Dakhla Oasis
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| Dakhla Oasis الداخلة |
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| — Oasis — | |
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| Nickname(s): Inner oasis | |
  Dakhla Oasis
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| Coordinates: 25°31′N 29°10′E / 25.517°N 29.167°E | |
| Country |  Egypt |
| Governorate | New Valley Governorate |
| Area | |
| - Total | 2,000 km2 (772.2 sq mi) |
| - Land | 1,500 km2 (579.2 sq mi) |
| Population (2002) | |
| - Total | 75 000 |
| - Ethnicities | Egyptians Ottomans (Qalamoun) |
| Time zone | EST (UTC+2) |
| - Summer (DST) | +1 (UTC+3) |
| Capital | 'Ain Basil (Balat) (c. 2500 BCE-c. 1500 BCE) Mut (c. 1500 BCE- ) |
Dakhla Oasis (Arabic: الداخلة; transliteration: al-Dākhla; BGN: Al Wāḩāt ad Dākhilah), also spelt Dakhleh and known colloquially as the inner oasis, is one of the seven oases of Egypt's Western Desert (part of the Libyan Desert). Dakhla Oasis lies in the New Valley Governorate, 350 km from the Nile and between the oases of Farafra and Kharga. It measures approximately 80 km (50 mi) from east to west and 25 km (16 mi) from north to south.
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[edit] History
[edit] Prehistory
The human history of this oasis started during the Pleistocene, when nomadic tribes settled sometimes there, in a time when the Sahara climate was wetter and where humans could have access to lakes and marshes. But about 6 000 years ago, the entire Sahara became drier, changing progressively into a hyper-arid desert (with less than 50 mm of rain per year). However, specialists think that nomadic hunter-gatherers began to settle almost permanently in the oasis of Dakhleh in the period of the Holocene (about 12 000 years ago), during new, but rare episodes of wetter times. In fact, the drier climate didn't mean that there was no more water in what is now known as the Western Desert. The south of the Libyan Desert has the most important supply of subterranean water in the world, and the first inhabitants of the Dakhla Oasis had access to surface water sources.
[edit] Pharaonic Period
First contacts between the pharaonic power and the oases started around 2550 BCE.
[edit] After 1800
The first European traveller to find the Dakhla Oasis was Sir Archibald Edmonstone, in the year 1819.[1] He was succeeded by several other early travellers, but it was not until 1908 that the first egyptologist, Herbert Winlock, visited Dakhla Oasis and noted its monuments in some systematic manner.[1] In the 1950s, detailed studies began, first by Dr. Ahmed Fakhry, and in the late 1970s, an expedition of the Institut Français d'Archéologie Orientale and the Dakhla Oasis Project each began detailed studies in the oasis.[1]
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[edit] Geography
Dakhla Oasis consists of several communities, along a string of sub-oases. The main settlements are Mut, Al-Qasr, Qalamoun, together with several smaller villages. Some of the communities have identities that are separate from each other. Qalamoun has inhabitants that trace their origins to the Ottomans.
[edit] Dakhleh Oasis Project
The Dakhleh Oasis Project (DOP) is a long-term study project set up in 1979 by the Centre for Archaeology and Ancient History at Monash University. The DOP studies the interaction between environmental changes and human activity in the Dakhla Oasis.
[edit] Dakhleh Trust
The Dakhleh Trust was formed in 1999 and is a registered charity in the Britain.
Its declared aim is to advance understanding of the history of the environment and cultural evolution throughout the Quaternary period in the eastern Sahara, and particularly in the Dakhla Oasis.
To this end, the present trustees have committed themselves to supporting the DOP.
[edit] Trustees
| Name | Personal details | Office |
|---|---|---|
| John Ruffle MA | Retired museum curator and Egyptologist | Chairman |
| Judith Trowell | Treasurer | |
| Sir Graham Boyce KCMG | ||
| Glenys Carter MBE | Retired director, National Association of Toy and Leisure Libraries | |
| Simon deMare | Museologist | |
| Anthony Harris | ||
| Peter Mackenzie-Smith | Managing director, Prothero Limited |
[edit] Notes
[edit] References
- Fakhry, A. The Oases of Egypt, I : Siwa Oasis, Le Caire, Amer. Univ. in Cairo Press.
- Fakhry, A. The Oases of Egypt, II: Bahriyah and Farafra Oases, Le Caire, Univ. in Cairo Press, c2003.
- Giddy, L. Egyptian Oases: Bahariya, Dakhla, Farafra and Kharga during Pharaonic Times, Warminster, Aris & Philips, 1987.
- Jackson, R. At Empire’s Edge: Exploring Rome’s Egyptian Frontier, New Haven et Londres, Yale University Press, 2002.
- Thurston, H. Island of the Blessed : the Secrets of Egypt’s Everlasting Oasis, Toronto, Doubleday, 2003.
- Vivian, C. The Western Desert of Egypt: an explorer’s handbook, AUC Press, le Caire, 2000.
- Wagner, G. Les oasis d’Égypte à l’époque grecque, romaine et byzantine, d’après les documents grecs, Le Caire, Recherches de papyrologie et d’épigraphie grecques, 1987.
[edit] External links
- Dakhla in the Old Kingdom
- Photos of Dalkhla Oasis on GlobalAmity.net
- Travel guide
Coordinates: 25°31′N 29°10′E / 25.517°N 29.167°E
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