The Tradition and Culture in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

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Researchers Saleh Al-Homaidany

Abdualaziz Ababutain

Nasser Alfurayhi

Yousef Alrajhi

Sultan Almutiri

Asim Alsaleem

Abdurrhman Al-Rasheedi

Adviser : Prof. Tomas Ucol-Ganiron Jr, Ph.D.

DES 160


Table of Contents

The Saudi Culture

3

Chapter 2

Saudi Folklore

7

Chapter 3

Tradition Food in K.S.A

14

Chapter 4

Oil in K.S.A

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Chapter 5

Transport in K.S.A

53

Chapter 6

Economy and Trade of Saudi in the Past

References

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INDEX The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

Chapter 1

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‫عاداث وتقالٍذ الوولكت العربٍت السعودٌت‬ ‫الحوذ هلل وحذٍ والصالة والسالم على هي ال ًبً بعذٍ‬ ‫كل هجتوع لذٌَ عاداث وتقالٍذ !‬ ‫هارا تعرف عي عاداث وتقالٍذ الوجتوع السعودي؟‬ ‫وهاًُ طبٍعت العاداث والتقالٍذ فً الووكلت العربٍت السعودٌت ؟‬

‫=‪=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-‬‬

‫‪The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A‬‬

‫وأود أى أركر أى العاداث والتقالٍذ فً الوولكت العربٍت السعودٌت‬ ‫هستوذة هي الذٌي اإلسالهً ‪ ,‬وٌُا سٌوصف لكن بعض تلك‬ ‫العاداث والتقالٍذ‪ ،‬وسٌوضح لكن أٌضا أى كل شخص فً ُزا‬ ‫الوجتوع ٌتعلن وٌتأثر هي َهي حولَ‬

‫‪2‬‬


The traditional heritage of Saudi Arabia is varying from handicrafts to costumes to ethnic dishes. Folklore is a key element in the enchanting tourism experience of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Kingdom has a unique diversity in its traditional heritage, varying from one province to another, each describes the early social life of its locals. If you want to live the experience and truly indulge in it, then you need to visit the various local tourist sites spread all over the Kingdom.

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

The Saudi Culture

Clothing and Accessories The types and shapes of clothes and accessories differ from one province to another and from an environment to another inside the same province. Because of the cultural and social harmony among the Kingdom’s provinces, the clothing styles and the accessories designs became similar to each other in most of the provinces. The markets display different types of textiles from around the world and large quantities of clothes. Moreover, the sewing and knitting occupation had flourished for men and women. The locals became proud of their new and beautiful clothes.

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The Saudi official clothing for men consists of Shimaq or Ghutra (triangle cloth worn over the head). On top of Ghutra, Igal (doubled black rope-like cord) is worn in order to hold Ghutra in place. Then, a full-length, loose garment with long sleeves called Thawb is worn. Thawb comes in different types and colors. Often, the shoes or sandals are worn. Bisht (cloak) in its bright colors is worn over the Thawb on official occasions. As for the women, there is no specific clothes around the Kingdom. For the women, there are diverse traditional clothes and they conceal rather than reveal.

The Saudi women wear black cloaks that cover their clothes, reflecting the Saudi woman’s identity. Although, the men and women clothes are influenced by modernity and development, they still preserve their ancient Arabian descriptions, namely in the southern parts of the Saudi Arabia where traditional clothes are still worn. The culture of Saudi Arabia is a rich one that has been shaped by its Islamic heritage, its historical role as an ancient trade center, and its Bedouin traditions. Saudi society has experienced tremendous development over the past several decades. The Saudi people have taken their values and traditions – their customs, hospitality and even their style of dress – and adapted them to the modern world.

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The Crossroads of the World

Located at the center of important ancient trade routes, the Arabian people were enriched by many different civilizations. As early as 3,000 BC, Arabian merchants were part of a far-reaching trade network that extended to south Asia, the Mediterranean and Egypt. They served as a vital link between India and the Far East on one side, and Byzantium and the Mediterranean lands on the other. 5

The introduction of Islam in the 7th century AD further defined the region’s culture. Within a century of its birth in the Arabian


Peninsula, Islam had spread west to the Atlantic Ocean and east to India and China. It fostered a dynamic period of great learning in culture, science, philosophy and the arts known as the Islamic ―Golden Age.‖

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

And every year for the past 14 centuries, Muslim pilgrims from around the world travel to holy sites in Makkah and Madinah, further enriching the region’s culture. The pilgrims brought ivory from Africa and carpets from the East, and took local goods back to their homelands. When the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was formed in 1932, King Abdulaziz bin Abdulrahman dedicated himself to preserving Arab traditions and culture, and his sons and successors have done the same. Arab and Islamic Traditions Saudi traditions are rooted in Islamic teachings and Arab customs, which Saudis learn about at an early age from their families and in schools. The highlights of the year are the holy month of Ramadan and the Hajj (pilgrimage) season, and the national holidays that follow them. The holy month of Ramadan, during which Muslims fast from dawn to dusk, culminates with the Eid-AlFitr holiday, in which it is customary to buy presents and clothes for children and visit friends and relatives. The other highlight is the Hajj season, during which millions of Muslim pilgrims from around the world come to Makkah. The Hajj season concludes with the Eid Al-Adha holiday, in which it is traditional for families to slaughter a sheep in memory of Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son. 6

Arab traditions also play an important role in Saudi life. These age-old traditions have evolved over the millennia and are


highly regarded. They include generosity and hospitality, which every Saudi family offers to strangers, friends, and family. The simplest expression of hospitality is coffee – its preparation alone is an intricate cultural tradition, and it is often served in small cups along with dates and sweets. Another gesture of hospitality is the burning of incense (oud) to welcome guests.

