What is Oasis?
{{for|the English rock band|Oasis (band)}} {{stack|[[File:Libyen-oase1.jpg|right|thumb|Oasis in the Libyan part of the [[Sahara]]]] |[[File:Peru Ica Oasis bluesky.png|right|thumb|The Huacachina oasis in [[Ica, Peru]]]] |[[File:Jabal Al Qara Cave - Al Hassa, Saudi Arabia ജബൽ അൽ ഖാറ ഗുഹ, അൽ ഹസ, സൗദി അറേബ്യ 13.JPG|right|thumb|[[Al-Hasa]] oasis, also known as Al-Ahsa oasis, in [[Saudi Arabia]] is the largest oasis in the world]]}} In [[geography]], an '''oasis''' is an isolated place in the [[desert]] where there is [[vegetation]]. Most often, this occurs around a source of [[water]]. Oases provide a [[habitat]] for [[animal]]s and are a source of water in the desert. The knowledge of the location of oases has been important for [[trade]] and transportation routes in desert areas. [[Caravan]]s must travel via oases so that supplies of water and food can be refilled. Thus, political or military control of an oasis has in many cases meant control of trade on a particular route. For example, the oases of [[Awjila]], [[Ghadames]] and [[Kufra]], in modern-day [[Libya]], have at various times been vital to both North-South and East-West [[Trans-Saharan trade|trade in the Sahara Desert]]. The word ''oasis'' came into English via [[Greek language|Greek]] ὄασις , which was borrowed from [[Egyptian language|Egyptian]] ''wḥ3t'' or [[Demotic (Egyptian)|Demotic]] ''wḥỉ''.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Tormont Webster's Illustrated Encyclopedic Dictionary |year=1990 |publisher=Tormont Publications Inc |location=United States of America |isbn=2921171325 |page=1170 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=98QkJLylOBQC }}</ref> It was not borrowed from [[Coptic language|Coptic]] ''ouaḥe'' (<nowiki>*</nowiki>/waħe/), as is sometimes suggested; the Greek word is attested several centuries before Coptic existed as a written language. ==References== {{Reflist}} [[Category:Deserts]]