Saudi Arabia

Extracted Attributes

• Capital

  Riyadh

• Location

  West Asia, Arabian Peninsula

• Land Area

  2,150,000 km2 (830,000 sq mi)

• Population

  Approximately 32.2 million

• Largest City

  Riyadh

• Major Cities

  Mecca, Medina, Jeddah

• Head of State

  King Salman bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud

• Official Name

  Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA)

• De Facto Ruler

  Muhammad bin Salman (MBS), Crown Prince and Prime Minister

• Government Type

  Absolute monarchy

• Public Services

  Free university tuition, no personal income tax, universal healthcare

• Gas Reserves Rank

  6th largest globally

• Official Language

  Arabic

• Official Religion

  Islam

• Oil Exporter Rank

  Leading globally

• Oil Producer Rank

  2nd largest globally

• Oil Reserves Rank

  2nd largest globally

• Economic Classification

  High-income economy

• Population Demographics

  Young (approx. half under 25), significant immigrant population

• Global Economy Rank (PPP)

  17th

• Economy Size (Middle East)

  Largest

• Global Economy Rank (Nominal GDP)

  19th

Timeline

• Islam emerges in what is now Saudi Arabia, and Prophet Muhammad unites the population of the Arabian Peninsula, forming a single Islamic religious polity. (Source: Summary, Wikipedia, DBPedia)

  0600-00-00

• Following Prophet Muhammad's death, his followers rapidly expand Muslim rule beyond Arabia. (Source: Summary, Wikipedia, DBPedia)

  0632-00-00

• King Abdulaziz (Ibn Saud) begins a series of conquests with the capture of Riyadh, initiating the unification of various historical regions. (Source: Wikipedia, DBPedia, Web Search)

  1902-00-00

• The modern Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is founded by King Abdulaziz, unifying the regions of Hejaz, Najd, and parts of Eastern and South Arabia. (Source: Summary, Wikipedia, DBPedia, Web Search)

  1932-00-00

• Petroleum is discovered in Saudi Arabia, leading to its emergence as a global economic powerhouse. (Source: Summary, Wikipedia, DBPedia)

  1938-03-03

• The power of the ultraconservative Wahhabi religious movement within Sunni Islam begins to be significantly eroded. (Source: Wikipedia, Web Search)

  2000-00-00

• Saudi Arabia announces nearly $2 trillion in investments into the United States during Trump's Middle East Trip, signaling deep collaboration in technologies like AI and Starlink to counter China's influence. (Source: Related Document)

  2017-05-00

• Muhammad bin Salman (MBS) is appointed Crown Prince, initiating significant sociocultural reforms including granting women the right to drive and work, and increasing acceptance of mixed-gender interactions. (Source: Web Search (BTI Transformation Index))

  2017-06-21

Saudi Arabia

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 km2 (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.

Web Search Results

• Saudi Arabia - Wikipedia

  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 "Battle of Riyadh (1902)"). 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 [...] 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 [...] 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

• Saudi Arabia Country Report 2024 - BTI Transformation Index

  The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, created by conquest and formally declared by King Abd al-Aziz of the Central Arabian Al Saud clan in 1932, is the dominant state on the Arabian Peninsula. It is an absolute monarchy and was ruled by the sons of Abd al-Aziz, who died in 1953. The Wahhabi brand of Islam and its teachings provided the underlying ideology for the kingdom’s political, social and cultural foundations. The development of the Saudi state was very gradual. The first Council of Ministers was [...] Formally, Saudi Arabia remains an Islamic state, with the Qur’an serving as its constitution. Legislation continues to be derived from the hanbali/wahhabi form of Shariah. However, in practice, MbS’s reform program has gradually marginalized Wahhabism. Recent advancements, such as granting women the right to drive and work and the increased acceptance of mixed-gender interactions in newly opened cinemas or large-scale concerts, can be viewed as a significant sociocultural “revolution.” [...] King Salman bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud is the head of the state and theoretically holding nearly absolute powers, the 87-year-old king has delegated his prerogatives to his son, Muhammad bin Salman, who is crown prince and prime minister and is not accountable to anyone except his father. Saudi Arabia has always been an authoritarian monarchy, and it is becoming even more so since MbS broke with the traditional consensus politics of the House of Saud, where the opinions of senior princes were