Folk art gives the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia an exquisite distinctiveness that differs from province to province. Such beautiful folk art enriches the Kingdom’s heritage, adding a touch of fun and charm to its solemnity. Saudi Arabian folk art is varied and diverse, and people are encouraged to both view and appreciate it as well as participate in creating it. Perhaps one of the most important characteristics of Saudi Arabia is that due to the Kingdom’s important strategic location its ancient history contains many varieties of folklore that have been passed on through the generations. The Kingdom was the scene of many cultures, battles and historic events, and all of these integrated into a variety of folk art. The Kingdom is replete with many types of folk art, which vary according to the geographic diversity of the environment. From the sea to the mountains to the desert, as well as the agricultural plain areas, each resulted in a tremendous amount of folklore that was created in the conditions prevalent in that location and period of time.

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

Saudi Folklore

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Examples of folk art found in the field of tourism in the Kingdom:

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Riyadh and Qassim Provinces Riyadh and Qassim are famous for having a great deal of folk art, including Al-Ardah, which has been known since ancient times in the region of Najd (central region). This is the war dance, and the cities that perform this type of art are Riyadh, Al Kharj, Wadi Al-Dawasir, Shaqra, Al-Zulfi, Buraidah, and Unaizah. Warriors used to perform the Ardha before they would meet their enemies in battle. It demonstrated that they had no fear of fighting and it was used to inspire enthusiasm amongst soldiers and leaders. The Al-Ardah Al-Najdiyah dance is performed by holding weapons from the past, such as swords, guns, and daggers, and a huge waving flag. Here the opposite rows of men sing poems and wave their swords in raised hands in the air, as a group of men in the middle beat the drums in rhythms. One form of Al-Ardah is Al-Takhmir (beating the drum twice), and another is Al-Tathlith (beating the drum three times). There are two rows called ―AlSabhah‖, i.e. a group of men lined up in the shape of rosary they remain in the center of the arena and perform dances to the rhythm of the beating


Furthermore, there is Al-Samiri, which is another famous folk dance distinct to these two regions. Al-Samiri is considered one of the authentic folk art dances, the rhythms of which are distinct and unique to people of Onaizah, a city in the central region. This type of art was first known in Al-Zubair in Iraq, when some tribes of Unaizah in Qassim province travelled there, learned it and borrowed it. However, this folk art really flourished in Unaizah city of Saudi Arabia, where it still exists as a distinctive art to this day. Many traditional bands were created to perform this ancient dance, as well as other folk arts, such as Al-Ardah, Al-Houti, Al-Fasl, AlNaqour, and poetic debates. These types of arts have many names, each of which has its own rhythms and special dances. This art is different from Al-Samir, which is known as Samir Al-Dawasir and famous in all the Najd cities, except for Qassim.

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

drums.

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Makkah and Madinah Provinces The Al-Majrour dance is the most popular folk art made famous by Taif. It is similar in style to the dances performedf in the Al-Hada highlands. To perform the Al-Majrour dance, the performers line up in two rows facing one another, some with sticks in their hands and the others sitting down and holding drums. They wear the special clothes of the province like the Thoub Al-Qal, Al-Miqsib, and Al-Mihzam, and they hold the drums and repeat the songs. As they dance, they begin to spin in the form of a beautiful harmony with the sounds of flutes. This type of art is performed during some social occasions like weddings, and is known in the western regions like Makkah, Madinah, and Taif.

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The Tarab Yambawi is an authentic type of folk art. It is known in the Yanbu of the palm trees and Yanbu of the Red Sea. The art of Yanbu has perhaps moved to Jeddah by virtue of the movement of some its people to Jeddah. This type of art is better performed collectively wherein the center of the group there is a performer holding the Al-Samsamiyah


There are many other famous folk dances performed here, including the Al-Sahab, AlZeer, and Al-Hajlah. The Al-Samsamiyah string instrument, fishing tools and marvelous singing, accompanies these dances. The expressive melody and dances resemble the sea waves.

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

(a string instrument) who plays melodies and interesting tunes, and the rest of the group dances to the tunes. Songs that are linked accompany this rhythm to the environment that encourages people to work hard and be virtuous. This dance freely takes the form of waves where the waves rise and fall. This type of folk dance is unique to the people of some cities in the western region that overlook the Red Sea on the coast.

