means "autumn" in Arabic but it refers to monsoon when describing the region around Salalah. During this time, the brown landscape of Salalah and its surroundings is completely transformed to a beautiful and lush greenery. Cyclone Mekunu, which originated over the Arabian Sea, became an extremely severe cyclone before hitting the Salalah city on 25 May 2018. 200 kmph was the recorded windspeed, and the city of Salalah was pounded with over of rainfall, which is almost 5 years of Oman's average rainfall. Demographics Religion The city, like many other in Arab states of the Arabian peninsula, has a relatively large expatriate community, mainly from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Philippines. The majority of the Omani population (98.9%) in Salalah is Muslim. There is also a considerable population of Hindus, Christians, Buddhists, and Sikhs in the expatriate community. Language Arabic is the official language. The unofficial, unwritten language known as Jeballi is the second most spoken language and the mother tongue of many in Salalah and its surrounding areas, with 25,000 estimated speakers as of 1993. English is the official foreign language and the most spoken language of the expats. Malayalam is another popular language and together with Tamil, Telugu, along with Hindi and Somali are widely spoken language among expatriates. Notable people Economy APM Terminals, part of the A. P. Moller-Maersk Group of Denmark, manages the Port of Salalah; one of the largest ports on the Arabian Peninsula which is an important transshipment hub for container shipping in the area. The Port of Salalah is also one of the most vital ports on the peninsula connecting together Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. But the port is outside the city, to the south. It is also the largest private employer in the Dhofar region. The Salalah Free Zone, situated right beside the port, is emerging as a new center for heavy industries in the Middle East. Tourist attractions Salalah has an international tourist economy with many Middle Eastern tourists during the Khareef season from June to September. In this season the mountains turn green, and there are many waterfalls to visit, such as at Wadi Darbat, Ain Athum, Ain Tubrook, and Ain Khor. There are four reputed tombs of Islamic prophets: Nabi Imran, possibly the Virgin Mary's father but more likely a local prophet; Nabi Ayoob, the biblical Job; Nabi Houd; and Nabi Salih. The city received more than 600,000