Nahwa
Encyclopedia
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates, abbreviated as the UAE, or shortened to "the Emirates", is a state situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman, and Saudi Arabia, and sharing sea borders with Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran.The UAE is a...
. It is an enclave within the Oman
Oman
Oman , officially called the Sultanate of Oman , is an Arab state in southwest Asia on the southeast coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by the United Arab Emirates to the northwest, Saudi Arabia to the west, and Yemen to the southwest. The coast is formed by the Arabian Sea on the...
i territory of Madha
Madha
The Omani territory of Madha or Wadi Madha is an exclave of Oman, surrounded by the United Arab Emirates . It is located halfway between the Musandam Peninsula and the rest of Oman. It belongs to Muhafazat Musandam....
, itself an exclave of Oman.
To reach the village of Nahwa, take the northernmost road into the Madha enclave south of Khor Fakkan
Khor Fakkan
Khor Fakkan is a town located along the Gulf of Oman on the east coast of the United Arab Emirates . The town is set on the picturesque bay of Khor Fakkan, which means "Creek of Two Jaws". Khor Fakkan belongs to the emirate of Sharjah but is geographically surrounded by the emirate of Fujairah...
and follow the signs to New Madha. From New Madha there is a paved but winding road (about 5 km) leading to Nahwa.
Entering Nahwa there is an Emirati police outpost some 80 metres after the
boundary marker
Boundary marker
A boundary marker, boundary stone or border stone is a robust physical marker that identifies the start of a land boundary or the change in a boundary, especially a change in a direction of a boundary...
. The village itself is further up the road, on the same side as the police out-post. It consists of about 40 buildings and has its own clinic. This part of the village is in fact called New Nahwa, and there are more houses further down the road in Old Nahwa.
While the situation is uncommon, Nahwa isn't the only exclave in the world surrounded by another enclave; some exclaves of Dutch Baarle-Nassau
Baarle-Nassau
Baarle-Nassau is a municipality and a town in the southern Netherlands, located in North Brabant province. As of 2007 its population was of 6,668.-The border with Baarle-Hertog:...
are embedded in Belgian Baarle-Hertog
Baarle-Hertog
Baarle-Hertog is a municipality belonging to the Belgian province of Antwerp, but for the biggest part located in the Netherlands province of North Brabant. The municipality only comprises the town of Baarle-Hertog proper. On January 1, 2006 Baarle-Hertog had a total population of 2,306...
enclaves and several enclaves along the India-Bangladesh border in Cooch-Behar are located inside one enclave of the other country.