Aseer, Najran, Jazan, and Baha Provinces The southern region, which includes Abha, Khamis, Mushait, Jazan, and Najran, is distinguished for its many traditional dances, such as, AlArdah, Al-Mu’ashsha, Lu’bat Al-Saif, and Al-Azawi.

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These folk dances are all performed at one time. They are performed sequentially through harmonized and consecutive movements and interesting rhythms that inspire pride and enthusiasm. All of them are performed collectively and with cooperation and assistance. Ardat Al-Razfah is performed in Najran, where the performers are divided into two rows facing one another and are equal in number. The shoulders of the dancers are attached to each other. Each row has a poet. When they start singing, two men go out of the two rows and perform AlSa’ab between the rows. The roles are switched regularly by the performers. The accompanied instruments are conventional weapons and guns. In addition, Ardat Al-Zamil is performed in Najran during special occasions or when a tribe welcomes another tribe at an event. This dance is performed to inspire enthusiasm during wars. The instruments used in this are drums, guns, al-Janabi, and swords. Usually the performers of such dances wear special dress and carry weapons that give encourage enthusiasm. A fire is started in the middle of the field where the dances are performed as a symbol of courage and generosity. All the rhythms of these folk dances are exciting and mirror the power of the mountainous environment. The lead dancers dance silently to the tones of drums in the Al-Saif dance. We find jubilant dances and enthusiastic rhythms and movements in Al-Zaffah, Al-Mu’ashsha, and AlAzawi dances. Al-Khatwa folk art is performed


collectively in most of the Aseer cities and governorates. It is performed through dances accompanied by drums, and raising daggers and sticks in the air. Each tribe in this region has its own traditional art.

The Province of the Northern Borders has multiple traditional arts such as Ardah, Al-Samiri, and AlDahha. Al-Dahhah is a beautiful dance performed in the form of two opposite rows of men, who move their feet and hands together in a consistent rhythm. An instrument called ―rababa‖, on which is played a variety of tunes including Al-Hujaini, Al-Zawba’I, and Al-Mashoub, accompanies this original art. Each one of these tunes has its own lyric. The flirting poems are mostly used and everyone performs with coordinated movements.

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

Al-Jouf and Northern Borders Provinces

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TRADITION FOOD IN SAUDI ARABIA

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: Kabsa is a very popular traditional food in Saudi Arabia and there are many kinds of Kabsa. Kabsa needs various ingredients to flavor the food. In Korea, people eat cooked rice every day with various side dishes. Sometimes, I make food by mixing cooked rice with side dish. In that case, the mixed food is similar to Kabsa if side dishes include meat and vegetables. Of course, I add various ingredients like salt, red pepper paste and soy sauce. I think camel and lamb are popular meat in Saudi, but Korean like to eat beef, pork and chicken.

Just over 50 years ago, Maj. R. E. Cheesman, British army officer and field naturalist, arrived on the eastern shore of the Arabian Peninsula to investigate the unmapped coastal area along the Bay


Cheesman reported that the Bedouins ultimately relented, convinced, no doubt, that a fish was just a fish after all, and he considered the matter resolved. Yet, as recently as 10 years ago, sports teams from the Eastern Province along the Gulf coast had the words "Akkalat samak! akkalat samak!—fish eaters! fish eaters!" thrown at them when Najdis from the central regions were rooting for the home team. In the land the explorers called "unknown Arabia," traditions die hard. But historically, tradition has been one thing to the eastern fishermen who roamed the Gulf, quite another to Bedouins of the central plateau of Najd, geographically isolated from alien contamination. And both stood apart from the customs of the more cosmopolitan Arab of the western cities beyond the tortuous rising mountains of the Hijaz, literally the "barrier." Loyalty to custom and tradition is the virtue of all Middle East cooking, and many of the finest dishes of the Arabs' heritage are centuries old. Some are mentioned in pre-Islamic Arabic literature. Arab poets of the Middle Ages celebrate others—many of them relished today—in detailing the lavish banquets of the caliphs at Baghdad. Both peasant food and court cuisine spread with the marching armies of Islam, presumably adopting a herb or two along the way, and by now paternity claims are hard to prove. A dish one authority claims the Syrians took from Egypt, another is convinced the Greeks took from the Turks. Part of the table of

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

of Salwa. Stowing part of his equipment aboard a fishing boat ordered to rendezvous with him each evening, he headed south from the village of al-'Uqair in the company of camel-driving Bedouins fresh from the interior. Early one morning the fishermen, thrashing about with sticks in shallow water, produced a catch they offered to share with the men on shore. The Bedouins, offended, said that they would rather eat a snake—for never having seen a fish before, how were they to know if in the law of the Koran the unfamiliar creature was haram or halal, forbidden or allowed?

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present-day Saudi Arabia comes from this common culinary pool; part developed from the eastern, western, and inland traditions of the Peninsular Arabs themselves.

