page_title: Jeddah
hierarchical_section_title: Jeddah
caption_attribution_description: English: Jeddah Corniche
context_page_description: Jeddah, also spelled Jedda, Jiddah or Jidda, is a city in the Hejaz region of Saudi Arabia and the country's commercial center. With a population of about 3 million and half people, Jeddah is the largest city in Makkah Province, the second-largest in Saudi Arabia, and the tenth-largest in the Arab world. Jeddah Islamic Port, located on the Red Sea, is the second-largest and second-busiest seaport in the Arab world.
  Jeddah is the principal gateway to Mecca, the holiest city in Islam, located just 65 kilometres to the east, while Medina, the second-holiest city, is located 360 kilometres to the north.
  Economically, Jeddah is focusing on further developing capital investment in scientific and engineering leadership within Saudi Arabia, and the Middle East. Jeddah was independently ranked fourth in the Africa – Mid-East region in terms of innovation in 2009 in the Innovation Cities Index.
  Jeddah is of Saudi Arabia's primary resort cities and was named a Beta world city by the Globalization and World Cities Study Group and Network. Given the city's close proximity to the Red Sea, fishing and seafood dominates the food culture unlike other parts of the country.
context_section_description: Jeddah (English: /ˈdʒɛdə/ JED-ə), also spelled Jedda, Jiddah or Jidda (/ˈdʒɪdə/ JID-ə; Arabic: جدة‎, romanized: Jidda, [ˈdʒɪd.da]), is a city in the Hejaz region of Saudi Arabia and the country's commercial center. With a population of about 3 million and half people (as of 2020), Jeddah is the largest city in Makkah Province, the second-largest in Saudi Arabia (after the capital Riyadh), and the tenth-largest in the Arab world. Jeddah Islamic Port, located on the Red Sea, is the second-largest and second-busiest seaport in the Arab world (after Dubai's Port of Jebel Ali).
  Jeddah is the principal gateway to Mecca, the holiest city in Islam, located just 65 kilometres (40 mi) to the east, while Medina, the second-holiest city, is located 360 kilometres (220 mi) to the north.
  Economically, Jeddah is focusing on further developing capital investment in scientific and engineering leadership within Saudi Arabia, and the Middle East. Jeddah was independently ranked fourth in the Africa – Mid-East region in terms of innovation in 2009 in the Innovation Cities Index.
  Jeddah is of Saudi Arabia's primary resort cities and was named a Beta world city by the Globalization and World Cities Study Group and Network (GaWC). Given the city's close proximity to the Red Sea, fishing and seafood dominates the food culture unlike other parts of the country. In Arabic, the city's motto is "Jeddah Ghair", which translates to "Jeddah is different". The motto has been widely used among both locals as well as foreign visitors. The city had been previously perceived as the "most open" city in Saudi Arabia.
caption: Image of the city center in 2019
exif: {"Image ImageWidth": "2048", "Image ImageLength": "1152", "Image Make": "samsung", "Image Model": "SM-J700H", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "72", "Image YResolution": "72", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "J700HXXS3BRL3", "Image DateTime": "2019:03:02 14:53:47", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Centered", "Image ExifOffset": "238", "GPS GPSVersionID": "[2, 2, 0, 0]", "GPS GPSLatitudeRef": "N", "GPS GPSLatitude": "[21, 35, 27]", "GPS GPSLongitudeRef": "E", "GPS GPSLongitude": "[39, 6, 26]", "GPS GPSAltitudeRef": "1", "GPS GPSAltitude": "0", "GPS GPSTimeStamp": "[11, 53, 35]", "GPS GPSDate": "2019:03:02", "Image GPSInfo": "810", "Thumbnail ImageWidth": "512", "Thumbnail ImageLength": "288", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "1146", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "30183", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/1447", "EXIF FNumber": "19/10", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Program Normal", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "40", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0220", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2019:03:02 14:53:47", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2019:03:02 14:53:47", "EXIF ShutterSpeedValue": "21/2", "EXIF ApertureValue": "37/20", "EXIF BrightnessValue": "209/25", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "37/20", "EXIF MeteringMode": "CenterWeightedAverage", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire", "EXIF FocalLength": "37/10", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "2048", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "1152", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF FocalLengthIn35mmFilm": "28", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF ImageUniqueID": "T13LLIA00SM T13LLJC02SA"}