Masirah Island
Oman · Asia
About
Masirah Island (Arabic: جَزِيْرَة مَصِيْرَة, romanized: Jazīrat Maṣīrah), also referred to as Mazeira Island, is an island off the east coast of mainland Oman in the Arabian Sea, and the largest island of the country. Administratively, it forms one of the five provinces (Wilayah, plural Wilayat) of the Ash Sharqiyah South Governorate, namely Wilāyat Maṣīrah (Arabic: وِلَايَة مَصِيْرَة); previously it was a province of the Ash Sharqiyah Region.
Masirah is 95 km (59 miles) long north–south, between 12 and 14 km (7.5 and 8.7 miles) wide, with an area of about 649 km2, and a population estimated at 12,000 in 12 villages mainly in the north of the island (9,292 as of the census of 2003, of which were 2,311 foreigners). It is divided from the mainland by the Masirah Channel. Most of the island's interior is deserted, with access to the island possible by ferry on National Ferries Company (NFC) or smaller privately owned ferries for cars and passengers. Salam Air also flies to Masirah weekly.
The principal village of Wilayat Masirah is Raʾs-Ḥilf (Arabic: رَأْس حِلْف) in the northern part of the island. It contains a Royal Air Force of Oman air base and a fish factory, as well as a few small towns. Previously, the BBC had a relay facility consisting of both HF and MF broadcasting transmitters stationed there. The main industries are fishing and traditional textile manufacturing. Formerly, traditional shipbuilding was important.
Adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)。Photography via Wikimedia Commons.