its history, it was ruled by many indigenous tribes and foreign powers like the Persians, Iberian Union, the Portuguese Empire and the Ottoman Empire. Muscat was a regional military power during the 18th century. Its influence extended to East Africa and Zanzibar. Muscat was a major port-town in Oman's Gulf of Oman and attracted many foreign traders and settlers, such as the Balochis and the Persians. Muscat's rapid infrastructural growth has resulted in a vibrant economy, multi-ethnic society and the ascension in 1970 of Qaboos bin Sayed as Sultan of Oman. Globalization and World Cities Research Network has designated Muscat a Beta-Global City. [5]
The rocky Western Al Hajar Mountains dominate the landscape of Muscat. The city lies on the Arabian Sea along the Gulf of Oman and is in the proximity of the strategic Straits of Hormuz. Low-lying white buildings typify most of Muscat's urban landscape, while the port-district of Muttrah, with its corniche and harbour, form the north-eastern periphery of the city. Muscat's economy is dominated by trade, petroleum, liquified natural gas and porting.