Asir, officially the Aseer Province, is a

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

southern Arabia South Arabia (), or Greater Yemen, is a historical region that consists of the southern region of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia, mainly centered in what is now the Republic of Yemen, yet it has also historically included Najran, Jazan, ...

. It has an area of , and an estimated population of 2,024,285 (in 2022). Asir is bounded by the

Mecca Province Mecca Province (, ), officially Makkah Province, is one of the 13 provinces of Saudi Arabia. It is the third-largest province by area at and the most populous with a population of 8,557,766 as of 2017, of which 4,041,189 were foreign nationals ...

to the north and west,

al-Bahah Province Al-Baha Province, also known as Al-Baha Region ( ' ), also spelled as Al-Bahah, is a Provinces of Saudi Arabia, province in Saudi Arabia. It is the smallest province in the country by both area and population. History History of the Province Be ...

to the northwest,

Riyadh Province The Riyadh Province ( '), is a province of Saudi Arabia, located in the geographic center of the country and the center of the Arabian Peninsula. It has an area of and with a 2022 population of 8,591,748, it is the second-largest region by ar ...

to the northeast,

Najran Province Najran ( ') is a Southern Provinces of Saudi Arabia, province of Saudi Arabia. It has an area of 149,511 km². Its capital is Najran. Najran is inhabited by the Banu Yam, Yam tribe. A significant percentage of the province's inhabitants ar ...

to the southeast, Jazan Province and the Saada Governorate of

Yemen Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...

to the south.

Abha Abha (, ') is the capital of Asir, Asir Province in Saudi Arabia. It is situated above sea level in the fertile Asir Mountains of south-western Saudi Arabia, near Asir National Park. Abha's mild climate makes it a popular tourist destination fo ...

is the provincial capital, and other towns include Khamis Mushait, Bisha and

Bareq Bareq (; also transliterated as '), is a governorate located in the Asir Province of Saudi Arabia in the north-west of the province, north of Abha. It occupies a distinct location midway between Tihamah and Asir, above sea level. With an e ...

. The province governor is Turki bin Talal, He replaced his cousin, Faisal bin Khalid, after being appointed on 27 December 2018.

Etymology

The origin of the name "Asir" remains a subject of debate among historians. One theory, proposed by

Al-Masudi al-Masʿūdī (full name , ), –956, was a historian, geographer and traveler. He is sometimes referred to as the "Herodotus of the Arabs". A polymath and prolific author of over twenty works on theology, history (Islamic and universal), geo ...

in his work ''

The Meadows of Gold ''Meadows of Gold and Mines of Gems'' (, ') is a 10th century history book by an Abbasid scholar al-Masudi. Written in Arabic and encompassing the period from the beginning of the world (starting with Adam and Eve) through to the late Abbasid era ...

'', suggests that the region was originally known as the "land of Azd". Another popular hypothesis suggests that the name "Asir" derives from the Arabic term ''ʿUsrah'' (). This theory comes from the fact that the region's terrain is rugged, which can be challenging to navigate. A third perspective proposed by Fuad Hamza in his book ''Fi bilad ʿAseer'', links the name to the historical prominence of Banu Asir. As the tribe gained power and influence, its name came to encompass the surrounding territories and tribes. This association was reinforced by the close ties between the Asir tribe and many of the ruling emirs in the region, including those from the Al Yazid, Al Muthami, and Al A'ad families.

History

Ancient history

In 25 B.C., Aelius Gallus marched his legions south from

Ancient Egypt Ancient Egypt () was a cradle of civilization concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in Northeast Africa. It emerged from prehistoric Egypt around 3150BC (according to conventional Egyptian chronology), when Upper and Lower E ...

on an expedition of , to take control of the ancient overland trade routes between the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...

and what is now

Hadhramaut Hadhramaut ( ; ) is a geographic region in the southern part of the Arabian Peninsula which includes the Yemeni governorates of Hadhramaut, Shabwah and Mahrah, Dhofar in southwestern Oman, and Sharurah in the Najran Province of Saudi A ...

. The Romans wanted control of those routes because they were desperate for money and hoped to raise some by capturing

Marib Marib (; Ancient South Arabian script, Old South Arabian: 𐩣𐩧𐩨/𐩣𐩧𐩺𐩨 ''Mryb/Mrb'') is the capital city of Marib Governorate, Yemen. It was the capital of the ancient kingdom of ''Saba’, Sabaʾ'' (), which some scholars beli ...

