Ha'il

• City
• Geo Entity

Ha'il, also spelled Hail, Ha'yel, or Hayil, is a city in north-western Saudi Arabia. It is the capital of the Ha'il Province. The city has a population of 412,758 according to Ha'il Province.Ha'il is largely agricultural, with significant grain, date, and fruit production. A large percentage of the kingdom's wheat production comes from Ha'il Province, where the area to the northeast, 60to away, consists of irrigated gardens. Historically Ha'il derived its wealth from being on the camel caravan route of the Hajj. Ha'il is well known by the generosity of its people in Saudi Arabia and the Arab world as it is the place where Hatim al-Tai lived. It is also the homeland of the Al Rashid family, historical rivals to the Al-Sauds.HistoryThe city of Ha'il was the capital of the emirate of Jabal Shammar from 1836 until the Saudi conquest of the emirate in 1921. The emirate was led by a monarchy of the House of Rashīd. The first emir, Abdullah bin Rashid, took power with his brother emir Obaid and Jabbr's sons. Abdullah bin Rashid continued constructing the Barzan Palace in Ha'il which had been started by Mohammad Ibn Ali. After the death of Abdullah bin Rashid (in 1847 or 1848) his son and successor, Talal (or Telal), completed the palace.