Saudi Arabia

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is a country on the Arabian Peninsula . It borders Iraq , Jordan , Kuwait , Oman , Qatar , Bahrain , the United Arab Emirates and Yemen , with the Persian Gulf to its north-east and the Red Sea to its west.

Saudi Arabia (officially Kingdom of Saudi Arabia ) is the largest Arab country of the Middle East . It is bordered by Jordan and Iraq on the north and northeast, Kuwait , Qatar , Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates on the east, Oman on the southeast, and Yemen on the south. The Persian Gulf lies to the northeast and the Red Sea to its west. It has an estimated population of 28 million, and its size is approximately 2,149,690 square kilometres (830,000 sq mi). The Kingdom is sometimes called "The Land of the Two Holy Mosques" in reference to Mecca and Medina , the two holiest places in Islam . The two mosques are Masjid al-Haram (in Mecca ) and Masjid Al-Nabawi (in Medina ). The current Kingdom was founded by Abdul-Aziz bin Saud , whose efforts began in 1902 when he captured the Al-Saud’s ancestral home of Riyadh , and culminated in 1932 with the proclamation and recognition of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, though its national origins go back as far as 1744 with the establishment of the First Saudi State . Saudi Arabia is an Islamic absolute monarchy form of government. Petroleum exports fuel the Saudi economy . Oil accounts for more than 90 percent of exports and nearly 75 percent of government revenues, facilitating the creation of a welfare state , which the government has found difficult to fund during periods of low oil prices .

Saudi Arabia ( / ˌ s ɔː d iː ə ˈ r eɪ b i ə / , / ˌ s aʊ -/ ), officially known as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , is the largest Arab state in Western Asia by land area (approximately 2,150,000 km (830,000 sq mi)), constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula , and the second-largest geographically in the Arab world . It is bordered by Jordan and Iraq to the north, Kuwait to the northeast, Qatar , Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates to the east, Oman to the southeast, and Yemen in the south. It is the only nation with both a Red Sea coast and a Persian Gulf coast, and most of its terrain consists of arid inhospitable desert or barren landforms. The area of modern-day Saudi Arabia formerly consisted of four distinct regions: Hejaz , Najd , and parts of Eastern Arabia ( Al-Ahsa ) and Southern Arabia ( 'Asir ). The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was founded in 1932 by Ibn Saud . He united the four regions 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 . The country has since been an absolute monarchy governed along Islamic lines. Wahhabi Islam has been called "the predominant feature of Saudi culture". Saudi Arabia is sometimes called "the Land of the Two Holy Mosques" in reference to Al-Masjid al-Haram (in Mecca ), and Al-Masjid an-Nabawi (in Medina ), the two holiest places in Islam. The Kingdom has a total population of 28.7 million, of which 20 million are Saudi nationals and 8 million are foreigners. Saudi Arabia is the world's second largest oil producer and largest exporter , and controls the world's second largest hydrocarbon reserves . Backed by its fossil fuels, the kingdom is categorized as a high income economy with a high Human Development Index (HDI), and is the only Arab country to be part of the G-20 major economies . However, Saudi Arabia has the least diversified economy in the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC). It is ruled by an authoritarian regime and is ranked as "Not Free" by Freedom House . Saudi Arabia has the fourth highest military expenditure in the world, and in 2010-14, SIPRI found that Saudi Arabia was the world's second largest arms importer. Saudi Arabia is considered a regional and middle power . In addition to the GCC , it is an active member of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and OPEC . The royal embassy of Saudi Arabia, Washington, D.C., USA . Islam: Empire of Faith . "Islam and Christianity", Encyclopedia of Christianity (2001): Arabic-speaking Christians and Jews also refer to God as Allah . Encyclopaedia of Islam Online . A Brief History of Saudi Arabia . The United States and the Great Powers . There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or templates on this page, but the references will not show without a template or template (see the help page ).

