Dubai founded
1833 CE.
Shown on the map at 25.270°, 55.309°.
Dubai is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai. It is on a creek on the southeastern coast of the Persian Gulf. As of 2025, its population stands at 4 million, 92% of whom are expatriates. The wider urban area includes Sharjah and has a population of 5 million people as of 2023, while the Dubai–Sharjah–Ajman metropolitan area has a population of 6 million people. Founded in the early 18th century as a pearling and fishing settlement, Dubai became a regional trade hub in the 20th century after declaring itself a free port (1901) and extending the Creek (1961). Modest oil revenue helped accelerate Dubai's development from the 1960s to the 1990s, when the city started to diversify its economy. In 2018, oil production contributed less than 1% to the emirate's GDP. Rapid construction since the 1990s has produced one of the world's densest skylines, including the world's tallest building, the Burj Khalifa. Extensive land-reclamation projects have added more than 300 kilometres (190 mi) of artificial coastline.
Text from the Wikipedia article Dubai, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.