Al-Yamāma

Al-Yamamah lies in the cultivated al-Kharj basin, where the old settlement of Jaww al-Khadarim stood among springs and fertile fields. The oasis was one of the principal centres of the wider region of al-Yamamah, alongside Hajr to the north. Medieval writers also called the town al-Khadrimah.

In the ninth century Muhammad al-Ukhaidhir established an Alid principality in al-Yamamah and made al-Khadrimah its seat. His descendants ruled from the oasis, whose agricultural wealth and position on routes through central Arabia made it valuable to its rulers. Their power was challenged by the Qarmatians of eastern Arabia, and fighting between the two powers brought destruction to the settlement. Its remains preserve evidence of occupation over a long period, sometimes continuous and sometimes interrupted.