Saudi Arabia Tourism

Saudi Arabia Tourism (ٱلْمَمْلَكَة ٱلْعَرَبِيَّة ٱلسُّعُودِيَّة)

Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
(ٱلْمَمْلَكَة ٱلْعَرَبِيَّة ٱلسُّعُودِيَّة)
al-Mamlaka al-ʿArabiyya as-Suʿūdiyya

Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia and the Middle East. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about 2,150,000 km2 (830,000 sq mi), making it the fifth-largest country in Asia and the largest in the Middle East. It is bordered by the Red Sea to the west, Jordan, Iraq, and Kuwait to the north, the Persian Gulf, Bahrain, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates to the east, Oman to the southeast, and Yemen to the south. The Gulf of Aqaba in the northwest separates Saudi Arabia from Egypt and Israel. Saudi Arabia is the only country with a coastline along both the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf, and most of its terrain consists of arid desert, lowland, steppe, and mountains. The capital and largest city is Riyadh, other major cities include Jeddah and the two holiest cities in Islam, Mecca and Medina. With a population of almost 32.2 million, Saudi Arabia is the fourth most populous country in the Arab world.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was founded in 1932 by King Abdulaziz (also known as Ibn Saud), who united the regions of Hejaz, Najd, parts of Eastern Arabia (Al-Ahsa) and South Arabia ('Asir) into a single state through a series of conquests, beginning in 1902 with the capture of Riyadh, the ancestral home of his family, the House of Saud. Saudi Arabia has since been an absolute monarchy governed by an authoritarian regime without public input. In its Basic Law, Saudi Arabia defines itself as a sovereign Arab Islamic state with Islam as its official religion and Arabic as its official language. The ultraconservative Wahhabi religious movement within Sunni Islam was the prevailing political and cultural force in the country until the 2000s. The Saudi government has attracted criticism for various policies such as its intervention in the Yemeni Civil War, alleged sponsorship of terrorism, and widespread human rights abuses.

Saudi Arabia is considered both a regional and middle power. Since petroleum was discovered in the country in 1938, the kingdom has become the world's third-largest oil producer and leading oil exporter, controlling the world's second-largest oil reserves and the sixth-largest gas reserves. Saudi Arabia is categorized as a World Bank high-income economy and is the only Arab country among the G20 major economies. The Saudi economy is the largest in the Middle East and the world's nineteenth largest by nominal GDP and seventeenth largest by PPP. Ranking very high in the Human Development Index, Saudi Arabia offers tuition-free university education, no personal income tax, and free universal health care. With its dependency on foreign labour, Saudi Arabia has the world's third-largest immigrant population. Saudi Arabians are among the world's youngest people, with approximately half being under 25 years old. Saudi Arabia is an active and founding member of the Gulf Cooperation Council, United Nations, Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, Arab League, and OPEC, as well as a dialogue partner of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.

Saudi Arabia is an absolute monarchy, however, according to the Basic Law of Saudi Arabia adopted by royal decree in 1992, the king must comply with Sharia (Islamic law) and the Quran, while the Quran and the Sunnah (the traditions of Muhammad) are declared to be the country's constitution. No political parties or national elections are permitted. While some critics consider it to be a totalitarian state, others regard it as lacking aspects of totalitarianism but nevertheless classify it as an authoritarian regime.

Saudi Arabia Geography

Saudi Arabia occupies about 80% of the Arabian Peninsula (the world's largest peninsula), lying between latitudes 16° and 33° N, and longitudes 34° and 56° E. Because the country's southeastern and southern borders with the United Arab Emirates and Oman are not precisely marked, the exact size of the country is undefined. The United Nations Statistics Division estimates 2149690 km2 (830000 sq mi) and lists Saudi Arabia as the world's 12th largest state. It is geographically the largest country in the Middle East and on the Arabian Plate.

