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Archaeologists have uncovered a fortified town dating back over 4,000 years at the Khaybar Oasis in northwest Saudi Arabia, revealing gradual urbanization in the Arabian Peninsula during the early Bronze Age. This town, named al-Natah, sheds light on the transition from a nomadic to a more urbanized lifestyle among ancient societies in the region, contrasting with the rapid urban growth in Mesopotamia and Egypt during the same period.

French archaeologist Guillaume Charloux, leading the research for the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS) in collaboration with Saudi researchers, explained that al-Natah was built around 2400 BCE and remained inhabited until roughly 1300 BCE. The town, spanning approximately 2.6 hectares (6.4 acres), could accommodate around 500 residents and was fortified with walls as high as 16 feet. “Our findings suggest that the people of al-Natah engaged in a slower, region-specific process of urbanization,” Charloux told AFP, noting that the settlement’s structure and fortified ramparts indicate a significant level of social organization in a region traditionally dominated by nomadic communities.