Dhahran

views updated Jun 11 2018

DHAHRAN

Town that is the center of Saudi Arabian oil production.

Dhahran (al-Zahran) is a town of the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia of perhaps 100,000, not far from al-Dammam and the gulf coast. There was no settlement at Dhahran before Saudi Arabia's first oil strike was made there in 1935. Since then, Dhahran has grown to incorporate the headquarters of the Saudi Arabian American Oil Company (Saudi ARAMCO) and hosts the King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals. From 1946 to 1962, the United States operated an air force base at Dhahran that subsequently became a major base for the Royal Saudi Air Force. An international airport at Dhahran was closed after completion of a new airport at al-Dammam.


Bibliography


Nawwab, Ismail I., et al., eds. Saudi Aramco and Its World: Arabia and the Middle East. Dhahran: Saudi Aramco, 1995.

j. e. peterson

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