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Nomads all over the Arab world speak proudly of their ancestors, the dignified old tribes of central Arabia renowned for their strength, courtesy and the selfless hospitality they introduced into a way of life otherwise austere. For centuries they clung to the food of the desert and the oasis: milk and meat, dates and imported rice. With this food the Bedouins of Najd structured their means of survival and their rituals. The Bedouins of today are members of the generation of change; Toyotas park beside their tents. But they respect and still often follow the traditions of their people, and they recall with honor the way their fathers lived. A Bedouin always had milk — milk from his camels, drunk fresh, or milk from his goats, made into buttermilk and curds. He always had dates, abundant and easily transported. If he was well-to-do he had rice, some flour, even coffee. And should a visitor of some standing arrive, the Bedouin host was obliged to slaughter a sheep and honor his guest with the classic Arab feast: trays heaped high with rice, succulent mutton, and flat rounds of unleavened bread. Sometimes there would be extra bowls for dates and for butter to dip them in, and little murmurs of satisfaction would greet this added richness. But in general the meal would be taken in silence, a sign of politeness to the host's food. In the home of a settled town Najdi, the feast would likely be the more luxurious kharuf mahshi: baby lamb stuffed with rice, nuts and raisins, rubbed outside with a paste of onion crushed with cinnamon, cloves and cardamom and browned all over in bubbling sawn,clarified cow or goat butter, before roasting. Rice might be the expensive 'ambar variety, prized for the fragrance it exuded when aboil. All around the great center tray would be small plates of tomato, cucumber, cooked pumpkin, apricots and cuts of melon. At the end would come the coffee and the incense.


The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

Foremost of the obligations of hospitality in Arabia is the preparation and serving of qahwah 'Arabiyah, Arab coffee, unsweetened but flavored with cardamom. Today the process is relegated to the kitchen, but in the old tradition it was man's work and something of a ceremony whether conducted over Bedouin campfire or town hearth. For each occasion a handful of beans was roasted fresh, and the ring of the brass mortar and pestle with which they were pounded to powder was music to the ears of expectant guests. Pots of several sizes stood ready. Into one went the remainder of yesterdays batch, fresh water and, when that reached a boil, the fresh coffee. Lifting the pot from the fire just as it threatened to froth over, the host dropped a few crushed cardamom seeds into the brew to make it digestible, then quickly poured it into a smaller, polished pot where a piece of palm fiber stuffed into the spout served as strainer. The tiny, handleless Arab coffee cup is smaller than the Chinese teacup, and is only partly filled with a few steaming sips. Good manners prevent the guest from taking more than three servings. He signals when finished by shaking the empty cup with rapid little movements of the wrist, and he knows it is time to go when the host passes the mabkhar, or hand censer, trailing the filmy smoke of frankincense or scented wood. The Bedouins have a saying that translates to ... "he makes coffee from morn till night." It is a way of describing a generous man, and no greater praise can be given. The date is the Arabs' universal staple. Nutritious and high in caloric value, it was the very means of survival for nomadic tribes when times were lean, and it is still the food with which the Bedouin or townsman is likely to begin and end his day. Dates and coffee are the traditional offering to a caller; dates stuffed with almonds are a popular confection; dates baked into tiny, sugared cookies known as ma'mul are essential to the proper celebration of 'Id al-Fitr, the festival that comes with the close of Ramadan, the

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The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

month during which Muslims fast from dawn to dusk. And as it was the Prophet Muhammad's practice to break his fast with dates, so the Muslim of today will do so because, as he will say, "It feels more religious."

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Hunayni, a date concoction prepared especially for wintertime breakfasts, is a classic dish of Najd. Pitted, ground dates are mixed over the fire with great quantities of butter; the mixture is thickened with flour of semolina, seasoned with cardamom, simmered and stirred until nearly stiff. The result is a rich dish sure to suffice until suppertime and prescribed for pale children and pregnant women. If the house and traditions were of "older days," the thickening agent would be bread taken fresh from the charcoal oven found in every kitchen and the dates from a big, square bin built into the corner to hold a year's supply. Dibs, the thick, sticky syrup that collected at the bottom, was drawn off by a spigot. Dibs from the bottom and fresh dates from the top made a combination considered absolutely ambrosial. Habb, the Arabs' wheat, grows in the central highlands and the oases areas of Saudi Arabia. Just as the Lebanese and Turks have their burghul, the Saudi Arabs have jarish:wheat kernels, soaked, dried and crushed—much favored in Najd and the alHasa oasis of the Eastern Province as a rice substitute. Jarish may-be simply boiled and served with a topping of chopped hot pepper and onion, or it may be browned in butter or oil and then cooked into a sort of pilaf with chunks of meat, chopped onion and tomato for the richly flavored dish called mufallaq. Wheat country is also bread country, and unique to Najd are three dishes that might be labeled bread-fortified stews. All begin with lamb and a mixture of vegetables. The lamb is first braised with onion, salt, pepper and pinches of cinnamon and turmeric; then tomatoes, eggplant, beans, chunks of big, yellow-fleshed squash, qar' and pieces of the little pale green zucchini, kusah, are


