Africa
North Africa

Western Sahara

Western Sahara is an area on the west coast of . A former Spanish colony, its governance is disputed between and the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic.
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Photo: Alexander Leisser, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Photo: Wikimedia, CC0.

Essential Destinations

Top destinations include El Aaiún and Ad Dakhla.

Photo: Wikimedia, CC BY-SA 2.0.
El Aaiun is the biggest city in Western Sahara, in the northern part of the country. It has a population just over 210,000. It is the claimed capital of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, but the city is controlled by Morocco.

Photo: YoTuT, CC BY 2.0.
Dakhla is a city in the disputed territory of Western Sahara, currently occupied by . It is the capital of the claimed Moroccan administrative region .

Photo: Bertramz, CC BY-SA 3.0.
is a town in Western Sahara. There is a strong Sahrawi presence in the town. There is an equally strong Moroccan military presence in the town. This situation creates some tension.

Destinations to Discover

Explore places such as Boujdour and Akhfenir.

Photo: Rui Ornelas, CC BY 2.0.
Cape Bojador is a headland on the west coast of Moroccan-occupied Western Sahara, at 26° 07' 37"N, 14° 29' 57"W, as well as the name of the large nearby town with a population of 42,651.

Photo: Carnegie6, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Akhfennir is a small town in , in the region of . The area is noted for and Tarfaya-Akhfenir Wind Farm.
Photo: Darymaister, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Western Sahara

Latitude of center
24.8° or 24° 48′ north
Longitude of center
-13° or 13° west
Population
513,000
Area
266,000 km² (102,703 miles²)
Elevation
359 metres (1,178 feet)
Capital
El-Aaiun
Currency
Dirham (MAD)
Phone code
.eh
Internet domain
212
Open­Street­Map ID
node 2000314677
Open­Street­Map feature
place=­region
Geo­Names ID
2461445
Wiki­data ID
Q6250
This page is based on OpenStreetMap, GeoNames, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons, and Wikivoyage.
We’d love your help improving our open data sources. Thank you for contributing.

Satellite Map

Discover Western Sahara from above in high-definition satellite imagery.
© Stadia Maps, Airbus DS, CNES, PlanetObserver, and Copernicus

