History
Oman (/oʊˈmɑːn/ (listen) oh-MAHN; Arabic: عُمَان ʿUmān [ʕʊˈmaːn]), officially the Sultanate of Oman (Arabic: سلْطنةُ عُمان Salṭanat(u) ʻUmān), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of the Persian Gulf. Oman shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen; while sharing maritime borders with Iran. The coast is formed by the Arabian Sea on the southeast, and the Gulf of Oman on the northeast.
The Madha and Musandam exclaves are surrounded by the United Arab Emirates on their land borders, with the Strait of Hormuz (which it shares with Iran) and the Gulf of Oman forming Musandam’s coastal boundaries. Muscat is the nation’s capital and largest city.
Geography
Oman lies between latitudes 16° and 28° N, and longitudes 52° and 60° E. A vast gravel desert plain covers most of central Oman, with mountain ranges along the north (Al Hajar Mountains) and southeast coast (Qara or Dhofar Mountains), where the country’s main cities are located: the capital city Muscat, Sohar and Sur in the north, and Salalah in the south and Musandam.
Oman’s climate is hot and dry in the interior and humid along the coast. During past epochs, Oman was covered by ocean, as evidenced by the large numbers of fossilized shells found in areas of the desert away from the modern coastline.
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