Unless the month is Ramadan, elaborate sweets are not considered essential by the rather conservative Najdi, whose preference is more likely to be fruit—local apples, apricots and quinces, or succulent grapes, figs and pomegranates shipped from the fruit growing area of Tayif in the Western Province. There is, however, a regional "candy," and it's made from the strange, misshapen citrus called utrunj, a lumpy, overblown and rather grotesque lemon. The thick, cotton-like inner rind is cut into fingerlength strips, and then simply marinated for about two hours in the juice of the fruit plus sugar and water. The common denominator of the country's bread basket is the flat, round, barely leavenedkhubz 'Arabi, much the same whether a product of commercial bakers or the domed, charcoal-fired village ovens: hollow, with an inner pocket good for stuffing, and soft and chewy, good for absorbing sauces. In the east one also finds tamis: bigger, crustier, and punched with holes; in the west, shurayk, golden, lozenge-shaped, very light and soft, and'aysh samuli, a skinny loaf. In the Central Province is the variety known as khubz ruqaq,"worked bread," a Ramadan specialty elsewhere but in Najd made the whole year round. It's made of flour, salt, water and date syrup, dibs, and it's baked on a large, slightly convex black iron griddle. Starting with a ball of the somewhat gummy dough at one corner, the cook works it all across the surface with fast little sweeps of the heel of her hand— an amazingly dexterous procedure considering that the bread, if properly made, is the thickness of a cornflake. Quickly, as the

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

added. The dishes are assembled for baking by alternating layers of the meat-vegetable mixture with thin layers of bread— circles of bread baked especially for the dish called qursan, layers of unbaked dough for marquq, and little, flat rounds of dough to simmer and float about, dumpling-like, in the sauce of the more liquid mataziz. Despite the similarity, each has its own staunch advocates, and they're hearty fare, all three.

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bread heats through, she checks over the surface, picking off any lumps that might mar the complexion of the finished produce. Then, working fast, she loosens the crusty edges with a knife and flips the golden sheet free with a flourish. The bread is crisp and fragile when cooled, but while hot it is soft and easily folded. Small portions of hot khubz ruqaq are sometimes made into little eggfilled packets. The name for this savory, usually prepared for children, is hinnuwah. The word comes from "sympathy," and surely it is the cook, not the child, who deserves it.

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When Major Cheesman landed on the Gulf coast to begin his first expedition, he stepped ashore where civilized man had lived 4,000 years before the beginning of the Christian era. Trade routes through the Gulf later linked the Indus Valley with the TigrisEuphrates river plains, and caravans from the southwest corner of the Peninsula bore spices and incense to the eastern shore. Somewhere along this coast middlemen grew rich in the famed Chaldean port of Gerrha, whose ruins Cheesman dearly wished to find, as men still do. But the ancient cities vanished into time, and for centuries eastern Arabia knew little of the world beyond the Gulf, little food beyond the food of Gulf waters and the rice and dates of nearby oases. The Arabian Gulf swarms with food fish. A few that once were highly prized are now seldom eaten: na'ud, shark, reputedly delicious if boiled for hours, and lukhmah, sting-ray, beaten with rice into a sort of puree. But the fat-fleshed grouper, hamur, the porgy, shfri,and king mackerel, kan'ad, are daily food up and down the coast, either made into a stew as humble or rich as the larder allows or fried and taken with rice. The rice might be makbus,pink from the addition of tomato paste, or muhammar, slightly ruddy and a bit crusty from either dibs or carmelized sugar with which it is cooked. More elegant is the dish mashkhul,made with tender, trout-sized gray subayti. The fish is slit open and filled with onions that have been sauteed in oil with ground cumin, cinnamon,


The Gulf yields a skinny but succulent crab, qubqub, small catches of a variety of lobster locally called 'urn ar-rubiyan, "mother of the shrimp," and huge nets full of the fat, pinkrubiyan, among the best shrimp in the world. With a bit of word play and a few spices one arrives at murabyan, a shrimp-rice casserole in which the shrimp is first fried with onions, garlic, chopped coriander, and a dried, black lime, laymun aswad, pierced to release its flavor. The black limes, hard as a rock and almost weightless, are important to cooks from Iraq to Iran and down to Oman, the source of most of those found in Saudi Arabian markets. Piquant, tart, used either whole or ground, they are to housewives of this area almost as indispensible as the onion. Other regional favorites are kubbat maraq: balls of rice spiced with turmeric, pepper, cumin and dried lime are shaped around a center of fried ground meat, onion and parsley and set to simmer in a sauce flavored with tomato; and fi qa'atah: a three-layered dish served as rice on the bottom, meat in the middle and almonds on top. It's cooked, in fact, top side down, for the name literally means "at the bottom." The meat is very spicy: thick slices of lamb, occasionally veal, first rubbed with cumin, allspice, garlic, salt and pepper are hours later braised in water with cinnamon, cloves and cardamom. The rice is delicate, with only a touch of rose water infused with saffron sprinkled over the fine-grained Peshwari rice from Pakistan. Street vendors in the Eastern Province offer a fried version of mutabbaq, a filled, hot savory more likely to be baked if made by a housewife in Hijaz, where it originated. In either case,mutabbaq has many, many layers of tissue-thin pastry, all folded around a filling of ground meat, chopped onions,

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

turmeric and black pepper, a blend called buharat the Saudi housewife buys ready-mixed. Then fried whole in the same spiceflavored oil, the fish is presented with a garnish of limes atop a bed of rice.