In Other Languages

From Achinese to Zulu—“Western Sahara” goes by many names.
  • Achinese: “Sahara Barat”
  • Afrikaans: “Wes-Sahara”
  • Albanian: “Sahara Perëndimore”
  • Albanian: “Saharaja Perëndimore”
  • Algerian Arabic: “الصحراء الغربية”
  • Amharic: “ምዕራባዊ ሣህራ”
  • Amharic: “ምዕራባዊ ሳህራ”
  • Amis: “West sahara”
  • Angika: “पश्चिमी सहारा”
  • Arabic: “الأقاليم الجنوبية”
  • Arabic: “الصحراء الإسبانية”
  • Arabic: “الصحراء الغربية (المغرب)”
  • Arabic: “الصحراء الغربية”
  • Arabic: “الصحراء المغربية”
  • Arabic: “لصحراء الغربية”
  • Aragonese: “Sahara Occidental”
  • Armenian: “Արևմտյան Սահարա”
  • Arpitan: “Sahara occidentâl”
  • Assamese: “পশ্চিম চাহাৰা”
  • Assamese: “পশ্চিমীয় ছাহাৰা”
  • Asturian: “El Sáḥara Occidental”
  • Asturian: “Sáḥara Occidental”
  • Atayal: “West sahara”
  • Azerbaijani: “Qərbi Sahara”
  • Azerbaijani: “Qərbi Saxara”
  • Bashkir: “Көнбайыш Сахара”
  • Basque: “Mendebaldeko Sahara”
  • Bavarian: “Westsahara”
  • Belarusian: “Гішпанская Сахара”
  • Belarusian: “Заходняя Сахара”
  • Bengali: “পশ্চিম সাহারা”
  • Bhojpuri: “पच्छिमी सहारा”
  • Bishnupriya: “ৱেস্টার্ন সাহারা”
  • Bosnian: “Zapadna Sahara”
  • Breton: “Sahara ar C’hornôg”
  • Breton: “Sahara ar Cʼhornôg”
  • Bulgarian: “Западна Сахара”
  • Burmese: “အနောက် ဆာဟာရ”
  • Catalan: “República Àrab Saharauí Democràtica”
  • Catalan: “Sàhara Occidental”
  • Cebuano: “Kasadpang Sahara”
  • Cebuano: “Río de Oro”
  • Cebuano: “Western Sahara”
  • Central Bikol: “Sulnupan na Sahara”
  • Central Kurdish: “سەحرای ڕۆژاوا”
  • Chechen: “Малхбузен Саьхьара”
  • Chechen: “Сахара Iарбойн Халкъа куьйгаллийца йолу Пачхьалкх”
  • Chinese: “Sai Sahara”
  • Chinese: “西撒哈拉”
  • Cornish: “Sahara West”
  • Corsican: “Sahara Occidentale”
  • Corsican: “Sahara Uccidentale”
  • Crimean Tatar: “Ğarbiy Sahara”
  • Crimean Tatar: “Ğarbiy Sahra”
  • Croatian: “Zapadna Sahara”
  • Czech: “Západní Sahara”
  • Danish: “Vestsahara”
  • Dhivehi: “ހުޅަނގު ސަހަރާ”
  • Dimli (individual language): “Sehraya Rocawani”
  • Dotyali: “पश्चिमी सहारा”
  • Dutch: “Westelijke Sahara”
  • Dzongkha: “ནུབ་ཕྱོགས་ ས་ཧཱ་ར”
  • Egyptian Arabic: “الصحرا الغربيه”
  • Esperanto: “Okcidenta Saharo”
  • Estonian: “Lääne-Sahara”
  • Ewe: “Ɣetoɖoƒe Sahara nutome”
  • Ewe: “Yetoɖoƒe Sahara”
  • Extremaduran: “Sáhara Ociental”
  • Faroese: “Vestursahara”
  • Fiji Hindi: “Western Sahara”
  • Finnish: “Länsi-Sahara”
  • French: “Sahara de l’Ouest”
  • French: “Sahara marocain”
  • French: “Sahara occidental”
  • French: “Sahara Occidental”
  • Gagauz: “Günbatısı Sahara”
  • Galician: “O Sáhara Occidental”
  • Galician: “Sáhara Occidental”
  • Georgian: “დასავლეთ საჰარა”
  • Georgian: “დასავლეთი საჰარა”
  • German: “Westsahara”
  • Ghanaian Pidgin English: “Spanish Sahara”
  • Ghanaian Pidgin English: “West Sahara”
  • Ghanaian Pidgin English: “Western Sahara”
  • Greek: “Δυτική Σαχάρα”
  • Greek: “Λαοκρατική Αραβική Δημοκρατία της Σαχάρας”
  • Guarani: “Kuarahyreike Saára”
  • Gujarati: “પશ્ચિમી સહારા”
  • Gujarati: “વેસ્ટર્ન સહારા”
  • Haitian: “Sahara oksidantal”
  • Hakka Chinese: “Sî Sahara”
  • Hausa: “Yammacin Sahara”
  • Hawaiian: “Sahara Komohana”
  • Hebrew: “סהרה המערבית”
  • Hindi: “पश्चिमी सहारा”
  • Hungarian: “Nyugat-Szahara”