, capital of Saba, and taking control of the trade in

incense Incense is an aromatic biotic material that releases fragrant smoke when burnt. The term is used for either the material or the aroma. Incense is used for aesthetic reasons, religious worship, aromatherapy, meditation, and ceremonial reasons. It ...

– then a priceless commodity – and other valuable

aromatics Aromatic compounds or arenes are organic compounds "with a chemistry typified by benzene" and "cyclically conjugated." The word "aromatic" originates from the past grouping of molecules based on odor, before their general chemical properties were ...

. As it turned out, however, the expedition was a disaster and little information about Asir emerged.

Modern history

When the First Saudi state was destroyed by the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

in 1818, the Asiris continued to fight the Ottoman Egypt forces in their region tenaciously. With the withdrawal of the Ottomans in 1840, the dynasty of Al-Ayedh, also of Mughayd, took control of the Asir highlands. The Al-Ayedh generally allied themselves to the Saudis, who had re-established their dynasty in 1824, but did not formally enter under their command. As the Al-Ayedh attempted to expand into the

Tihamah Tihamah or Tihama ( ') is the Red Sea coastal plain of the Arabian Peninsula from the Gulf of Aqaba to the Bab el Mandeb. Etymology Tihāmat is the Proto-Semitic language's term for 'sea'. Tiamat (or Tehom, in masculine form) was the ancient M ...

lowlands (present-day Jazan Province), the

Ottoman Turks The Ottoman Turks () were a Turkic peoples, Turkic ethnic group in Anatolia. Originally from Central Asia, they migrated to Anatolia in the 13th century and founded the Ottoman Empire, in which they remained socio-politically dominant for the e ...

felt provoked to invade and occupy the highlands. They defeated and executed the leader of Al Ayedh in 1872 and established a ''mutasarrifiyya'' (a sub-governorate) in

attached to the Yemen vilayet. Their rule, however, seldom extended far from the isolated forts where their troops were garrisoned.Headley, R.L. "'Asīr." Encyclopaedia of Islam. Edited by: P. Bearman , Th. Bianquis , C.E. Bosworth , E. van Donzel and W.P. Heinrichs. Brill, 2007. In about 1906, Muhammad ibn Ali al-Idrisi, a descendant of Ahmad ibn Idris al-Fasi, began to establish political control of Asir. After negotiations with

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, which had interests nearby in

Somalia Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continental Africa. The country is located in the Horn of Africa and is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, Kenya to the southwest, th ...

, the Idrisi forces of Muhammad came into conflict with Ottoman forces in

. The Idrisis were defeated in 1911 by

Hashemites The Hashemites (), also House of Hashim, are the royal family of Jordan, which they have ruled since 1921, and were the royal family of the kingdoms of Hejaz (1916–1925), Syria (1920), and Iraq (1921–1958). The family had ruled the city of Me ...

forces under Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca, then still loyal to the Ottomans, but the tide turned when Muhammad ibn Ali concluded a secret military alliance with Great Britain (by then at war with the Ottomans) in 1915, and Sharif Hussein later switched sides and joined the British against the Ottomans. After the end of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Muhammad ibn Ali became ruler of an internationally recognized sovereign state, the Emirate of Asir, until he died in 1920. The territories of the emirate reached from

in the north to Hodeidah in the south. Muhammad's successors were, however, unable to resist the growing power of

Ibn Saud Abdulaziz bin Abdul Rahman Al Saud (; 15 January 1875Ibn Saud's birth year has been a source of debate. It is generally accepted as 1876, although a few sources give it as 1880. According to British author Robert Lacey's book ''The Kingdom'', ...