Saudi Arabia's geography is dominated by the Arabian Desert, associated semi-desert, shrubland, steppes, several mountain ranges, volcanic lava fields and highlands. The 647500 km2 (250001 sq mi) Rub' al Khali ("Empty Quarter") in the southeastern part of the country is the world's largest contiguous sand desert. Though there are lakes in the country, Saudi Arabia is the largest country in the world by area with no permanent rivers. Wadis, non-permanent rivers, however, are very numerous throughout the kingdom. The fertile areas are to be found in the alluvial deposits in wadis, basins, and oases. There are approximately 1,300 islands in the Red Sea and Arabian Gulf.

The main topographical feature is the central plateau which rises abruptly from the Red Sea and gradually descends into the Nejd and toward the Arabian Gulf. On the Red Sea coast, there is a narrow coastal plain, known as the Tihamah, parallel to which runs along an imposing escarpment. The southwest province of Asir is mountainous and contains the 3002 m (9849 ft) Jabal Ferwa, which is the highest point in the country. Saudi Arabia is home to more than 2,000 dormant volcanoes. Lava fields in Hejaz, known locally by their Arabic name of harrat (the singular is harrah), form one of Earth's largest alkali basalt regions, covering some 180,000 square kilometres (69,000 sq mi).

Except for the southwestern regions such as Asir, Saudi Arabia has a desert climate with very high day-time temperatures during the summer and a sharp temperature drop at night. Average summer temperatures are around 45 °C (113 °F) but can be as high as 54 °C (129 °F). In the winter the temperature rarely drops below 0 °C (32 °F) with the exception of mostly the northern regions of the country where annual snowfall, in particular in the mountainous regions of Tabuk Province, is not uncommon. The lowest recorded temperature, −12.0 °C (10.4 °F), was measured in Turaif.

In the spring and autumn the heat is temperate, temperatures average around 29 °C (84 °F). Annual rainfall is very low. The southern regions differ in that they are influenced by the Indian Ocean monsoons, usually occurring between October and March. An average of 300 mm (12 in) of rainfall occurs during this period, which is about 60% of the annual precipitation.

Saudi Arabia Overview

Saudi Arabia Motto: لَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا ٱللَّٰه، مُحَمَّدٌ رَسُوْلُ ٱللَّٰه‎
Lā ilāha illa llāh, Muḥammadun rasūlu llāh
"There is no god but God, Muhammad is the Messenger of God" (shahada)
Saudi Arabia Anthem: ٱلنَّشِيْد ٱلْوَطَنِي ٱلسُّعُوْدِي‎
"an-Našīd al-Waṭanīy as-Saʿūdī"
"Chant of the Saudi Nation"
Saudi Arabia Capital and Largest City:
Riyadh
24°39′N 46°46′E
Saudi Arabia Official Languages: Arabic
Ethnic Groups:
90% Arab
10% Afro-Arab
Saudi Arabia Religion:
93.0% Islam
85–90% Sunni (official)
10–15% Shia
4.4% Christianity
1.1% Hinduism
0.7% unaffiliated
0.3% Buddhism
Saudi Arabia Demonym(s):
Saudi
Saudi Arabian
Saudi Arabia Government:
Unitary Islamic Absolute Monarchy
King Salman
Saudi Arabia Crown Prince and Prime Minister:
Mohammed bin Salman
Saudi Arabia Establishment:
Emirate of Diriyah 1727
Emirate of Nejd 1824
Emirate of Riyadh 13 January 1902
Saudi Arabia Unification:
23 September 1932
Saudi Arabia Admitted to the United Nations:
24 October 1945
Saudi Arabia Current Constitution:
31 January 1992
Saudi Arabia Area: Total 2,149,690 km2 (830,000 sq mi)
Saudi Arabia Water (%):
0.0
Saudi Arabia Population:
Neutral increase 32,175,224
Saudi Arabia Currency: Saudi riyal (SR)(SAR)
Saudi Arabia Time Zone: UTC+3 (AST)
Saudi Arabia Date Format: dd/mm/yyyy (AH)
Saudi Arabia Driving Side: right
Calling Code: +966
Saudi Arabia ISO 3166 code: SA
Saudi Arabia Internet TLD:
.sa
السعودية.