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Mukalla

File:Khor_al-Mukalla.jpg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons

EntityQ310772· pop 48· linked from 525 articles

Also known as Al-Mukalla District, Al Mukalla District, Al-Mukalla, Al Mukalla, Mukalla City District, Madīnat al Mukallā, Al-Kheesa, Bandar Yaqoub

Mukalla, officially the Mukalla City District, is a seaport and the capital city district of Yemen's largest governorate, Hadhramaut. The city is in the southern part of the Arabian Peninsula on the Gulf of Aden, on the shores of the Arabian Sea, about east of Aden. It is the most important port city in the Hadhramaut region. It is also the sixth-largest city in Yemen, with a population of approximately 595,000 as of 2023. The city is served by the nearby Riyan International Airport.

OverviewAI-generated

Mukalla is a city and district in Yemen, serving as the capital of the Hadhramaut Governorate. It has also been the capital of the Qu'aiti Sultanate. The city is located in the Hadhramaut Governorate and contains the administrative territorial entity of Al-Khalaf. Its official language is Arabic, and it operates in the UTC+03:00 time zone.

The city has a population of 144,137 and covers an area of 1,963.05 square kilometers. It sits at an elevation of 10 meters above sea level. Mukalla is distinct from Mukalla Rural District.

Synthesized by Vinony from 48 facts across 7 sources: Wikidata, Open Meteo, Openweathermap, OpenStreetMap, GeoNames, Vinony graph, Geo. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.

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7-day forecast

via Open-Meteo

Place details

Locality
المكلا
Region
محافظة حضرموت
Country
اليمن
Population
594,951
Timezone
Asia/Aden

via OpenStreetMap · GeoNames

Air quality

59US AQIModerate
PM2.5
12.5 µg/m³
PM10
25.0 µg/m³
As of 2026-09-14 04:00 · Open-Meteo

Key facts

Settlement.name
Mukalla
Settlement.nickname
Bride of the Arabian Sea
Settlement.settlement_type
City
Settlement.image_size
280
Settlement.pushpin_map
Yemen#Middle East#West Asia
Settlement.pushpin_label_position
bottom
Settlement.pushpin_map_caption
Location in Yemen
Settlement.pushpin_relief
1
Settlement.subdivision_type
Country
Settlement.subdivision_type1
Region
Settlement.subdivision_name1
Hadramaut
Settlement.subdivision_type2
Governorate
Settlement.subdivision_name2
Hadramaut
Settlement.established_title
Founded as a fishing settlement in
Settlement.established_date
1035
Settlement.unit_pref
Imperial
Settlement.area_total_km2
1963.05
Settlement.population_as_of
2023

via Wikipedia infobox

Wikidata facts

Country
Yemen
Official language
Arabic
Population
144137
Area
1963.05
Elevation
10
Time zone
UTC+03:00
Image
Khor al-Mukalla.jpg
Dialing code
5
Show 4 more facts
Commons category
Mukalla
topic's main category
Category:Mukalla
native label
المكلا
Sources (4)

via Wikidata · CC0

Travel guide

Understand

thumb|300x300px|Waterfront of Al Mukalla. The name "Mukalla" (المكلا) is derived from the Arabic verb "kala" (كلا), meaning "to preserve" or "to nurture." This reflects the city's historical role as a safe harbor and bustling port, providing shelter and nurturing trade in the region. Historically, the city had multiple names: Al-Kheesa, Bandar Yaqoub, Bandar Omar, Bandar Al-Naqeeb, and Bandar Ghalib

Al Mukalla is close to Qana, the ancient Hadrami trading post between India and Africa, with incense producing areas in its hinterland. The city was founded in 1035 as a fishing settlement.

While Al Mukalla has fared slightly better during the ongoing Yemeni Civil War, it was held by Al-Qaeda between 2015-2016. The city is now considered the safest compared to the rest of mainland Yemen's cities.

See

thumb|250x250px|The entrance of the Qu'aiti palace museum The old historic city core, located on a small peninsula, has many small alleyways worth exploring.

Do

Nearby are Hadhramaut Mountains, such as Husn Ghuraf.

Sleep

thumb|250px|Ramada Al Mukalla Hotel

Go next

Socotra – an island that is a UNESCO world natural heritage site

Travel guide from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0)

~6 min read

Encyclopedic overview

13 sections
Contents
  • Etymology
  • History
  • Yemeni Civil War
  • 2025 port bombing
  • Economy
  • Sights
  • Education
  • Climate
  • Notable residents
  • Notes
  • References
  • Further reading
  • External links

Mukalla, officially the Mukalla City District, is a seaport and the capital city district of Yemen's largest governorate, Hadhramaut. The city is in the southern part of the Arabian Peninsula on the Gulf of Aden, on the shores of the Arabian Sea, about east of Aden. It is the most important port city in the Hadhramaut region. It is also the sixth-largest city in Yemen, with a population of approximately 595,000 as of 2023. The city is served by the nearby Riyan International Airport.

== Etymology == The current name "Mukalla" (المكلا) is derived from the Arabic verb "kala" (كلا), meaning "to preserve" or "to nurture." This reflects the city's historical role as a safe harbor and bustling port, providing shelter and nurturing trade in the region.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Mukalla” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

Gallery (15)

On the map

2 mapped locations