, who began annexing Asir and its neighboring regions after Muhammad's death, initially intervening under the pretext of mediating between the Al-Ayedh of Asir and the Idrisis. The Saudis took control of the regional capital

in 1920, and incorporated the rest of Asir by 1923.

later successfully fought off a rival claim for the region by the Zaydi

Imam Imam (; , '; : , ') is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Islam, Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a prayer leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Salah, Islamic prayers, serve as community leaders, ...

of the neighboring

Kingdom of Yemen The Kingdom of Yemen (), officially the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen () and also known simply as Yemen or, retrospectively, as North Yemen, was a state that existed between 1918 and 1970 in the northwestern part of the modern country of Yemen ...

in 1934. By 1920, however,

, the founder of the modern Saudi state, had begun to recoup the losses of the

House of Saud The House of Saud ( ) is the ruling royal family of Saudi Arabia. It is composed of the descendants of Muhammad bin Saud, founder of the Emirate of Diriyah, known as the First Saudi State, (1727–1818), and his brothers, though the ruling ...

, and to unify most of the

peninsula A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula. Etymology The word ''peninsula'' derives , . T ...

under his rule. As part of this campaign, he sent his

Bedouin The Bedouin, Beduin, or Bedu ( ; , singular ) are pastorally nomadic Arab tribes who have historically inhabited the desert regions in the Arabian Peninsula, North Africa, the Levant, and Mesopotamia (Iraq). The Bedouin originated in the Sy ...

warriors also known as the

Ikhwan The Ikhwān (, ), commonly known as Ikhwān man Aṭāʿa Allah (, 'Brethren of those who obey God'), was a Wahhabism, Wahhabi religious militia made up of traditionally nomadic tribesmen which formed a significant military force of the ruler Ibn ...

to occupy Asir, and the ruler of the region, Hasan Al Idrissi, had to leave. Therefore, he asked for protection from Imam Yahya, the ruler of Yemen and went there. From then on Asir has been controlled by the House of Saud, a situation formalized in 1934 with the signing of the Treaty of Taif between Saudi Arabia and Yemen. Even then the region was still largely unknown to the West. In 1932, St John Philby, one of the first Europeans to explore and map the peninsula, did enter Asir, but as he did not publish his observations until 1952, the area remained one of the blank spots on the world's map. In 1935 ʿAsir was made a separate governorate.

Mass shootings of Ethiopian refugees

Since 2014 refugees are killed after crossing the Saudi border by the Saudi Border Guard. Since 2023 at least several hundred Ethiopian refugees have been killed at the border between Yemen and the provinces Jazan, Asir and

Najran Najran ( '), is a city in southwestern Saudi Arabia. It is the capital of Najran Province. Today, the city of Najran is one of the fastest-growing cities in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia. As of the 2022 census, the city population was 381,431, wi ...

. The Saudis have also used

explosive weapons An explosive weapon is a weapon that uses an explosive to project blast wave, blast and/or fragmentation (weaponry), fragmentation from a point of detonation. In the common practice of State (polity), states, explosive weapons are generally the p ...

Economy

Historically, Asir was known for producing

coffee Coffee is a beverage brewed from roasted, ground coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content, but decaffeinated coffee is also commercially a ...

wheat Wheat is a group of wild and crop domestication, domesticated Poaceae, grasses of the genus ''Triticum'' (). They are Agriculture, cultivated for their cereal grains, which are staple foods around the world. Well-known Taxonomy of wheat, whe ...

alfalfa Alfalfa () (''Medicago sativa''), also called lucerne, is a perennial plant, perennial flowering plant in the legume family Fabaceae. It is cultivated as an important forage crop in many countries around the world. It is used for grazing, hay, ...

barley Barley (), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains; it was domesticated in the Fertile Crescent around 9000 BC, giving it nonshattering spikele ...

, senna, and

frankincense Frankincense, also known as olibanum (), is an Aroma compound, aromatic resin used in incense and perfumes, obtained from trees of the genus ''Boswellia'' in the family (biology), family Burseraceae. The word is from Old French ('high-quality in ...

. Wheat was grown in the summer and

sesame Sesame (; ''Sesamum indicum'') is a plant in the genus '' Sesamum'', also called benne. Numerous wild relatives occur in Africa and a smaller number in India. It is widely naturalized in tropical regions around the world and is cultivated for ...

has been grown in wetter areas of the region.

Straw Straw is an agricultural byproduct consisting of the dry wikt:stalk, stalks of cereal plants after the grain and chaff have been removed. It makes up about half of the crop yield, yield by weight of cereal crops such as barley, oats, rice, ry ...

was used to make mats, hats, and

basket A basket is a container that is traditionally constructed from stiff Fiber, fibers, and can be made from a range of materials, including wood splints, Stolon, runners, and cane. While most baskets are made from plant materials, other materials ...

s. Tribes in the area also wove tents from straw.

