Provinces of Saudi Arabia

First-level administrative regions of Saudi Arabia

Provinces of Saudi Arabia
مناطق المملكة العربية السعودية

Tabuk

Bahah 

Jawf

Madinah

Makkah

Jizan

Ha'il

Northern
Borders

Asir

Qasim

Riyadh

Najran

Eastern Province

Category| Provinces within a unitary state
Location| Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Number| 13
Populations| 373,577 (Northern Borders Province) – 8,591,748 (Riyadh Province)
Areas| 9,920 km2 (3,831 sq mi) (Al-Bahah Province) – 672,520 km2 (259,662 sq mi) (Eastern Province)
Government|

* Provincial government, national government

Subdivisions|

* Governorates

The provinces of Saudi Arabia, also known as regions (Arabic: مناطق المملكة العربية السعودية, romanized: Manāṭiq al-Mamlakat il-'Arabiyyat il-Sa'udiyyah), are the 13 first-level administrative divisions of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.[1][2][3]

## History

[edit]

Prior to the unification of Saudi Arabia in 1932, the Arabian Peninsula was composed of several distinct regions, many of which had been part of the Ottoman Empire, such as the Hejaz Vilayet and the Lahsa Eyalet. After unification, these historical regions — including Hejaz, Najd, Asir, and Al-Hasa — formed the basis for the kingdom’s evolving administrative divisions, which were later reorganized into modern provinces.[1]

King Fahd issued Royal Order A/92 on March 2, 1992, known as Law of the Provinces,[4] which provided for the division of the kingdom into 13 provinces. Subsequently, the five previous provinces were divided into thirteen regions, called provinces (manātiq), each governed by administrative bodies called the emirates of the provinces (imārāt al-manātiq). The provinces form the first-level administrative division of the Organization of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and are further divided into 136 governorates (muḥāfaẓāt), which are the second-level division,[3] which are further subdivided into 1,347 municipal-level units (marakiz), and further subdivided into villages (qura) and neighborhoods (ahya).

## Government

[edit]

Each province is governed by an Emir (provincial governor), who is assisted by the deputy emir, called nā'ib. The persons holding these positions are appointed by the King of Saudi Arabia. The emir is given the rank of minister, while the deputy emir is given the rank of excellence.[3]

## List

[edit]

Provinces of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia  Province  | Historical
region  | Capital
(central city)  | Governorates | Marakiz | Population
(2022 census)[5] | Area
(km2)  | Density
(per km2)

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

Asir Province | South Arabia | Abha | 6 [11] (17)  | 101  | 2,024,285  | 76,693  | 26.40
Al-Baha Province | Hejaz | Al-Baha | 4 [5] (9)  | 35  | 339,174  | 9,921  | 34.20
Al-Jouf Province | Southern Badiyat al-Sham | Sakākā | 2 [1] (3)  | 33  | 595,822  | 100,212  | 5.95
Al-Qassim Province | Najd | Buraidah | 5 [7] (12)  | 153  | 1,336,179  | 58,046  | 23.01
Eastern Province | Eastern Arabia (Bahrain) | Dammam | 7 [5] (12)  | 107  | 5,125,254  | 672,522  | 7.62
Ḥa'il Province | Najd | Ḥaʼil | 1 [7] (8)  | 84  | 746,406  | 103,887  | 7.19
Jazan Province | South Arabia | Jizan | 5 [11] (16)  | 31  | 1,404,997  | 11,671  | 120.43
Mecca Province | Hejaz | Mecca | 9 [7] (16)  | 111  | 7,769,994  | 153,128  | 50.76
Medina Province | Hejaz | Medina | 4 [4] (8)  | 90  | 2,389,452  | 151,990  | 15.72
Najran Province | South Arabia | Najran | 1 [5] (6)  | 59  | 592,300  | 149,511  | 3.96
Northern Borders Province | Southern Badiyat al-Sham | Arar | 2 [1] (3)  | 17  | 373,577  | 111,797  | 3.34
Riyadh Province | Najd | Riyadh | 12 [10] (22)  | 453  | 8,591,748  | 404,240  | 21.25
Tabuk Province | Hejaz | Tabuk | 4 [2] (6)  | 73  | 886,036  | 146,072  | 6.07
Total | 13 | 62 [76] (138) | 1,347 | 32,175,224 | 2,149,690 | 14.97

## Codes

[edit]

Code  | Subdivision name (ar)
(BGN/PCGN 1956)  | Subdivision name (ar) [note 1] | Subdivision name (en) [note 2]

|
|
|

SA-14 | Asir | عَسِيْر  | Asir
SA-11 | Al-Baha | ٱلْبَاحَة  | Baha
SA-08 | Northern Borders Province | الحدود الشمالية  | Northern Borders
SA-12 | Al-Jouf Province | الجوف  | Jouf
SA-03 | Medina Province | ٱلْمَدِيْنَة ٱلْمُنَوَّرَة  | Medina
SA-05 | Qassim | القصيم  | Qassim
SA-01 | Riyadh Province | الرياض  | Riyadh
SA-04 | Eastern Province | الشرقية  | Eastern
SA-06 | Ḥa'il Province | حَائِل  | Hail
SA-09 | Jazan Province | جازان  | Jazan
SA-02 | Mecca Province | مكة  | Mecca
SA-10 | Najran Province | نجران  | Najran
SA-07 | Tabuk Province | تَبُوْك  | Tabuk

Notes

1. ^ For reference only, Arabic name in Arabic script not included in the ISO 3166-2 standard.
2. ^ For reference only, English name not included in the ISO 3166-2 standard.

## See also

[edit]

* Saudi Arabia portal

* List of governorates of Saudi Arabia
* List of cities and towns in Saudi Arabia
* Subdivisions of Saudi Arabia
* Mintaqah

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b "Saudi Arabia Regions". www.statoids.com.
2. ^ "The New Addressing". Saudi Post. 2013. Archived from the original on 3 March 2014. Retrieved 9 February 2014.
3. ^ a b c "Organization of the Emirate of Makkah Province". Ministry of Interior.
4. ^ "Law of the Provinces | The Embassy of The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia". www.saudiembassy.net. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
5. ^ "Saudi Arabia: Regions & Major Cities - Population Statistics, Maps, Charts, Weather and Web Information". www.citypopulation.de. Retrieved 2024-02-05.

## External links

[edit]

* Media related to Provinces of Saudi Arabia at Wikimedia Commons

* v
* t
* e

Provinces of Saudi Arabia

* Al-Bahah
* Northern Borders
* Al-Jawf
* Medina
* Al-Qassim
* Riyadh
* Eastern Province
* 'Asir
* Ha'il
* Jizan
* Mecca
* Najran
* Tabuk

* v
* t
* e

Saudi Arabia articles

History|

* First Saudi State
* Second Saudi state
* Third Saudi State
* Emirate of Riyadh
* Emirate of Nejd and Hasa
* Sultanate of Nejd
* Kingdom of Hejaz and Nejd
* Kingdom of Hejaz
* Unification
* Modern history

Geography|

* Borders
* Cities and towns
* Climate
* Earthquakes
* Governorates
* Mountains
* Provinces
* Wadis
* Wildlife

Politics|

* Allegiance Council
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* Foreign relations
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* Mabahith (secret police)
* National Security Council
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Law|

* Basic Law
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* Abortion
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