Article Outline
Qatar, nation occupying the Qatar Peninsula, which extends northward from the eastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula into the Persian Gulf. Saudi Arabia shares Qatar’s southern border, and the island nation of Bahrain lies off its western shores. Like most of Arabia, the Qatar Peninsula is a hot and dry desert land with no surface water and few native plants and animals. Most of the people live in cities, particularly Doha, the national capital. The country is rich in oil and natural gas, and the exploitation of these resources dominates its prosperous economy. The al-Thani clan has ruled Qatar as an emirate (a monarchy with an emir as head of state) since the late 19th century. Like several of its neighbors, Qatar came under British protection in the early 20th century. It became fully independent in 1971. The emirate was a relatively poor state until the mid-20th century, when its vast petroleum reserves were discovered and exploited. Qatar is now one of the world’s wealthiest countries per capita.
Qatar covers a land area of 11,427 sq km (4,412 sq mi). Its greatest length, north to south, is about 180 km (about 110 mi) and its widest east-west extent is about 80 km (about 50 mi). Numerous small islands and reefs lie close to Qatar’s shores. The largest of these, the Ḩawār Islands off the western coast, belong to Bahrain.
Qatar’s terrain largely consists of flat, gravelly desert with a few rocky ridges. The highest point, Qurayn Aba al-Bawl, reaches only 83 m (272 ft) above sea level. There are no rivers, lakes, or springs in Qatar.
Natural vegetation is extremely sparse in Qatar. Various species of birds, including bustards, and small mammals such as sand cats make up most of the indigenous wildlife on land. Offshore, plentiful marine life includes dugongs, shrimp, oysters, and various species of food fish.
Oil and natural gas are Qatar’s only significant natural resources. The country has 15.2 billion barrels of proven oil reserves and even larger reserves—25.8 trillion cubic meters (910.5 trillion cu ft)—of natural gas. These gas reserves, representing about 15 percent of the world’s total, are larger than those of any country except Russia and Iran. Most of the gas reserves are contained in the vast North Field, the largest gas field in the world. In contrast to most other gas fields in the gulf area, the North Field contains no oil, only gas. Therefore, gas production is not tied to oil production, which is advantageous because world demand for each rises and falls separately.
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