Amwaj Islands ( ar, جزر أمواج;

transliterated Transliteration is a type of conversion of a text from one script to another that involves swapping letters (thus '' trans-'' + '' liter-'') in predictable ways, such as Greek → , Cyrillic → , Greek → the digraph , Armenian → or ...

: Juzur Amwaj) are a group of man-made islands, located in the

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Persis, Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a Mediterranean sea (oceanography), me ...

to the northeast of

Bahrain Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...

, near the coast of

Muharraq Muharraq ( ar, المحرق, al-Muḥarraq) is Bahrain's third largest city and served as its capital until 1932 when it was replaced by Manama. The population of Muharraq in 2012 was 176,583. The city is located on Muharraq Island. Bahrain Int ...

island. They lie northeast of the capital,

Manama Manama ( ar, المنامة ', Bahrani Arabic, Bahrani pronunciation: ) is the capital and largest city of Bahrain, with an approximate population of 200,000 people as of 2020. Long an important trading center in the Persian Gulf, Manama is h ...

, on

Bahrain Island Bahrain Island ( ar, جزيرة البحرين ''Jazīrah al-Baḥrayn''), also known as al-Awal Island and formerly as Bahrein, is the largest island within the archipelago of Bahrain, and forms the bulk of the country's land mass while hosting ...

Geography

Amwaj Islands have an area of 4.31 km². The Amwaj Islands were reclaimed from the relatively shallow seas to the northeast of Muharraq Island, which is the northernmost island in the Kingdom of Bahrain.

History

In the year 2000, a plan was created for a pioneering project in Bahrain, the first to offer 100% freehold land ownership to expatriates living in the Kingdom of Bahrain, was devised; thus came the plan of Amwaj Islands. The plan was also to increase the supply of waterfront property which is in low supply in this small island nation. The project is being developed by Oasis Real Estate Development Company with an investment of 1.5 billion US dollars In 2002 the project started taking form. The first phase was completed in 2003. the second in 2004, when

Cisco Cisco Systems, Inc., commonly known as Cisco, is an American-based multinational digital communications technology conglomerate corporation headquartered in San Jose, California. Cisco develops, manufactures, and sells networking hardware, ...

and

Oracle An oracle is a person or agency considered to provide wise and insightful counsel or prophetic predictions, most notably including precognition of the future, inspired by deities. As such, it is a form of divination. Description The word '' ...

began laying fabric for communications on the islands. At 2016, Amwaj Islands saw the completion of infrastructure such as

electricity Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described ...

road A road is a linear way for the conveyance of traffic that mostly has an improved surface for use by vehicles (motorized and non-motorized) and pedestrians. Unlike streets, the main function of roads is transportation. There are many types of ...

s, water,

sewerage Sewerage (or sewage system) is the infrastructure that conveys sewage or surface runoff (stormwater, meltwater, rainwater) using sewers. It encompasses components such as receiving drainage, drains, manholes, pumping stations, storm overflows, a ...

and

telecoms Telecommunication is the transmission of information by various types of technologies over wire, radio, optical, or other electromagnetic systems. It has its origin in the desire of humans for communication over a distance greater than that fe ...

, and became fit for residential use. Over the past decade, a series of hotels have also opened on the island such as the Art Rotana, The Grove Hotel, Ramada Hotel and Suites, The Sea Loft and the Dragon Hotel. In 2012, entrepreneur

Yara Salman Yara Salman (born 16 August 1994) is a Bahraini businesswoman who started her business career by taking over the running of the food franchise Burger Land from her father at 17 years old. She then went on to found several beauty, hospitality, an ...

opened 'Yara Beauty Salon', a luxury beauty salon in the islands. The salon features a variety of beauty treatments, including Moroccan baths, a

solarium Solarium may refer to: * A sunroom, a room built largely of glass to afford exposure to the sun * A terrace (building) or flat housetop * The '' Solarium Augusti'', a monumental meridian line (or perhaps a sundial) erected in Rome by Emperor Augu ...

, and cryotherapy suites. Salman was the first to introduce the concept of

cryotherapy Cryotherapy, sometimes known as cold therapy, is the local or general use of low temperatures in medical therapy. Cryotherapy may be used to treat a variety of tissue lesions. The most prominent use of the term refers to the surgical treatment, s ...

to Bahrain, which is used to treat minor tissue damage and can be "effective in cellulite reduction and calorie-burning".

Description

From an

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

perspective Amwaj introduced a number of new technologies to the region including

geotube A geotextile tube (also known as a titan tube or geotube) is a large, tube-shaped bag made of porous, weather-resistant geotextile and filled with a sand slurry, to form an artificial coastal structure such as a breakwaters, dune or levee. ...

s for the

reclamation Reclaim, reclaimed, reclaimer, reclaiming or reclamation means "to get something back". It may refer to: * Land reclamation, creating new land from oceans, riverbeds, or lake beds * Dedesertification, reversing of the land degradation in arid ...

phase of these islands,

vacuum sewerage A vacuum sewer or pneumatic sewer system is a method of transporting sewage from its source to a sewage treatment plant. It maintains a partial vacuum, with an air pressure below atmospheric pressure inside the pipe network and vacuum station ...

and

fiber optic An optical fiber, or optical fibre in Commonwealth English, is a flexible, transparent fiber made by drawing glass (silica) or plastic to a diameter slightly thicker than that of a human hair. Optical fibers are used most often as a means to ...

"Smart City" technology among others. The Islands contain residential, commercial (

highrise A tower block, high-rise, apartment tower, residential tower, apartment block, block of flats, or office tower is a tall building, as opposed to a low-rise building and is defined differently in terms of height depending on the jurisdictio ...

) and

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a ref ...

and

retail Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturers, directly or through a wholesaler, and t ...

buildings, as well as a 240 m diameter circular

marina A marina (from Spanish , Portuguese and Italian : ''marina'', "coast" or "shore") is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats. A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships o ...

with over 140 berths.Project Details on Design Build Website
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Administration

The island belongs to

Muharraq Governorate The Muharraq Governorate ( ar, محافظة المحرق, Muḥāfaẓat al-Muḥarraq) is one of the four governorates of Bahrain. It is now co-extensive with the municipality of Al Muharraq and with Muharraq Island together with outlying ...

Transportation

Amwaj Islands are connected to Muharraq Island by two

causeway A causeway is a track, road or railway on the upper point of an embankment across "a low, or wet place, or piece of water". It can be constructed of earth, masonry, wood, or concrete. One of the earliest known wooden causeways is the Sweet Tra ...

s, each about 1 km in length. The distance between the new island and Bahrain International Airport is only 4.5 km.

Image gallery

File:Un-bahrain.png, Map 1 File:Muharraq Governorate in Bahrain 2014.svg, District Map File:MasterPlan web.jpg, The plan of Amwaj Islands File:Amwaj Air.jpg, An aerial view of Amwaj Islands &

Muharraq Island Muharraq Island (), formerly known as Moharek, is the second largest island in the archipelago of Bahrain after Bahrain Island. It lies east of the capital, Manama, on Bahrain Island. History It is named after Muharraq City, the former capital ...

, looking towards the south.

References

External links

*
Detailed map
*

List of tourist attractions in Bahrain A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to: People * List (surname) Organizations * List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America * SC Germania List, German rugby unio ...

{{Muharraq Governorate of Bahrain Populated places in Bahrain Islands of Bahrain Artificial islands of Bahrain