Al Joharah

Ushayqir is an ancient village located in the Al-Washm region of Najd, in central Saudi Arabia about 200 km northwest of Riyadh. The name “Ushayqir” is a diminutive of “Shaqra’”, referring to the reddish mountains that surround the village’s distinctive yellow mud houses. It was once known as “Ikl”, after the ‘Ikl tribe of the Raba’b people. Historians believe Bedouins first settled in Ushayqir around 1,500 years ago, before the rise of Islam. The village grew rapidly, becoming an important stopover for pilgrims traveling to Mecca. Visitors could quench their thirst at the village springs, find shade in the orchards, and enjoy the bounty of the date palms – no wonder the poets of the Jahiliyyah era praised Ushayqir’s beauty in their writings.