Modern development projects

In 2019, the Saudi government launched an infrastructure development project in ʿAsir Region. The project is expected to cost more than 1 billion Saudi Riyals. The provided projects will include health care, transportation and municipal services. The project is in line with the Saudi Vision 2030 to diversify non-petroleum income and activate new resources in Saudi Arabia. In 2023,

Crown Prince A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title, crown princess, is held by a woman who is heir apparent or is married to the heir apparent. ''Crown prince ...

Mohammed bin Salman Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud (; born 31 August 1985), also known as MBS or MbS, is the ''de facto'' ruler of the Saudi Arabia, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, formally serving as Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Sa ...

launched Soudah Peaks Project to develop a tourism destination in Saudi Arabia's highest peak, Jabal Soudah. Soudah Peaks is a planned luxury mountain tourism destination located at 3,015 meters above sea level.

Education

The Asir Province is served by several institutions of higher education, the most prominent being

King Khalid University King Khalid University is a public university in Abha, Saudi Arabia. Established in 1998, the university came to being through the merger of the satellite campuses of Imam Muhammad ibn Saud Islamic University, Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic Univ ...

(KKU). Established in 1998 through a royal decree that merged the satellite campuses of

Imam Muhammad ibn Saud Islamic University Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University (IMSIU) (), commonly known as Al-Imam University (IMAMU) (Arabic: إمامو), is a public university in the sub-municipality of Shemal in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. It was founded in 1950 as an Islamic semin ...

and King Saud University, The main campus is located in

, with satellite campuses in cities such as Khamis Mushait, Muhayil, and Bisha. The university offers a wide range of undergraduate and graduate programs across fields like medicine, engineering, computer science, humanities, Islamic studies, and business. It enrolls both male and female students. Primary and secondary education in the province is overseen by the

Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

, which operates a comprehensive network of public schools. These schools serve students from the elementary to high school levels and are distributed across urban centers, mountainous villages, and rural areas, ensuring widespread educational access throughout the province. In addition to academic institutions, the province hosts numerous technical and vocational education centers managed by the Technical and Vocational Training Corporation (TVTC). Girls' Technical Colleges in Asir Province: * Abha Girls' Technical College * Namas Girls' Technical College * Khamis Mushayt Girls' Technical College * Sarat Ubaydah Girls' Technical College * Muhayil Asir Girls' Technical College * Bisha Girls' Technical College * Balqarn Girls' Technical College Men's Technical Colleges and Branches in Asir Province: * Abha Applied Technical College * Abha Technical College * Ahad Rufaidah Technical College * Namas Technical College * Balqarn Technical College * Bisha Technical College * Tanuma Technical College * Khamis Mushait Technical College * Rijal Alma Technical College * Sarat Ubaidah Technical College * Dhahran Al Janoub Technical College * Mahayil Asir Technical College * Al Farsha Technical College Branch * Tathleeth Technical College Branch.

Geography

The Asir Province is situated on a high plateau that receives more rainfall than the rest of the country and contains the country's highest peaks, which rise to almost at Jabal Soudah near

. Though data is exceedingly sparse and unreliable, the average annual rainfall in the highlands probably ranges from . It falls in two rainy seasons, the chief one being in March and April, with some rain in the summer. Temperatures are very extreme, with diurnal temperature ranges in the highlands the greatest in the world. It is common for afternoon temperatures to be over , yet mornings can be extremely frosty and fog can cut visibility to near zero percent. As a result, there is much more natural vegetation in ʿAsir than in any other part of Saudi Arabia, with sheltered areas even containing areas of dense coniferous forests, though more exposed ridges still are very dry. ʿAsir is home to many farmers who chiefly grow wheat and fruit crops. Irrigation has greatly expanded production in modern times. Asir National Park was established in 1981, and extends from the Red Sea coast through the western foothills to the Asir escarpment.

Population

Governorates

List of governors

Notes

References

* Updated Edition; Norton Paperback; pbk.

External links

*
Asir National Park
Splendid Arabia, An Online Guide to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia {{DEFAULTSORT:'Asir Province Asir