  • Hungarian: “Szaharai Arab Demokratikus Köztársaság”
  • Icelandic: “Vestur-Sahara”
  • Ido: “Ocidentala Sahara”
  • Ido: “Westala Sahara”
  • Igbo: “Ọdịda Anyanwụ Sahara”
  • Iloko: “Akinlaud a Sahara”
  • Indonesian: “Sahara Barat”
  • Indonesian: “Sahara Spanyol”
  • Interlingua: “Sahara occidental”
  • Interlingua: “Sahara Occidental”
  • Interlingue: “West-Sahara”
  • Irish: “an Sahára Thiar”
  • Irish: “An Sahára Thiar”
  • Irish: “Sahára Thiar”
  • Italian: “Sahara Occidentale”
  • Jamaican Creole English: “Westan Sa’aara”
  • Japanese: “西サハラ”
  • Japanese: “西サハラ地方”
  • Javanese: “Sahara Kulon”
  • Kabiyè: “Sahara Wɩsɩ ɖɩɖʊyɛ”
  • Kabyle: “Aneẓruf Utrim”
  • Kalaallisut: “Sahara Killiit”
  • Kannada: “ಪಶ್ಚಿಮ ಸಹಾರ”
  • Kannada: “ಪಶ್ಚಿಮ ಸಹಾರಾ”
  • Kara-Kalpak: “Batıs Saxara”
  • Kashmiri: “مشرِقی سَہارا”
  • Kashubian: “Zôpadnô Sahara”
  • Kazakh: “Батыс Сахара”
  • Khmer: “សាហារ៉ាខាងលិច”
  • Kirghiz: “Батыш Сахара”
  • Kongo: “Repubilika ya Balabu ya Saharawi ya Dimokalasi”
  • Korean: “서사하라”
  • Kotava: “Taltefa Saxara”
  • Kurdish: “Sahraya Rojava”
  • Ladino: “Sahara Oksidental”
  • Lao: “ສະຫາຣາພາກໃຕ້”
  • Lao: “ຊາຮາຣາຕາເວັນຕົກ”
  • Latin: “Sahara Occidentalis”
  • Latvian: “Rietumsahāra”
  • Ligurian: “Sahara Oççidentâ”
  • Limburgan: “Westeleke Sahara”
  • Lingala: “Sahara ya Limbɛ”
  • Lithuanian: “Vakarų Sachara”
  • Lower Sorbian: “Pódwjacorna Sahara”
  • Luxembourgish: “Westsahara”
  • Macedonian: “Западна Сахара”
  • Malagasy: “Sahara Andrefana”
  • Malay: “Sahara Barat”
  • Malayalam: “പശ്ചിമ സഹാറ”
  • Maltese: “is-Saħara tal-Punent”
  • Maltese: “Saħara tal-Punent”
  • Maori: “Hahāra ki te Hauāuru”
  • Marathi: “पश्चिम सहारा”
  • Mazanderani: “صحرا”
  • Min Dong Chinese: “Să̤ Sahara”
  • Min Nan Chinese: “Sai Sahara”
  • Mingrelian: “ბჟადალი საჰარა”
  • Moksha: “Шиньмадомаширень Сахара”
  • Mongolian: “Баруун Сахар”
  • Moroccan Arabic: “الصحرا الغربية”
  • Moroccan Arabic: “الصحرا المغربية”
  • Moroccan Arabic: “الصحرا لمغريبية لغربية”
  • Narom: “Sahara du Vouêt”
  • Narom: “Sahara occidental”
  • Navajo: “Kéyah Sahééwa Eʼeʼaahjí Siʼánígíí”
  • Nepali: “पश्चिमी सहारा”
  • Nepali: “पश्चिमी साहारा”
  • Northern Luri: “صأحرا أفتونئشین”
  • Northern Sami: “Oarje-Sahára”
  • Norwegian Bokmål: “Vest-Sahara”
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: “Vest-Sahara”
  • Norwegian: “Vest-Sahara”
  • Novial: “Westi Sahara”
  • Occitan (post 1500): “Sahara Occidental”
  • Occitan (post 1500): “Sahara Occidentau”
  • Oriya: “ପଶ୍ଚିମ ସହାରା”
  • Oriya: “ପଶ୍ଚିମ ସାହାରା”
  • Oromo: “Sahaaraa Dhihaa”
  • Ossetian: “Ныгуылæн Сахарæ”
  • Pampanga: “Albugang Sahara”
  • Pampanga: “Sahara Occidental”
  • Pampanga: “Sahara Oksidental”
  • Panjabi: “ਪੱਛਮੀ ਸਹਾਰਾ”
  • Pedi: “Western Sahara”
  • Persian: “صحرای غربی”
  • Pitcairn-Norfolk: “Westen Sahara”
  • Pitcairn-Norfolk: “Western Sahara”
  • Polish: “EH”
  • Polish: “Sahara Zachodnia”
  • Portuguese: “Saara Ocidental”
  • Portuguese: “Sara Ocidental”
  • Pushto: “لويديځ صحارا”
  • Pushto: “لوېديځه سحارا”
  • Quechua: “Kunti Sahara”
  • Quechua: “Sahara Occidental”
  • Romanian: “Sahara de Vest”
  • Romanian: “Sahara Occidentală”
  • Romansh: “Sahara Occidentala”
  • Russian: “Вади-Захаб”
  • Russian: “Западная Сахара”
