Ushaiger
| Ushaiger أشيقر | |
|---|---|
| Village | |
  Ushaiger | |
| Coordinates: 25°20′33″N 45°11′0″E / 25.34250°N 45.18333°ECoordinates: 25°20′33″N 45°11′0″E / 25.34250°N 45.18333°E | |
| Country | Saudi Arabia |
| Emirate | Riyadh Province |
| Time zone | EAT (UTC+3) |
Ushaiger (Arabic: أشيقر) is a small village near Shagra in Saudi Arabia. It is 200 km NW of Riyadh.
Ushaiger is one of the oldest towns in the Saudi region of Najd and it was a major stopping point for pilgrims coming from Kuwait, Iraq and Iran to perform Hajj or Umrah. It was originally known as A’ekel but the name was eventually changed to Ushaiger. It was changed because the town is bordered by a small mountain north of the Village. The mountain is red in color, yet locals said it was blonde simply because red and blonde were used interchangeably in the old days. Ushaiger means the “Small Blonde”, which is a description of that particular mountain.[1]
Historical Ushaiger belongs to the Tamim tribe although other tribes lived there as well. It is also the home land to many families in the Arabian Peninsula. Such families are Al-Elsheikh (The family of Muhammad ibn Abd-al-Wahhab), Al-Thani (Rulers of the State of Qatar) and Al-Misnad originated from Ushaiger.
Lately, the people of Ushaiger had restored the historical village to preserve its heritage and built a museum which displays various relics and pieces from the village.[2]