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minced kurrath, a long green leaf of the garlic family, and beaten eggs. There's also a banana-filled mutabbaq which Malaysian Muslims took back to their homeland after discovering it during their pilgrimage to Mecca.

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Yellow split-pea flour is the basis of a tasty snack called by the simple and obviously borrowed name kabab. Yeast, grated potato, a small tomato, onion, hot green pepper, garlic, a bit of dried lime and a touch of dried coriander seed and cumin all add up to a very spicy dough. It sits for two hours and then is fried by teaspoonsful dropped into hot oil; the golden balls are a marvelous blend of flavors and positively featherweight. Saliq, a simple, bland dish, is the best known of all the rice dishes of Saudi Arabia. It's almost like a hot rice pudding, the rice first half-cooked in meat or chicken broth and then with milk, stirred and simmered for about an hour until soft. It must be flavored with cardamom and absolutely must be scented with a hint of mustaka (gum arabic), the aromatic resin of the mastic tree. Mustaka is more expensive and far more delicate thanluban, frankincense, but like it recalls the days of the incense trade. Saliq is most typically served with meat or fowl and the universal Arab salad: parsley, onion, hot green pepper—all finely chopped, lemon juiced and salted. Finally harisah : an ancient dish and one that is almost a cult food on the eastern shores of Saudi Arabia. Elsewhere the name is also applied to a sweet, but in the Eastern Province it's wheat and meat and it suffers no lukewarm opinions. It takes on character when described as made in a tiny Gulf village 30 years ago! The wheat was beaten until finely crushed in a hollowed-out section of palm-tree trunk used especially for this purpose. Then sifted free of husks, the grain would be placed in a large cooking pot with water, salt and chunks of mutton, and the pot nested among large stones heated by a fire in the sand—and left from morning to sundown. The cooking done, a soupy liquid was removed from the


Mecca has for centuries been the most cosmopolitan city of Arabia. Even before the time of the Prophet it was an important center of the caravan trade, bringing supplies from India and the Far East up from the port of Aden to Suez and the Mediterranean world. With the coming of Islam, Mecca and the other cities of the Hijaz rose to world significance just when the rest of the Peninsula was beginning to slide behind the veil of mystery. Turks, Afghans, Syrians, Egyptians, Indians, Berbers and Indonesians on the annual pilgrimage gave Mecca a cosmopolitan air—and they lent new varieties and flavors to the food of the Hijaz.

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

top and the thick mix beaten with a flat paddle, over and over, slapping again and again against the side of the vessel. Hard, steady work—at least a half-hour—the beating would cease only when the harisah was completely blended, amorphous, somewhat glutinous. Nothing remained now but to spread the stiff porridge about an inch deep on a platter and place a small portion of oil in a slight depression at the center. Saudi Arabs either love harisah or leave it. And in the Western world there's nothing quite like it, except maybe haggis, without the bagpipes.

Paradoxically, the best time to sample Hijazi cuisine is during Ramadan, when Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset and the evening meal is lavish. At the end of the long day of hunger and, more trying, thirst, the Ramadan fast is broken with a few sips of water. Meccans drink water from Zamzam, the well revealed to Haggar by the angel Gabriel according to tradition, eat a few dates, and sip qamar addin, a thickish drink prepared from sheets of dried, pressed apricots, chopped and pureed with water. The meal itself begins, always, with a thick, nourishing soup made from soaked wheat and meat stock, rich with chunks of lamb, sharpened with a bit of fresh tomato, and spiced with cinnamon, cardamom and, indispensible here, the dry, curled, grayish leaf of tree wormwood, shaybah, "old man." Then come the brown Egyptian

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ful, beans cooked with tomato, onion and oil, and next the beloved sambusak, paper-thin pastry' made up in triangular shapes stuffed with ground meat, onion, and hot with the pungent leafy coriander,kuzbarah, or the long, spike-like green of the garlic family, kurrath. So much for starters. The meal may continue with shakshukah, eggs gently cooked on a bed of fried onion, green pepper and tomato, followed by one or two main dishes. There might be kabsah: chicken or lamb sauteed with onion, garlic, fresh tomato, tomato puree, grated carrot and grated orange rind. When the meat is cooked, it is removed and rice goes into the pot to simmer in the rich sauce. All put together for serving, it takes a garnish of raisins and almonds. 'Aysh abu laham is a local specialty the Hijazis describe as "something like pizza." A leavened dough, egg-rich and flavored with seeds of shamar, fennel, and habbah sawda,black caraway, it is baked in the shape of a thick-bottomed pie shell, then filled with fried mutton, chopped kurrath or spring onion, and topped with a sauce made from tahinah,sesame seed puree. There might be a fish dish, perhaps hut sijan: tiny perch, slit open, seasoned with garlic, lemon and cumin; fried and eaten whole; or samak humar: fish baked with a sweet-sour sauce made from dried tamarind; or a large hamur (grouper) laid open and covered with onion, tomato, garlic, hot pepper and cumin—baked and then served with lemon, sometimeslaymun mukhallal, quarters of lemons pickled with vinegar and turmeric.