Country in West Asia "KSA" redirects here. Saudi Arabia , officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia ( KSA ), is a country in West Asia . It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about 2 150 000 km ( 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 , Qatar and the United Arab Emirates to the east; Oman to the southeast; and Yemen to the south. Bahrain is an island country off its east coast. 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 . Saudi Arabia's capital and largest city is Riyadh ; the kingdom also is the location of Islam's two holiest cities of Mecca and Medina . Pre-Islamic Arabia , the territory that constitutes modern-day Saudi Arabia, was the site of several ancient cultures and civilizations; the prehistory of Saudi Arabia shows some of the earliest traces of human activity in the world. The world's second-largest religion, Islam , emerged in what is now Saudi Arabia. In the early 7th century, the Islamic prophet Muhammad united the population of the Arabian Peninsula and created a single Islamic religious polity. Following his death in 632, his followers rapidly expanded the territory under Muslim rule beyond Arabia, conquering huge and unprecedented swathes of territory (from the Iberian Peninsula in the west to parts of Central and South Asia in the east) in a matter of decades. Arab dynasties originating from modern-day Saudi Arabia founded the Rashidun (632–661), Umayyad (661–750), Abbasid (750–1517), and Fatimid (909–1171) caliphates, as well as numerous other dynasties in Asia, Africa , and Europe . The area of modern-day Saudi Arabia formerly consisted of mainly four distinct historical regions: Hejaz , Najd , and parts of Eastern Arabia (Al-Ahsa) and South Arabia ( 'Asir ). The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was founded in 1932 by King Abdulaziz (known as Ibn Saud in the West). He united the four regions 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 , where political decisions are made on the basis of consultation among the King , the Council of Ministers , and the country's traditional elites that oversee a highly authoritarian regime. The ultraconservative Wahhabi religious movement within Sunni Islam was described as a "predominant feature of Saudi culture " until the 2000s. In 2016, the Saudi Arabian government curtailed the influence of the Wahhabi religious establishment and restricted the activities of the morality police , launching the economic programme of Saudi Vision 2030 in an attempt to revive social development and build a more effective society. 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. Petroleum was discovered in 1938 and followed up by several other finds in the Eastern Province . Saudi Arabia has since become the world's third-largest oil producer and largest oil exporter, controlling the world's second-largest oil reserves and the sixth-largest gas reserves . The kingdom is categorized as a World Bank high-income economy and is the only Arab country to be part of the G20 major economies. The state has attracted criticism for issues including its role in the Yemeni Civil War , alleged sponsorship of Islamic terrorism and its poor human rights record , including the excessive and often extrajudicial use of capital punishment . Saudi Arabia is considered both a regional and middle power. The Saudi economy is the largest in the Middle East; the world's eighteenth-largest economy by nominal GDP and the seventeenth largest by PPP . As a country with a very high Human Development Index , it offers a tuition-free university education , no personal income tax, and a free universal health care system . With its dependency on foreign labour , Saudi Arabia is home to the world's third-largest immigrant population . It also has one of the world's youngest populations , with approximately 50% of its population of 32.2 million being under 25 years old. In addition to being a member of the Gulf Cooperation Council , Saudi Arabia is an active and founding member of the United Nations , Organisation of Islamic Cooperation , Arab League , Arab Air Carriers Organization and OPEC . Saudi Arabia is a dialogue partner of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation . Islam: Empire of Faith . PBS. 'Islam and Christianity', Encyclopedia of Christianity (2001): Arabic-speaking Christians and Jews also refer to God as Allah . Encyclopaedia of Islam Online . Ministry of Education – Kingdom of Saudi Arabia . General Statistics Authority - Kingdom of Saudi Arabia . United Nations Development Programme . 8 September 2022 . Daily Life in the Medieval Islamic World . A Brief History of Saudi Arabia . The United States and the Great Powers . "بوابة الهيئة - الصفحة الرئيسية" . portal.saudicensus.sa (in Arabic). There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or templates on this page, but the references will not show without a template or template (see the help page ).

Country in West Asia "KSA" redirects here. Saudi Arabia , officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia ( KSA ), is a country in West Asia . Located in the centre of the Middle East , it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about 2,150,000 km (830,000 sq mi), making it the fifth-largest country in Asia , the largest in the Middle East , and the 12th-largest in the world. 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 . Pre-Islamic Arabia , the territory that constitutes modern-day Saudi Arabia, was the site of several ancient cultures and civilizations; the prehistory of Saudi Arabia shows some of the earliest traces of human activity outside Africa. Islam , the world's second-largest religion, emerged in what is now Saudi Arabia in the early seventh century. Islamic prophet Muhammad united the population of the Arabian Peninsula and created a single Islamic religious polity. Following his death in 632, his followers expanded Muslim rule beyond Arabia, conquering territories in North Africa , Central , South Asia and Iberia within decades. Arab dynasties originating from modern-day Saudi Arabia founded the Rashidun (632–661), Umayyad (661–750), Abbasid (750–1517), and Fatimid (909–1171) caliphates, as well as numerous other dynasties in Asia, Africa , and Europe . 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 ( Aseer ) into a single state through a series of conquests , beginning in 1902 with the capture of Riyadh . 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 and widespread use of capital punishment . 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 second-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 free university tuition , 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 a 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 . Islam: Empire of Faith . Encyclopaedia of Islam Online . According to the basic law, Sunni Islam is the official religion and the country's constitution is the Qur'an and the Sunna (traditions and sayings of the Prophet Muhammad). "Saudi Arabia Census Shows Total Population of 32.2 Million, of Which 18.8 Million are Saudis" . وكالة الأنباء السعودية (in Arabic). 31 May 2023 . International Monetary Fund . 22 April 2025 . Through a maritime border marked by an artificial island . The United States and the Great Powers . A Brief History of Saudi Arabia . "بوابة الهيئة - الصفحة الرئيسية" . portal.saudicensus.sa (in Arabic). There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or templates on this page, but the references will not show without a template or template (see the help page ).