Persian Gulf flooding of the basin started 15,000 years ago due to rising sea levels of the Holocene glacial retreat. This inland sea of some is connected to the Gulf of Oman in the east by the Strait of Hormuz; and its western end is marked by the major river delta of the Shatt al-Arab, which carries the waters of the Euphrates and the Tigris. In Iran this is called "Arvand Rood", where "Rood" means "river". Its length is , with Iran covering most of the northern coast and Saudi Arabia most of the southern coast. The Persian Gulf is about wide
Piracy in the Persian Gulf bin Muhammad Al Qasimi argues in his book "The Myth of Piracy in the Gulf" that the allegations of piracy were simply excuses used by the British to impose imperialism. Piratical activities were common in the Persian Gulf from the late 18th century to the mid 19th century, particularly in the area known as the "Pirate Coast" which spanned from modern-day Qatar to Oman. Piracy was alleviated from 1820 with the signing of the General Maritime Treaty, cemented in 1853 by the Treaty of Maritime Peace in Perpetuity, after which the Pirate Coast began to be known by the British