المملكة العربية السعودية
al-Mamlaka al-‘Arabiyya
as-Su’ūdiyya
Kingdom of Saudi
Arabia
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 |
 |
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Flag |
Coat of arms |
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Motto: "There is
no god but Allah,
Muhammad is the
messenger of Allah" (the
Kalima) |
Anthem: "Aash
Al Maleek"
"Long live the King" |
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 |
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Location
of Saudi
Arabia |
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Capital
(and largest city) |
Riyadh
24°39′N,
46°46′E |
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Official languages |
Arabic |
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Demonym |
Saudi, Saudi Arabian |
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Government |
Absolute monarchy |
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- |
King |
Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz |
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- |
Crown Prince |
Sultan bin Abdul Aziz |
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Establishment |
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- |
Kingdom declared |
January 8,
1926 |
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- |
Recognized |
May 20,
1927 |
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- |
Unified |
September 23,
1932 |
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Area |
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- |
Total |
2,149,690 km² (14th)
829,996 sq mi |
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- |
Water (%) |
negligible |
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Population |
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- |
2007 estimate |
27,601,038[1] (46th) |
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- |
Density |
11/km² (205th)
29/sq mi |
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GDP (PPP) |
2007 estimate |
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- |
Total |
$446 billion (27th) |
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- |
Per capita |
$21,200 (41st) |
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HDI (2004) |
▲ 0.812 (high) (61) |
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Currency |
Riyal (SAR) |
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Time zone |
AST
(UTC+3) |
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- |
Summer (DST) |
(not observed) (UTC+3) |
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Internet TLD |
.sa |
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Calling code |
+966 |
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1 |
Population estimate
includes 5,576,076
non-nationals. |
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The Kingdom of Saudi
Arabia or KSA
Arabic: المملكة العربية
السعودية, al-Mamlaka al-ʻArabiyya
as-Suʻūdiyya) is the largest
country of the Arabian
Peninsula. It is bordered by
Jordan on the northwest, 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 27.6 million, and
its size is approximately
2,150,000 square km (830,000
square miles).
The Kingdom is sometimes called
"The Land of The Two Holy
Mosques" in reference to Mecca
and Medina, the two holiest
places in Islam. In English, it
is most commonly referred to as
Saudi Arabia (pronounced /ˈsɒdɪ/
or /ˈsaʊdɪ əˈɹeɪbɪə/). The
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.
Saudi Arabia is the world's
leading petroleum exporter and
petroleum exports fuel the Saudi
economy.[2] Oil accounts for
more than 90 percent of exports
and nearly 75 percent of
government revenues,
facilitating the creation of a
welfare state,[3][4] which the
government has found difficult
to fund during periods of low
oil prices.[5] Human rights
groups such as Amnesty
International and Human Rights
Watch have repeatedly expressed
concern about the state of human
rights in Saudi Arabia, although
these concerns have been
dismissed by the Saudi
government.