  • Russian: “Золотая речка”
  • Russian: “Испанская Сахара”
  • Russian: “Красный ручей”
  • Russian: “Рио-де-Оро”
  • Russian: “Сегиет-эль-Хамра”
  • Sakizaya: “West sahara”
  • Sakizaya: “West Sahara”
  • Santali: “ᱯᱟᱪᱮ ᱥᱟᱦᱟᱨᱟ”
  • Sardinian: “Sahara Otzidentale”
  • Scots: “Wast Sahara”
  • Scots: “Wastren Sahara”
  • Scottish Gaelic: “Sathara an Iar”
  • Serbian: “Западна Сахара”
  • Serbo-Croatian: “EH”
  • Serbo-Croatian: “Zapadna Sahara”
  • Shan: “သႃႇႁႃႇရႃႇ ပွတ်းဝၼ်းတူၵ်း”
  • Sicilian: “Sahara Uccidintali”
  • Sindhi: “اولهه صحارا”
  • Sindhi: “مغربي صحارا”
  • Sinhala: “බටහිර සහරා”
  • Sinhala: “බටහිර සහරාව”
  • Slovak: “Západná Sahara”
  • Slovenian: “Zahodna Sahara”
  • Somali: “Saxaraha Galbeed”
  • South Azerbaijani: “غربی صحرا”
  • Southern Sotho: “Western Sahara”
  • Spanish: “Province of Sahara”
  • Spanish: “Provincia del Sáhara Español”
  • Spanish: “Provincia del Sáhara”
  • Spanish: “República Árabe Saharaui Democrática”
  • Spanish: “Sahara Occidental”
  • Spanish: “Sáhara Occidental”
  • Standard Moroccan Tamazight: “ⵜⴰⵏⵣⵔⵓⴼⵜ ⵜⵓⵜⵔⵉⵎⵜ”
  • Sundanese: “Sahara Kulon”
  • Swahili: “Sahara Magharibi”
  • Swahili: “Sahara ya Magharibi”
  • Swedish: “Västsahara”
  • Swiss German: “Westsahara”
  • Tagalog: “Kanluraning Sahara”
  • Tajik: “Саҳрои Ғарбӣ”
  • Tamil: “மேற்கு சகாரா”
  • Tamil: “மேற்கு சஹாரா”
  • Taroko: “Western Sahara”
  • Tatar: “Көнбатыш Сахара”
  • Telugu: “పడమటి సహారా”
  • Telugu: “పశ్చిమ సహారా”
  • Telugu: “వెస్టర్న్ సహారా”
  • Thai: “ซาฮาราตะวันตก”
  • Thai: “เวสเทิร์นสะฮารา”
  • Thai: “สะฮาราตะวันตก”
  • Tibetan: “ནུབ་ས་ཧ་ར།”
  • Tigrinya: “ምዕራባዊ ሳህራ”
  • Tonga (Tonga Islands): “Sahala fakahihifo”
  • Tosk Albanian: “Westsahara”
  • Tsonga: “Western Sahara”
  • Tunisian Arabic: “الصحرا الغربية”
  • Turkish: “Batı Sahra”
  • Turkmen: “Günbatar Sahara”
  • Tyap: “Jenshyung Sa̱hara”
  • Tyap: “Kwa̱imam Sa̱hara”
  • Tyap: “Sa̱hara Jenshyung”
  • Tyap: “Sa̱hara Kwa̱imam”
  • Tyap: “Sa̱hara Si̱pen”
  • Uighur: “غەربىي ساخارا”
  • Uighur: “غەربىي سەھرا”
  • Ukrainian: “Західна Сахара”
  • Upper Sorbian: “Zapadna Sahara”
  • Urdu: “مغربی صحارا”
  • Uzbek: “G‘arbiy Sahroi Kabir”
  • Uzbek: “Gʻarbiy sahroi kabir”
  • Uzbek: “Gʻarbiy Sahroi Kabir”
  • Vietnamese: “Tây Sahara”
  • Volapük: “Vesüda-Saharän”
  • Walloon: “Sara coûtchantrece”
  • Walloon: “Sara Coûtchantrece”
  • Waray (Philippines): “Katundan Sahara”
  • Welsh: “Gorllewin Sahara”
  • Western Frisian: “Westelijke Sahara”
  • Western Frisian: “Westlike Sahara”
  • Western Mari: “Вадывел Сахара”
  • Western Panjabi: “لہندا صحرا”
  • Wolof: “Sahara gu Sowwu”
  • Wu Chinese: “西撒哈拉”
  • Yakut: “Арҕаа Саhаара”
  • Yakut: “Арҕаа Сахаара”
  • Yoruba: “Apáìwọ̀orùn Sàhárà”
  • Yoruba: “Ìwọ̀òòrùn Sàhárà”
  • Yue Chinese: “西撒哈拉”
  • Zeeuws: “Westelijke Sahara”
  • Zulu: “i-Western Sahara”
  • Zulu: “ISahara lasentshonalanga”
  • “EH”
  • “ESH”
  • “पच्छिमी सहारा”

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About Mapcarta. Data © OpenStreetMap contributors and available under the Open Database License". Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license, except for photos, directions, and the map. Description text is based on the Wikivoyage page “Western Sahara”. Photo: Wikimedia, CC0.