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A sweet, one soft and cold, is the customary way to end such a banquet, either the elegantmahallibiyah, a delicate pudding of ground rice and milk, ever so lightly flavored with orange-blossom or rose water and decorated with almonds and pistachios; or sagudanah,tapioca or sago pudding similarly scented and flavored.


Genuine Saudi food, but for a few of the sweets, is rarely to be found in restaurants. Saudi food is food of the home, where cooking and eating are intensely social activities. And so it falls to the housewife, herself fasting, to spend her days preparing these splendid Ramadan evening meals. There's an old Arabic proverb—"The woman killed herself with work, yet the feast lasted only a day!"

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But for special guests more sweets must be served, and there are many that are made especially for the Ramadan season. Luqmat al-qadi, "judge's morsels," spoonsful of soft, light dough, sometimes lightly spiced with cardamom and saffron, .fried gently in oil and then dipped in syrup; qatayif: store-bought pancakes stuffed at home with nuts or cheese, then fried and covered with syrup; basbusah: semolina cooked with sugar syrup, baked into squares and sometimes served with a topping of qishtah, the Hijazi's answer to the Englishman's clotted cream; or kunafah: top and bottom layers of pastry that resembles shredded wheat, a middle layer of white goat cheese, butter and pine nuts, and over all after it's baked—once again—sugar syrup scented with rose water. The well-known sweet tooth of the Arabs is indulged in Ramadan, and never are rewards better earned.

KABSA Made with Chicken 1 Ib. American rice 1 frying chicken, cut into eight pieces 1 cup corn oil 2 medium onions, sliced 5 cloves garlic, pounded to a pulp

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1 can tomato puree (2 ½ ozs.) 2 medium tomatoes, chopped 2 medium carrots, grated grated rind of one orange 6 cloves

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6 cardamom pods 4 sticks cinnamon 4 tbsps. raisins 4 tbsps. almonds, soaked and split Wash the rice and cover with water to soak for at least 15 minutes before cooking. Sautee the onion in oil until it begins to brown. Add the chicken pieces, tomato puree, chopped tomatoes and garlic and stir for about five minutes over low heat. Add three cups hot water, the spices, salt and pepper to taste, the grated carrot and orange rind. Cook about 20-25 minutes, until the chicken is done. Remove the chicken and keep warm. Add the rice to the sauce and cook slowly over low heat for about 15 minutes, or until cooked dry. Arrange the chicken on top of the rice on a platter, and decorate with the raisins and almonds. Serve hot. MUFALLAQ 26

3 cups jarish (crushed wheat) 4½ cups water 1 Ib. lamb or beef cut into large chunks


2 onions, chopped salt and pepper to taste

Wash the wheat and soak for two hours in water to cover. Brown the meat in oil or shortening, add the chopped tomato, salt, pepper and 1 cup of the water. Simmer until the meat is tender and set aside. Drain the wheat and fry it gently in oil or shortening, stirring constantly, until it begins to turn color. Add the meat mixture and the remaining 3½ cups of water to the wheat, cover, and cook until all the water is absorbed and the wheat is fluffy. Fry the onion and place it in a depression in the center of the wheat. Cover and allow themufallaq to steam over a very low flame for about ½ hour. Stir the onion into the wheat and turn the mixture out onto a platter, picking out the biggest of the meat pieces to place across the top. 'AYSH ABU LAHAM Bread:

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2 tomatoes, chopped, or 1 small can (2 ½ ozs.) tomato puree

1 Ib. flour (half all-purpose, half unbleached) 5 rounded tbsps. shortening 2 eggs, beaten 1 tsp. dried yeast ½ cup water 1 tsp. salt 1 tbsp. fennel seeds 1 tsp. black caraway seeds

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Filling : ½ Ib. ground mutton ½ cup chopped kurrath Sauce: 4 tbsps. tahina

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1 tbsp. vinegar ½ cup water 4 cloves garlic, mashed Blend the flour, salt and shortening until the mixture resembles pie crust, then pour over it the yeast softened in water and the beaten eggs. Grind the fennel seeds in a blender and add them along with the black caraway, left whole. Mix the dough well with the hands, knead briefly and place in a bowl, greasing the top of the dough with shortening. Place the bowl in a warm spot for about four hours, until the dough doubles. Knead the dough briefly a second time, then roll out and shape into a 12-inch round pan. building up the edges to make a rim. Dough should be about an inch thick in the middle. Bake in a 350degree oven about 45 minutes. Fry the mutton, drain off the fat, and add salt and pepper to taste. Turn off the heat and add the chopped kurrath, allowing it to cook in the steam. (The tops of spring onions may be substituted.) 28

Blend the sauce ingredients and season with salt and pepper. Place the cooked meat in the center of the bread and pour the


sauce over the meat. The sauce recipe may be doubled and half used to pass as a side dish.

