Short answers, pulled from the story.
Manama is the capital and largest city of Bahrain, with a population of approximately 743,066 as of 2025. It is a major financial hub for the Persian Gulf region, home to over two hundred financial institutions and banks, and a centre of Islamic banking. The Arab League designated it the 2012 capital of Arab culture.
The town of Manama was first recorded by name in a manuscript dating to 1345 AD. The name Manamah itself appears in a text from around 730 AH (approximately 1330 AD), connected to the visit of Turan Shah of Hurmuz to Bahrain.
Manama passed through Portuguese control from 1521, Safavid Persian control from 1602, and then British protection formalised by the Perpetual Truce of 1861. Bahrain was integrated into the British Empire as an overseas territory in 1919 and gained full independence in 1971.
The introduction of Japanese cultured pearls into world markets around 1929 collapsed the industry. Between 1929 and 1931 pearling entrepreneurs lost more than two-thirds of their income, and the Great Depression deepened the crisis. The discovery of oil in 1932 and production from 1934 drew the remaining workforce toward a new industry.
The Arabic reading of Manama traces it to "the place of rest" or "the place of dreams." A Persian interpretation reads the components as meaning "my letter," comparable in structure to Shah Nameh (Book of Kings). Bahrain's historical ties to the Sassanian and Achaemenid empires make both Arabic and Persian origins plausible.
Manama was designated the capital of Bahrain in 1971 when the country gained independence from British protection. Before 1923, the neighbouring city of Muharraq had served as the capital due to its more defensible location.