Page 38 - UAE Truncal States
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                                             Geographical Conditions

      varies throughout Abu Dhabi’s territory, depending on the avail­
      ability of fresh or brackish water. The eastern reaches benefit from
      the run-off water from the mountains. Further west, dew and
      occasional rain accumulated over centuries in the sand-dunes
      provide in certain areas enough water to supply hand-dug wells.10 In
      one area in the south called Llwa, a string of about four dozen small
      oases nestle in many of the hollows formed by a multitude of
      interlinking sand dunes, the highest of which rise up to nearly 200
      metres above the floor of the plains.11 The territory to the south and
      west of the Llwa forms the edge of the Rub' al Khali, and water wells
      are few and far between. The wells in the Llwa oases support date
      palms but are usually not prolific and the water is not sweet enough
      to permit much additional agriculture. As a result of this, the Llwa
      has been the centre for a migratory population. The inhabitants had
      to seek additional means of livelihood by tending large camel herds
      migrating over an extensive area in the adjacent desert during the
      winter months, or by pursuing other economic activities on the coast.
      Situated about 100 kilometres south of the Gulf and isolated from the
      nearest coastal settlements by the desert, the exact location of this
      string of oases was not known to European geographers until the
      year 1906, when it came by accident to the attention of the author of
      the Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf, Oman and Central Arabia, who
      was compiling the information obtained by generations of officials in
       the British Government of India.12 As a result of this, many villages
       and seasonal settlements in the hitherto unknown desert regions of
      Dhafrah,13 Bainunah, Qufa and Khatam in Abu Dhabi territory could
       also be located on the map.14
        Due east of the capital the second largest population centre, al 'Ain,
       is about 160 kilometres away. The recently built-up town of al 'Ain
       and its five neighbouring villages constitute Abu Dhabi’s share of the
       whole oasis which, in European literature of the last few decades,
       has been called after Buraimi, one of the three neighbouring villages
       in the territory of the Sultanate of Oman. The oasis is situated some
       20 kilometres from the last of the main ranges of the Hajar
       mountains. One solitary mountain, Jabal Hafit, reaching the height of
       1160 metres, extends from al 'Ain in a south-easterly direction for
       about 20 kilometres, straddling the border between Abu Dhabi and
       the Sultanate. The oasis owes its existence to the availability of
       underground fresh water at the foot of the mountains. Some of the
       water is brought to the oasis by underground channels, called a/laj,
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