Boundaries Najd

a view of tweig (tuwaiq) escarpment west. saudi capital riyadh lies beyond horizon.



najd superimposed on modern political divisions of saudi arabia



najd next step after hijaz in campaigns of nejd expedition.

the arabic word najd literally means upland , once applied variety of regions within arabian peninsula. however, famous of these central region of peninsula bounded on west mountains of hejaz , yemen , east historical region of eastern arabia , north iraq , syria.

medieval muslim geographers spent great amount of time debating exact boundaries between hejaz , najd in particular, set western boundaries of najd wherever western mountain ranges , lava beds began slope eastwards, , set eastern boundaries of najd @ narrow strip of red sand dunes known ad-dahna desert, 100 km (62 mi) east of modern-day riyadh. southern border of najd has been set @ large sea of sand dunes known today rub al khali (the empty quarter), while southwestern boundaries marked valleys of wadi ranyah, wadi bisha, , wadi tathlith.

the northern boundaries of najd have fluctuated historically , received far less attention medieval geographers. in islamic centuries, najd considered extend far north river euphrates, or more specifically, walls of khosrau , constructed sassanid empire barrier between arabia , iraq prior advent of islam. modern usage of term encompasses region of al-yamama, not considered part of najd historically.