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The Waq Waq islands

جزائر الواق واق

A chain of islands which al-Idrisi says connects with the Sila islands, beyond which no one knows. He reports much gold there and ebony of unmatched quality, and that merchants enter to smelt gold 1, 2.

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Overview

The Islands of the Waq-Waq are a chain of islands which al-Idrisi describes as connected to the islands of al-Sila, and no one knows what lies beyond them. There is much gold in them, and ebony of the finest quality known. Merchants enter them and smelt gold. 3 4

According to Ibn Khurdadhbih, the land of the Waqwaq is rich in gold. He mentions that its people make the chains of their dogs and the collars of their monkeys of gold, and that there is good ebony in it. 5

Sources

  1. Al-Idrisi, Nuzhat al-Mushtaq fi ikhtiraq al-afaq (Cairo: Maktabat al-Thaqafa al-Diniyya, 2002), 2 vols., p. 91
  2. Al-Idrisi, Nuzhat al-Mushtaq fi ikhtiraq al-afaq (Cairo: Maktabat al-Thaqafa al-Diniyya, 2002), 2 vols., p. 92
  3. Al-Idrisi, Nuzhat al-Mushtaq fi ikhtiraq al-afaq (Cairo: Maktabat al-Thaqafa al-Diniyya, 2002), 2 vols., p.91
  4. Al-Idrisi, Nuzhat al-Mushtaq fi ikhtiraq al-afaq (Cairo: Maktabat al-Thaqafa al-Diniyya, 2002), 2 vols., p.92
  5. Kitab al-Masalik wa-l-Mamalik of Ibn Khurdadhbih, p.77
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “The Waq Waq islands”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/place/waq-waq-islands/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Accessed 2026-10-17.

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