Riyadh | |
---|---|
State | |
Country | |
Capital | |
Population | 0 |
Riyadh (Arabic: الرياض, romanized: ar-Riyāḍ, lit. 'The Gardens' [ar.riˈjaːdˤ] Najdi pronunciation: [er.rɪˈjɑːðˤ]) is the capital of Saudi Arabia and the largest city on the Arabian Peninsula. Located in the center of the an-Nafud desert, on the eastern part of the Najd plateau, the city sits at an average of 600 metres (2,000 ft) above sea level, and receives more than 16 million tourists each year, making it the 2nd most visited city in the Arab world. Riyadh had a population of 7.6 million people in 2019, making it the most populous city in Saudi Arabia, 2nd most populous in the Arab world (after Cairo), and 38th most populous in Asia.The first mentioning of the city by the name Riyadh was in 1590, by an early Arab chronicler. In 1737, Deham Ibn Dawwas, who was from the neighboring Manfuha, settled in and took control of the city. Deham built a wall around the city, and the best known source of the name Riyadh is from this period, thought to be referring to the earlier oasis towns that predated the wall built by Ibn Dawwas. In 1744, Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab formed an alliance with the Emir of Dir'iyah, Muhammad bin Saud, and in 1774, they took Riyadh from Deham. However their state, now known as the First Saudi State, came to a collapse in 1818. Turki ibn Abdullah founded the Second Saudi State in the early 19th century and made Riyadh his capital in 1825. However, his reign over the city was disrupted by a joint Ottoman–Rashidi alliance. Finally, in the early 20th century, 'Abdulaziz ibn Saud, known in the west simply as Ibn Saud, retrieved his ancestral kingdom of Najd in 1902 and consolidated his rule by 1926 with the final Saudi conquest of Hejaz. After this he named his kingdom Saudi Arabia in September 1932 with Riyadh as the capital.Riyadh is the political and administrative centre of Saudi Arabia.
Rajbiraj | |
---|---|
State | |
Country | |
Capital | |
Population | 37738 |
Rajbiraj (Nepali: राजविराज) is a mid-sized municipality located in the south-eastern part of Province No. 2 of Nepal. Rajbiraj is the district headquarters of Saptari and is the eighth largest city in the province. The township of Rajbiraj was designed in 1938 based on an influence from the Indian city of Jaipur - thus making it the first township in Nepal to receive urban planning. It was declared a municipality in 1959. According to 2011 census, the city had a population of 69,803 and was the 33rd largest municipality in Nepal. The city area is spread over 55.64 km2 (21.48 sq mi) and comprises 16 wards.
The city is named after the ancient temple of Rajdevi, built by the Sena kings in the early 14th century. Rajbiraj has prominently served as a politically active town in the modern history of Nepal and has been the hometown to a number of icons of the nation.