Al Mahwit المحويت City | |
|---|---|
) | |
)  Al Mahwit Location in Yemen | |
| Coordinates: 15°28′10″N 43°32′43″E / 15.46944°N 43.54528°E | |
| Country |  Yemen |
| Governorate | Al Mahwit |
| District | Al Mahwit |
| Population (2012) | |
| • Total | 16,291 |
Al Mahwit (Arabic: المحويت Al-Maḥwīt) is the capital city of Al Mahwit Governorate, Yemen. It is located at an elevation of about 2000 metres.
History
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Al-Mahwit's development is fairly recent compared to some other Yemeni settlements. Its first known historical mention is in 1599 (1007 AH), in the Ghayat al-amani of Yahya ibn al-Husayn.[1]
The old town of Al-Mahwit is situated around a mountain fortress. Until the 1970s, Al Mahwit was extremely isolated. The town had a population of about 10,000 in the early 1980s, after which infrastructure was developed and water, sanitation and electricity added.[2]
Geography
The area is mountainous, set in the Haraz Mountains and attracts trekkers.[3] Al-Mahwit is surrounded by several wadis such as Wadi Sama'a, Wadi Eyan, Wadi Juma't Saria, Wadi Hawar, Wadi Bour, Wadi Al- Hawdh, Wadi Thabab, Wadi Laa'a, Wadi Al-Ahjer and Wadi Naa'wan. Numerous villages are spread in the area that were built on and around rocks.
Climate
Al Mawhit has a cold desert climate (Köppen climate classification: BWk) with warm days and cool nights, typical of Yemen's highlands. Rain is concentrated in spring and summer, with a dry gap between the two rainy seasons. April, July and August are the only months with significant precipitation.
| Climate data for Al Mahwit | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | 22.6 (72.7) | 24.8 (76.6) | 25.7 (78.3) | 25.4 (77.7) | 26.7 (80.1) | 29.0 (84.2) | 27.4 (81.3) | 27.0 (80.6) | 26.4 (79.5) | 23.5 (74.3) | 21.6 (70.9) | 21.1 (70.0) | 25.1 (77.2) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 13.8 (56.8) | 15.4 (59.7) | 17.2 (63.0) | 17.8 (64.0) | 19.3 (66.7) | 20.7 (69.3) | 21.1 (70.0) | 20.9 (69.6) | 19.3 (66.7) | 16.7 (62.1) | 14.5 (58.1) | 13.6 (56.5) | 17.5 (63.5) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 5.1 (41.2) | 6.0 (42.8) | 8.7 (47.7) | 10.2 (50.4) | 12.0 (53.6) | 12.5 (54.5) | 14.8 (58.6) | 14.8 (58.6) | 12.2 (54.0) | 9.9 (49.8) | 7.5 (45.5) | 6.1 (43.0) | 10.0 (50.0) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 8 (0.3) | 11 (0.4) | 27 (1.1) | 51 (2.0) | 29 (1.1) | 7 (0.3) | 46 (1.8) | 71 (2.8) | 16 (0.6) | 5 (0.2) | 10 (0.4) | 8 (0.3) | 289 (11.3) |
| Source: Climate-Data.org[4] | |||||||||||||
Economy
The area and surrounding governorate depends on agriculture, mainly the production of coffee, tobacco, corn, sorghum and qat.[2]
References
- ^ Wilson, Robert T.O. (1989). Gazetteer of Historical North-West Yemen. Germany: Georg Olms AG. p. 296. Retrieved 9 February 2021.
- ^ a b Burrowes, Robert D. (2010). Historical Dictionary of Yemen. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 230. ISBN 978-0-8108-5528-1.
- ^ Hämäläinen, Pertti (1999). Yemen. Lonely Planet Publications. p. 148. ISBN 978-0-86442-603-1.
- ^ "Climate: Al Mahwit". Climate-Data.org. Retrieved November 5, 2017.