between 40 and 50 miles from west to east between longitude53° 10' E. and longitude 54° 10' E., and has an average width of
about 25 miles from south to north, between latitude 23° 0' N.and la titude 23° 30' N.
12. Līwa consists of white undula ting sand dunes, rising in placesto 300 feet above the plains, with depressions of gravel or gypsumrunning east and west, eoneen them. In each depression, there are
small areas of comparatively fertile soil, some of which supportgroves of date-palms; there are also wells of sweet water.Rectangular huts, made of palm-fronds, are erected on the slopes
of the dunes for the sake of coolness. Some barricades of palm
fronds enclose groups of two or three huts inhabited by one family;while other barricades, built along the tops of dunes, shield thepalm trees from the encroaching sand. The settlements stretch in
an arc rising from 'Aradah at the south-western end northeastwards to Latir, and descending south-eastwards more gradually,
but further south, to al-Jurairah at the south-eastern end.
They
are close together but invisible to each other, because of the
height of the dunes between them. The settlements consist of
palm-frond houses, some of which are permanently occupied.
In this
respect, Liwa is unique in the whole region. Qufa, for instance,is a string of sweet water wells and palm-groves, running parallelwith Liwa, but it contains no permanent settlements!?).13. In addition to the houses there are forts and ruins of fortsat some of the settlements. There have been forts in Liwa formore than three centuries and the Al bū Falāh Shaikhs of Abu
Dhabi have continued to build and maintain them there ever since.
The following is a list of such as exist today, whether intact or
ruinous:
/al-Ida
For a photograph of a typical Liwa settlement, see TheGeographical Journal, cxvi, facing p. 141.
(2) see Chapter
, paragraph
of Part II.
