Native name: جزيرة فيلچا | |
|---|---|
 Beach at Failaka Island | |
  Failaka Island Location in Kuwait | |
| Etymology | < Ancient Greek φυλάκιο(ν) fylakio(n) "outpost" |
| Geography | |
| Location | Persian Gulf |
| Coordinates | 29°26′20″N 48°20′00″E / 29.43889°N 48.33333°E |
| Length | 14 km (8.7 mi) |
| Width | 6.5 km (4.04 mi) |
| Highest point | Rās Sibīcha |
| Administration | |
| Governorate | Capital |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 147 (2011)[1] |
| Additional information | |
| Time zone | |
Failaka Island, Persian Gulf
Failaka Island (Arabic: فيلكا Faylakah / Fēlaka; Kuwaiti Arabic: فيلچا /fe:lɪt͡ʃə/) is a Kuwaiti Island in the Persian Gulf. The island is 20 km off the coast of Kuwait City in the Persian Gulf. The name "Failaka" is thought to be derived from the ancient Greek φυλάκιο(ν) – fylakio(n) "outpost".[2]
Failaka Island is located 50 km southeast of the spot where the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers empty into the Persian Gulf.[3] For thousands of years, the island has been a strategic prize to control the lucrative trade that passed up and down the Persian Gulf.[4][3] Failaka Island has been a strategic location since the rise of the Sumerian city-state of Ur.[4] Up until the Gulf War, it was the longest continuously inhabited place in Kuwait.[5]
- ^ "Geoportal for Kuwait Census 2011". Central Statistical Bureau of Kuwait. Retrieved 26 November 2019.
- ^ BBC News article
- ^ a b "Failaka Island, Kuwait". Jet Propulsion Laboratory. 4 April 2013.
- ^ a b Cite error: The named reference
uneswas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Nevins, Debbie; O'Shea, Maria (2018). Kuwait. Cavendish Square Publishing, LLC. p. 17. ISBN 9781502636416.