Wadi Rahabah

{{Infobox river

| name = Wadi Rahabah | native_name = {{native name|ar|وادي رحبة}} | name_other = Wādī Raḩbah | name_etymology = | image = Wadi Rahabah - Wadi Rahba - 10.jpg | image_size = 300px | image_caption = View of the middle course of the Wadi Rahabah | image_alt = Alt text for image | map = | map_size = 300px | map_caption = Location of Wadi Rahabah | map_alt = Alt text for map | pushpin_map = UAE#Persian Gulf#West Asia | pushpin_map_size = 300 | subdivision_type = | subdivision_name = | subdivision_type1 = Country | subdivision_name1 = {{flag|United Arab Emirates}} | subdivision_type2 = Emirate | subdivision_name2 = {{flagcountry|Ras al-Khaimah}}

| length = {{Convert|7|km|mi|abbr=on}}

| source1 = Western slope of [[Jabal Raḩabah|Jabal Rahabah]], in the [[Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah]] | source1_location = | source1_coordinates= | source1_elevation = {{Convert|1,350|m|ft|abbr=on}} | mouth = Inlet and coastal wetland of Khawr Hulaylah, located in the Persian Gulf, next to the town of Seih Al Qurum (Qurm) | mouth_location = | mouth_coordinates = {{coord|25|55|32.0|N|56|03|02.0|E|region:AE|display=inline,title|format=dms}} | mouth_elevation = {{Convert|0|m|ft|abbr=on}} | progression = | river_system = Wadi Rahabah | basin_size = {{Convert|12.42|km2|mi2|abbr=on}} | basin_landmarks = | tributaries_left = | tributaries_right = Wadi Zireb | custom_label = '''''Custom label'''''

}}

'''Wadi Rahabah''' ({{langx|ar|وادي رحبة|Wādī Raḩbah}}),<ref name="atlas">{{cite book |author=Jāmiʿat al-Imārāt al-ʿArabīyah al-Muttaḥidah|date=1993|title=The national atlas of the United Arab Emirates|url= |location=Al Ain, United Arab Emirates|publisher=United Arab Emirates University with GEOprojects (U.K.) Ltd.|page= |isbn=9780863511004|access-date=}}</ref><ref name="MapRams"> Map of Trucial States, Muscat and Oman - Rams - Scale 1:100 000 - Published by D Survey, Ministry of Defence, United Kingdom (1971) - Edition 3-GSGS - The National Archives, London, England <https://www.agda.ae/en/catalogue/tna/fco/18/1785></ref><ref name="Carvings">{{Cite journal|last1=Lancaster|first1=William|last2=Lancaster|first2=Fidelity|date=2011|title=A discussion of rock carvings in Ra's al Khaimah Emirate, UAE, and Musandam province, Sultanate of Oman, using local considerations|url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1600-0471.2011.00338.x|journal=Arabian Archaeology and Epigraphy|language=en|volume=22|issue=2|pages=166–195|doi=10.1111/j.1600-0471.2011.00338.x|issn=1600-0471|url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref>[https://www.mindat.org/feature-291100.html Mindat.org - Wādī Raḩbah, Ra’s al Khaymah, United Arab Emirates]</ref> is a [[dry valley]] or river with intermittent flow, which flows almost exclusively during the rainy season, located in the northeast of the [[United Arab Emirates]], in the [[Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah]].

It forms its own [[drainage basin]], with an approximate area of {{Convert|12.42|km2|mi2|abbr=on}}, to the north, it limits with the drainage basins of wadis and smaller ravines that pour their waters directly into the [[Persian Gulf]] and with the sub-basin of the [[Wadi Halhal]], a tributary of the [[Wadi Ghalilah]]; to the east and southeast, with the [[:es:Wadi Jib|Wadi Jib]] sub-basin, a tributary of the [[:es:Wadi Shah|Wadi Shah / Wadi Shehah]]; to the south with the Wadi Bakhit basin;<ref name=Bakhit"MapRams">FCO 8/586 - 1967-1968 Boundary between East Aden Protectorate and Muscat and Oman - The National Archives, London, England <https://www.agda.ae/en/catalogue/tna/fco/8/586/n/50></ref> and to the west with the inlet and coastal wetland of Khawr Hulaylah,<ref name="tribulus"> Tribulus - Volume 19 - 2011 - Journal of the Emirates Natural History Group - The Flora of the Ru'us al-Jibal -the Mountains of the Musandam Peninsula: An Annotated Checklist and Selected Observations - Gary R. Feulner - Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, 2011<https://enhg.org/Portals/1/trib/V19/TribulusV19.pdf></ref><ref>[https://www.mindat.org/feature-291878.html Mindat.org - Khawr Ḩulaylah, Ra’s al Khaymah, United Arab Emirates]</ref> into which it flows, located in the Persian Gulf, next to the town of Seih Al Qurum (Qurm),<ref name="MapRams" /><ref>https://www.mindat.org/feature-291129.html Mindat.org - Qurm, Ra’s al Khaymah, United Arab Emirates]</ref> northwest of the town of Kabdah,<ref name="atlas" /> and north of the city of Ar Rams.<ref name="atlas" /><ref name="MapRams" />

The source of the main channel of the Wadi Rahabah is located approximately {{Convert|1,350|m|ft|abbr=on}} [[altitude]] on the western slope of [[Jabal Raḩabah|Jabal Rahabah]] ({{Convert|1,543|m|ft|abbr=on}}), one of the [[List of mountains in the United Arab Emirates|highest mountains in the country]], almost at the foot of the Rahabah South Col ({{Convert|1,470|m|ft|abbr=on}}), on the Jabal ar Rahrah Ridge.

