Social Change in Saudi Arabia

3) Social change in Saudi Arabia:

Importance of Saudi Arabia:

* Source of Semitic peoples who migrated to the Fertile Crescent and Levant:

* The cradle of Islam .Almost 1.5 billion Muslims pray toward Mecca every day

* Almost 45% of world oil reserves are in Saudi Arabia

* It is ranked 12th in size among the countries of the world (830,000 Sq.M)

* Its exports almost 90% crude oil. In 2000, agriculture was almost 5.2% of GDP. And employs almost 5.8 % of the labor force

* Saudi Arabia is one of three countries named for their royal families, along with the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and also Liechtenstein

Population:

* Total population is: 27.6m (2007) including almost 5.5m foreign workers from 135 nationalities.

* Ethnic Composition: Saudis (74.2%), Bedouins (3.9%), Gulf Arabs (3%),Indo-Pakistanis (5.5%), African Blacks (1.5%), Filipino (1%), Others (3.9%)

* Religion: (87%) Sunni Muslims and (13% ) Shia, Christians (3%).

Social Change:

* Before the Oil rise in 1960, almost 60% of the population was wandering nomads. Today nomads are less than 3.3%. Almost 80% of the population are urbanized

* New towns emerged (Yanbou and Jubail)

* In 1960, only 4% of girls went to school. In 1991 almost 80% did. They were almost the majority of university graduates

* Saudi population in cities jumped:

Riyadh from 200,000 in 1960 to almost 4.7m in 2007.

Jeddah from 250,000 in 1960 to 3.6m in the year 2007.

Total population jumped from almost 4m in 1960 to almost 27m in 2007.

Saudi State formation:

* First Saudi State 1744-1818 , capital AlDirayyah (AlDirayyah Charter)

* Second Saudi State 1818-1891 , Capital Riyadh

* Third Saudi State 1932-Up till now, Capital Riyadh