Riyadh, or Al Riyad, Saudi Arabia, the country's capital and largest city. The city is in the center of the Arabian Peninsula, about 500 miles (800 km) northeast of Mecca. Riyadh lies in a fertile oasis where fruit and grain are grown and is on the route from the Persian Gulf to Mecca. A railway runs from Riyadh to the Persian Gulf by way of Dhahran, center of Saudi Arabia's oil operations. A university was established in Riyadh in 1957. The city grew rapidly with a construction boom fueled by oil wealth. An embassy compound was constructed in 1986 and most embassies moved there from Jeddah.
Population: 3,180,000.