A short distance from the wall of the great cliff that forms the western slope of [[Jabal Raḩabah|Jabal Rahabah]], are the ruins of an old village, with numerous dry stone constructions, and there is a small spring.

== Course == The main course of the Wadi Rahabah flows from east to west, receiving in its path the contribution of several ravines and tributary wadis, to the left and right, of which the most relevant, due to its flow and length, is the Wadi Zireb,<ref name="atlas" /> tributary on the right, whose mouth occurs very shortly before the dam built in 2021 (Rahba Dam),<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://meconstructionnews.com/39479/uae-approves-44-million-projects-in-water-infrastructure|title=UAE approves $44 million projects in water infrastructure {{!}} |website=meconstructionnews.com - 2020|language=en-US|access-date=2024-04-11}}</ref> intended to feed underground water resources and reduce damage due to eventual floods.

[[File:Wadi Rahabah - Wadi Rahba - 2 - Stardust Climbing Crag.jpg|thumbnail|Stardust Climbing Crag. Rock climbing area in the middle reaches of Wadi Rahabah]]

In the middle course of the wadi there is an area of cliffs, known as ''Stardust Climbing Crag'',<ref> https://27crags.com/crags/stardust 27crags.com - Stardust - Ra's al Khaymah, United Arab Emirates</ref> frequently used for rock climbing and a picturesque cave ('''Wadi Rahabah Cave'''), located a short distance from the bed, which receives the attention of numerous tourists and other visitors.

[[File:Wadi Rahabah - Wadi Rahba - 7 - Cave.jpg|thumbnail|Wadi Rahabah Cave. Cave in the middle course of the wadi]]

[[File:Wadi Rahabah - Wadi Rahba - 8.jpg|thumbnail|Wadi Rahabah / Wadi Rahbah. Ruins of an old town, in the upper course of the wadi]]

== Toponymy ==

Alternative names: Wadi Rahabah, Wadi Rahbah, Wadi Al Rahba, Wādī Raḩabah, Wādī Raḩbah, Wadi Ruhaba, Wadi Rahba

The name of this wadi appears mentioned in documents and maps prepared between 1950 and 1960 by the British Arabist, cartographer, military officer and diplomat [[Julian F. Walker]],<ref>Julian Fortay Walker (1958) - Sketch map drawn by Julian Walker for boundary delimitation: Ras Al Khaimah - The National Archives, London, England</ref> and in many other documents related to the work carried out to establish borders between the then called [[Trucial States]],<ref name="agda"> Boundary between East Aden Protectorate and Muscat and Oman - Ref. FCO 8/586 PAGE 50- The National Archives, London, England <https://www.agda.ae/en/catalogue/tna/fco/8/586/n/50></ref> later completed by the United Kingdom´s Ministry of Defense, on 1:100,000 scale maps published in 1971.<ref name="MapRams" />

In the National Atlas of the United Arab Emirates it is identified with the spelling '''Wādī Raḩbah'''.<ref name="atlas" />

== Population ==

In addition to some modern farms, the remains of two old villages are preserved along the course of the Wadi Rahabah: one next to the mouth of the Wadi Zireb, the left tributary of the Wadi Rahabah, and a second village located almost at the foot of the great cliffs which forms the [[Jabal Raḩabah|Jabal Rahabah]] in the upper course of the wadi.

The entire area near the Wadi Rahabah and its tributaries was mainly populated by the semi-nomadic [[Shihuh]] tribe, section of [[Bani Shatair]],<ref name="Shatair"> Land and sea boundaries of Trucial Sheikhdoms in Persian Gulf - Ref. FO 371/114648 PAGE 147- The National Archives, London, England <https://www.agda.ae/en/catalogue/tna/fo/371/114648/n/147></ref> and corresponded to the tribal area of Mahabib,<ref>[https://www.mindat.org/feature-291568.html Mindat.org - Maḩābīb, Ra’s al Khaymah, United Arab Emirates]</ref> which in recent years has been practically devastated by intensive open pit mining, from the neighboring ''Stevin Rock'' quarry,<ref>[https://www.stevinrock.ae/ www.stevinrock.ae]</ref> property of the Emirate of Ras al Khaimah.

== See also ==

* [[List of wadis of the United Arab Emirates]] * [[List of mountains in the United Arab Emirates]] * [[List of wadis of Oman]] * [[List of mountains in Oman]]

==References== {{Reflist}}

[[File:Wadi Rahabah - Wadi Rahba - 3.jpg|thumbnail|Upper course of Wadi Rahabah / Wadi Rahbah. Large cliff on the western slope of [[Jabal Raḩabah|Jabal Rahabah]]]]

==External links== * [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qj69AQ48JcY notmidtbø - You pretty thing 6b+. With extra challenge at the top. Wadi Rahbah, UAE, 2023] ([[YouTube]])

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rahabah, Wadi}} [[Category:Wadis of United Arab Emirates]] [[Category:Valleys of United Arab Emirates]] [[Category:Wadis of the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah]]