Al-Ahsa Governorate

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Al Ahsa ٱلْأَحْسَاء Arabic: ٱلْحَسَاء, romanized: Al-Ḥasāʾ
Seal
Al Ahsa
Coordinates: 25°23′N 49°36′E / 25.383°N 49.600°E / 25.383; 49.600
Country	Saudi Arabia
Government
• Governor	Saud bin Talal bin Badr bin Saud Al Saud[2]
Area
• Total	534,000 km2 (206,000 sq mi)
Population  (2015)
• Total	1,319,055 [1]
Time zone	UTC+3
Website	www.alhasa.gov.sa

Al Ahsa (Arabic: ٱلْأَحْسَاء, romanized: Al-Aḥsāʾ, locally pronounced Al-Ḥasāʾ (Arabic: ٱلْحَسَاء)) also known as Hajar (Arabic: هجر) is the largest governorate in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province, named after the Al-Ahsa Oasis. In Classical Arabic, 'Ahsa' means the sound of water underground. It has one of the largest oases in the world with world-renowned date palms^[3] and, according to one author, the oases of Al-Hasa and Al Ain (in the UAE, on the border with Oman) are the most important in the Arabian Peninsula.^[4] The oasis is located about 60 mi (97 km) inland from the Arabian Gulf. All urban areas are located in the traditional oasis of Al-Hasa. In addition to the oasis, the county also includes the giant Empty Quarter desert, making it the largest governorate in Saudi Arabia in terms of area. The Empty Quarter has the world's largest oil fields, and connects Saudi Arabia to Qatar, the UAE, and Oman. The Governorate's population is over 1,100,000 (2010 estimate^[update]). In the past, Al-Ahsa belonged to the historical region known as Bahrain, along with Qatif and the present-day Bahrain islands.

One campus of a major Saudi university, King Faisal University, founded in 1975, is located in Al-Ahsa with the faculties of agriculture, veterinary medicine and animal resources. The Hofuf campus also has facilities where Saudi women can study medicine, dentistry and home economics. A large branch of the private Arab Open University is also located in Al-Ahsa.