• Saudi Arabia | History, Map, Flag, Capital, Population, & Facts

  Extending across most of the northern and central Arabian Peninsula, Saudi Arabia is a young country that is heir to a rich history. In its western highlands, along the Red Sea, lies the Hejaz, which is the cradle of Islam and the site of that religion’s holiest cities, Mecca and Medina. In the country’s geographic heartland is a region known as Najd (“Highland”), a vast arid zone that until recent times was populated by nomadic tribes. To the east, along the Persian Gulf, are the country’s [...] Saudi Arabia, arid, sparsely populated kingdom of the Middle East that in the 20th century became one of the world’s largest oil-producing countries in terms of output. It is ruled by the Saud family, which in the 18th century entered an alliance with the austere and conservative Wahhābī Islamic movement. Mohammed bin Salman, the forceful crown prince, is the de facto ruler, acting on behalf of his elderly father King Salman. Image 26: Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia(more) [...] The country occupies about four-fifths of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Jordan, Iraq, and Kuwait to the north; by the Persian Gulf, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, and Oman to the east; by a portion of Oman to the southeast; by Yemen to the south and southwest; and by the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aqaba to the west. Long-running border disputes were nearly resolved with Yemen (2000) and Qatar (2001); the border with the United Arab Emirates remains undefined. A territory of 2,200

• Saudi Arabia Latest and Breaking News - Al Arabiya

  Energy Opinion Lifestyle Art and Culture Entertainment Fashion and Beauty Healthy Living Travel and Tourism Variety Sports Video Podcast In Focus Home News Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia ============ Stay informed on Saudi Arabia’s rapid changes, developments, and ongoing efforts to reshape the Middle East and beyond. Home News [...] Published Time: Sun, 22 Jun 2025 21:26:47 GMT Saudi Arabia Latest and Breaking News | Al Arabiya =============== . . . AlArabiya Cancel Other Sites English عربي فارسي اردو Home News Gulf Middle East North Africa World Saudi Arabia United States Business Aviation and Transport Economy Markets Bank and Finance Retail Technology [...] Image 2: Saudi Arabia says monitoring events in Iran with ‘deep concern’ after US strikes Saudi Arabia says monitoring events in Iran with ‘deep concern’ after US strikes Saudi Arabia 14 hours agoImage 3: International Yoga Day highlights Saudi Arabia’s growing wellness movement International Yoga Day highlights Saudi Arabia’s growing wellness movement Sports 1 Day agoImage 4: Bomb threat diverts Saudia plane of Hajj pilgrims in Indonesia for a second time in days Bomb threat diverts Saudia

• Saudi Arabia International Travel Information

  There are substantial limitations on freedom of speech and political expression in Saudi Arabia. For additional information see the Department of State’s Human Rights Report for Saudi Arabia. Faith-Related Travel Issues: Islam is the official religion of the country and is present in all aspects of life in Saudi Arabia. See our Hajj and Umrah Fact Sheet. [...] available at the Saudi government’s official tourism website, www.visitsaudi.com. Many areas of life in Saudi Arabia are segregated by sex to ensure that unrelated men and women have no possibility of mingling (a punishable crime) by unmarried men and women. Less frequently, members of the mutawwa try to enforce this by asking for proof that a couple is married or related. Men and women detained for socializing with individuals who are not relatives may be charged with moral crimes such as [...] While there are now movie theaters, musical concerts, and artistic performances in Saudi Arabia, the country remains socially conservative. Social media postings which contravene cultural standards can have legal and/or criminal consequences.

• Instance Of

  Q13433827

Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. 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, the second-largest in the Arab world, and the largest in Western Asia and 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 the east coast. The Gulf of Aqaba in the northwest separates Saudi Arabia from Egypt. 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. Its capital and largest city is Riyadh. The country is home to Mecca and Medina, the two holiest cities in Islam. 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 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 has been described as a "predominant feature of Saudi culture", although the power of the religious establishment has been significantly eroded in the 2010s. In its Basic Law, Saudi Arabia continues to define itself as a sovereign Arab Islamic state with Islam as its official religion, Arabic as its official language, and Riyadh as its capital. Petroleum was discovered on 3 March 1938 and followed up by several other finds in the Eastern Province. Saudi Arabia has since become the world's second-largest oil producer (behind the US) and the world's largest oil exporter, controlling the world's second-largest oil reserves and the fourth-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 a variety of reasons, 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, failure to adopt adequate measures against human trafficking, state-sponsored discrimination against religious minorities and atheists, including antisemitism, and its strict interpretation of Sharia law. 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 ranks 35th, very high, in the Human Development Index, it offers a tuition-free university education, no personal income tax, and a free universal health care system. 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 per cent of its population of 34.2 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.