Haql
{{Short description|City in Tabuk province, Saudi Arabia}}
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{{Infobox settlement
|official_name = City of Haql
|native_name = {{langx|ar|مَدِيْنَة حَقْل|Madīnat Ḥaql}}
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|motto =
|image_skyline = Al Haql R01.jpg
|imagesize = 300 px
|image_caption = Haql seen from the sea, with the Midian Mountains in the background
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|pushpin_map = Saudi Arabia
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|subdivision_type = Country
|subdivision_name = {{Flag|Saudi Arabia}}
|subdivision_type1 = Province
|subdivision_name1 = Tabuk province
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|population_as_of = 2010
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|population_total = 25,649
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|utc_offset = +3
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|coordinates = {{coord|29|17|N|34|56|E|region:SA|display=inline}}
|lats 9.95 =
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|website = www.haqlcity.com
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Ḥaql ({{langx|ar|حَقْل}}) or Ḥaqal ({{langx|ar|حَقَل}}){{cite book |last=Scoville |first=Sheila A. |title=Gazetteer of Arabia: a geographical and tribal history of the Arabian Peninsula |volume=2 |pages=201–344 |publisher=Akademische Druck- u. Verlagsanstalt |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=AH8YAQAAMAAJ&q=haql |isbn=0-7614-7571-0 |year=2006}} is a city in the northwest of Saudi Arabia near the head of the Gulf of Aqaba, adjacent to Aqaba across the Jordanian border. The coasts of Egypt, Israel, and Jordan can be seen from Haql.
Haql is a small city and it is not a port used for Red Sea shipping, and the relatively small Saudi population does not engage in water desalination. As a result, the reefs in this area are pristine and populated with diverse flora and fauna. The coasts of the Red Sea and Gulf of Aqaba in this region are scenic. There are views of the mountains of the Sinai Peninsula across the Gulf of Aqaba. Shipping is limited to traffic to and from the Port of Aqaba, Jordan. It lies {{convert|5|km|mile|abbr=on}} from the Jordanian border. It has become one of the most attractive cities to visit for diving sports and accommodation. The two most attractive factors are its climate and geographical location. The Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities (SCTA) has added more than 4 attractive spots on Haql.{{cn|date=January 2019}}
Climate
Haql has a desert climate and most rainfall is in the winter. The Köppen-Geiger climate classification is BWh. The average annual temperature in Haql is {{convert|24.3|°C|1}}. About {{convert|24|mm|2|abbr=on}} of precipitation falls annually.
{{Weather box|location = Haql
|metric first = Y
|single line = Y
|Jan high C = 21.1
|Feb high C = 22.8
|Mar high C = 25.8
|Apr high C = 29.9
|May high C = 34.0
|Jun high C = 36.8
|Jul high C = 37.4
|Aug high C = 37.8
|Sep high C = 35.2
|Oct high C = 31.9
|Nov high C = 27.1
|Dec high C = 22.2
|Jan low C = 10.7
|Feb low C = 11.7
|Mar low C = 14.3
|Apr low C = 17.8
|May low C = 20.3
|Jun low C = 23.8
|Jul low C = 25.3
|Aug low C = 25.6
|Sep low C = 24.1
|Oct low C = 20.8
|Nov low C = 16.5
|Dec low C = 11.9
|Jan precipitation mm = 3
|Feb precipitation mm = 5
|Mar precipitation mm = 5
|Apr precipitation mm = 3
|May precipitation mm = 1
|Jun precipitation mm = 0
|Jul precipitation mm = 0
|Aug precipitation mm = 0
|Sep precipitation mm = 0
|Oct precipitation mm = 1
|Nov precipitation mm = 3
|Dec precipitation mm = 3
|year precipitation mm= 24
|source = [https://en.climate-data.org Climate Data]
|date=17 January 2018}}
Possible name origin
The city of Haql may have been a corruption of "Ashkelon". In the Mishnah, at the beginning of Tractate Gittin (1:2) it is written "... and Ashkelon as the south". There was a city named Ashkelon at the southern border of the Land of Israel south of the city of Elath. This city of Ashkelon is entirely unrelated to the city of Ashkelon on the Mediterranean coast.
The researcher Haim bar Droma wrote "There was another Ashkelon in the Gulf of Eilat. This was a common practice for ancient cities, many cities were named after other cities in the same region. It may be that this is the similarity in sound between 'Ashkelon' and 'Haql'.{{cite book |last1=bar Droma |first1=Haim |title=וזה גבול הארץ: גבולותיה האמתיים של ארץ ישראל לאור המקורות |date=1958 |publisher=מוסד הרב קוק |location=Jerusalem |url=https://www.nli.org.il/en/books/NNL_ALEPH990018516730205171/NLI}}
See also
References
{{reflist}}
{{Portal|Saudi Arabia}}
{{Recreational dive sites|reereg}}
Category:Populated coastal places in Saudi Arabia
Category:Populated places in Tabuk Province
Category:Underwater diving sites in Saudi Arabia
{{Saudi-geo-stub}}