area handbook series Saudi Arabia a country study Saudi Arabia a country study Federal Research Division Library of Congress Edited by Helen Chapin Metz Research Completed December 992 1 On the cover: The shahada or Muslim confession of faith: "There is no god but God (Allah), and Muhammad is his Prophet." Fifth Edition, First Printing, 1993. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Saudi Arabia : a country study / Federal Resear—ch Division, Library of Congress ;—edited by Helen Chapin Metz. 5th ed. p. cm. (Area handbook series, ISSN 1057-5294) (DA pam 550-51) ; "Supersedes the 1984 edition of Saudi Arabia: a country study, edited by Richard F. Nyrop." T.p. verso. "Research completed December 1992." Includes bibliographical references (pp. 303-324) and index. ISBN 0-8444-0791-7 1. Saudi Arabia. I. Metz, Helen Chapin, 1928- . II. Library of Congress. Federal Research Division. III. Area handbook for Saudi Arabia. IV. Series. V. Series: DA pam 550-51. ; DS204.S3115 1993 93-28506 953.8—dc20 CIP Headquarters, Department of the Army DA Pam 550-51 ForsalebytheSuperintendentofDocuments, U.S. GovernmentPrintingOffice Washington,D.C 20402 Foreword This volume is one in a continuing series ofbooks prepared by the Federal Research Division of the Library of Congress under the Country Studies/Area Handbook Program sponsored by the Department ofthe Army. The last page ofthis booklists the other published studies. Most books in the series deal with a particular foreign country, describing and analyzing its political, economic, social, and national security systems and institutions, and examining the interrelation- ships of those systems and the ways they are shaped by cultural factors. Each study iswritten by a multidisciplinary team ofsocial scientists. The authors seek to provide a basic understanding of the observed society, striving for a dynamic rather than a static portrayal. Particular attention is devoted to the people who make upthe society, theirorigins, dominantbeliefs andvalues, theircom- mon interests and the issues on which they are divided, the nature and extentoftheirinvolvementwith nationalinstitutions, and their attitudes toward each other and toward their social system and political order. The books represent the analysis ofthe authors and should not be construed as an expression ofan official United States govern- ment position, policy, or decision. The authors have sought to adhere to accepted standards ofscholarly objectivity. Corrections, additions, and suggestions for changes from readers will be wel- comed for use in future editions. Louis R. Mortimer Chief Federal Research Division Library of Congress Washington, D.C. 20540 in Acknowledgments The authors wish to acknowledge the contributions ofthe writers of the 1984 edition of Saudi Arabia: A Country Study, edited by Richard F. Nyrop. Their work provided general background for the present volume. The authors are grateful to individuals in various government agencies and private institutions who gave oftheir time, research materials, and expertise in the production ofthis book. These in- dividuals include Ralph K. Benesch, who oversees the Country — Studies Area Handbook program for the Department of the Army. The authors also wish to thank members of the Federal Research Division staff who contributed directly to the prepara- tion ofthe manuscript. These people include Sandra W. Meditz, who reviewed all drafts and served as liaison with the sponsoring agency; Marilyn Majeska, who supervised editing and managed book production; Andrea Merrill, who reviewed tables and figures; and Barbara Edgerton and Izella Watson, who performed word processing. Also involved in preparingthe textwere PeterTietjen, who edited chapters; Catherine Schwartzstein, who performed the prepubli- cation editorial review; andJoan C. Cook, who compiledthe index. Malinda B. Neale ofthe LibraryofCongress ComposingUnit pre- pared the camera-ready copy under the supervision ofPeggy Pixley. Graphics were prepared by David P. Cabitto, and Timothy L. Merrill prepared map drafts. David P. Cabitto and the firm of Greenhorne and O'Mara prepared the final maps. Special thanks are owed to Farah Ahannavard, who prepared the illustrations on the title page ofeach chapter, and David P. Cabitto, who did the cover art from original calligraphy by Aftab Ahmad. Finally, the authors acknowledge the generosityofthe SaudiAra- bian Information Office, the Armed Forces Office of the Royal Saudi Arabian Embassy in Washington, and the Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco), who allowed their photographs to be used in this study. v