Ash Shamal الشمال |
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Municipality | |
Zubara Fort
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Map of Qatar with Ash Shamal highlighted |
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Coordinates (Ar Ru'ays (Madinat ash Shamal)): 26°08′N 51°13′E / 26.14°N 51.22°ECoordinates: 26°08′N 51°13′E / 26.14°N 51.22°E | |
Country | Qatar |
Capital | Al Shamal City (Madinat ash Shamal) |
Area | |
• Total | 902 km2 (348 sq mi) |
Population (2010) | |
• Total | 7,975 |
• Density | 8.8/km2 (23/sq mi) |
Time zone | East Africa Time (UTC+03) |
ISO 3166 code | QA-MS |
Madinat ash-Shamal (Arabic: الشمال) is a municipality in the state of Qatar. Its capital is called Al Shamal City and it is considered to be one of the major cities in Qatar. The name means "City of the north" - although the population is barely over 5,000. Ash Shamal will be home to the proposed 45,330-seat Al-Shamal Stadium, one of 12 venues used in the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Madinat ash Shamal includes Ras Rakan, the northernmost point of the Qatari peninsula, and as such is surrounded by the Persian Gulf in all directions except for the south. It borders the municipality of Al Khor.
The municipality is divided into three primary zones.
Ash-Shamal Municipality was created by virtue of law No.19 passed on 17 July 1972, stating the creation of new municipalities: Al-Rayyan, Al-Khor and Al-Thakhira, Al-Wakrah, Umm Salal, and Al-Shamal.
Accommodating less than 8,000 inhabitants, Al Shamal is the least populous municipality in the country. As it comprises the northernmost portion of the country, its historic importance is attributed to its more moderate weather and close proximity to Bahrain. The traditional mainstay of its inhabitants was fishing and pearling. Al Zubarah, a town located in the western section of the municipality, was previously the largest and most important settlement in Qatar. Proceeding the discovery of oil, most of Al Shamal's population migrated to the capital Doha.
The Municipality supervises its administrative limits, which are:
The following zones were recorded in the 2010 population census:
Ash-Shamal Municipality comprises four principal departments headed and managed by Mr. Jabr Ben Ali al-Naee'mee, director of ash-Shamal Municipality.
The director's office, heading the director's assistants and the heads of the following departments:
Al-Shamal SC, a sports club most notable for its football team which competes in the Qatargas League, is situated in the city. Their home games are played at Al-Shamal SC Stadium in Al Shamal City. Al-Shamal Stadium, a 45,120 capacity multi-purpose stadium is currently under construction for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.