The Omani exclave surrounded by the United Arab Emirates is Madha. It belongs to Oman’s Musandam Governorate even though UAE territory lies around it on every side.
Madha sits between Oman’s Musandam Peninsula and the Omani mainland, near the road linking Fujairah and Khor Fakkan. Its unusual status arose from local allegiance decisions in the late 1930s or early 1940s, when village communities chose which ruling authority to follow. Madha’s residents chose the Sultanate of Oman; the boundary was later finalized in 1969.
Madha is often confused with Musandam, another Omani exclave separated from the rest of Oman by UAE territory. Musandam is the large northern peninsula, while Madha is the smaller inland enclave. Madha is especially notable because it contains Nahwa, a UAE counter-enclave: UAE territory enclosed within Omani Madha, which is itself enclosed by the UAE.