Oualata

Oualata
Arabic: ولاتة
Commune and town
View of the town looking in a southeasterly direction
View of the town looking in a southeasterly direction
Oualata is located in Mauritania
Oualata
Oualata
Location in Mauritania
Coordinates: 17°18′00″N 7°01′30″W / 17.3°N 7.025°W / 17.3; -7.025
CountryMauritania
RegionHodh Ech Chargui
Area
 • Total
93,092 km2 (35,943 sq mi)
Population
 (2023 census)[1]
 • Total
4,782
 • Density0.051/km2 (0.13/sq mi)
Official nameAncient Ksour of Ouadane, Chinguetti, Tichitt and Oualata
TypeCultural
Criteriaiii, iv, v
Designated1996 (20th session)
Reference no.750
RegionArab States
Trade routes of the Western Sahara Desert c. 1000–1500. Goldfields are indicated by light brown shading: Bambuk, Bure, Lobi, and Akan.

Oualata or Walata (Arabic: ولاتة) (also Biru in 17th century chronicles)[2] is a small oasis town in southeast Mauritania, located at the eastern end of the Aoukar basin. Oualata was important as a caravan city in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries as the southern terminus of a trans-Saharan trade route and now it is a World Heritage Site.

The whole Oualata commune has a total size of 93,092 km², mostly consisting of desert. The main town is located in the south of the commune.[3]

  1. ^ "Oualata (Agricultural Urban Commune, Mauritania) - Population Statistics, Charts, Map and Location". www.citypopulation.de. Retrieved 2024-02-15.
  2. ^ Hunwick 1999, p. 9 n4. Walata is the arabized form of the Manding wala meaning a "shady place" while Biru is the Soninke word and has a similar meaning.
  3. ^ "Oualata (Agricultural Urban Commune, Mauritania) - Population Statistics, Charts, Map and Location". www.citypopulation.de. Retrieved 2024-10-25.

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