There are not many desserts in the Saudi Arabian cuisine. In ancient times the Saudi Arabian desserts were traditionally served at very special times such as the month of Ramadan. Nevertheless, now a huge variety of pastries and sweets are available in the Saudi Arabian region. They can be offered after a main meal but commonly they are served with traditional coffee or mint tea. Arabic cakes, scrumptious scream desserts and rice puddings (muhalabia) are also a part of the Saudi Arabian Dessert Cuisine. Until the beginning of 1970’s, Arabs have been known to end their meals with dates or watermelons that are grown in Qatif and neighbouring towns. They would add sugar to watermelons if they were not sweet enough. Cream-caramel (luqaymat) are also part of the desserts in the cuisine, these are like hushpuppies that are dipped in a sugar syrup or date molasses; sago pudding, a tapioca kind of a dish flavoured with saffron; or tatli which is a custard served either plain or topped with shredded coconut is also part of the desserts in the Saudi Arabian cuisine.

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Lyn Maby is a long-time resident of Saudi Arabia and an editor of an English-language weekly there.

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Petroleum

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what is petroleum? The story of oil in Saudi Arabia

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Petroleum is a naturally occurring, smelly, yellow-to-black liquid consisting of a complex mixture of hydrocarbons of various molecular weights and other liquid organic compounds, that are found in geologic formations beneath the Earth's surface. The name Petroleum covers both naturally occurring unprocessed crude oils and petroleum products that are made up of refined crude oil. A fossil fuel, petroleum is formed when large quantities of dead organisms, usually zooplankton and algae, are buried underneath sedimentary rock and undergo intense heat and pressure. Petroleum is recovered mostly through oil drilling. This comes after the studies of structural geology (at the reservoir scale), sedimentary basin analysis, reservoir characterization (mainly in terms of the porosity and permeability of geologic reservoir structures). It is refined and separated, most easily by boiling point, into a large number of consumer products, from gasoline (petrol) and kerosene to asphalt and chemical reagents used to make plastics and pharmaceuticals.[7] Petroleum is used in manufacturing a wide variety of materials, and it is estimated that the world consumes about 90 million barrels each day. The use of fossil fuels such as petroleum can have a negative impact on Earth's biosphere, releasing pollutants and greenhouse gases into the air and damaging ecosystems through events such as oil spills. Concern over the depletion of the earth's finite reserves of oil, and the effect this would have on a society dependent on it, is a concept known as peak oil.


The word "petroleum" comes from Greek: πέτρα (petra) for rocks and Greek: ἔλαιον (elaion) for oil. The term was found (in the spelling "petraoleum") in 10th-century Old English sources. It was used in the treatise De Natura Fossilium, published in 1546 by the German mineralogist Georg Bauer, also known as Georgius Agricola. In the 19th century, the term "petroleum" was frequently used to refer to mineral oils produced by distillation from mined organic solids such as cannel coal (and later oil shale), and refined oils produced from them; in the United Kingdom, storage (and later transport) of these oils were regulated by a series of Petroleum Acts, from the Petroleum Act 1862 onwards. History Main article: History of petroleum Early history Petroleum, in one form or another, has been used since ancient times, and is now important across society, including in economy, politics and technology. The rise in importance was due to the invention of the internal combustion engine, the rise in commercial aviation, and the importance of petroleum to industrial organic chemistry, particularly the synthesis of plastics, fertilizers, solvents, adhesives and pesticides. More than 4000 years ago, according to Herodotus and Diodorus Siculus, asphalt was used in the construction of the walls and towers of Babylon; there were oil pits near Ardericca (near Babylon), and a pitch spring on Zacynthus. Great quantities of it were found on the banks of the river Issus, one of the tributaries of the Euphrates. Ancient Persian tablets indicate the medicinal and lighting uses of petroleum in the upper levels of their society. By 347 AD, oil was produced from bamboo-drilled wells in China. Early British explorers to Myanmar documented a flourishing oil

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Etymology

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extraction industry based in Yenangyaung, that in 1795 had hundreds of hand-dug wells under production. The mythological origins of the oil fields at Yenangyaung, and its hereditary monopoly control by 24 families, indicate very ancient origins.

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Modern history

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In 1847, the process to distill kerosene from petroleum was invented by James Young. He noticed a natural petroleum seepage in the Riddings colliery at Alfreton, Derbyshire from which he distilled a light thin oil suitable for use as lamp oil, at the same time obtaining a thicker oil suitable for lubricating machinery. In 1848 Young set up a small business refining the crude oil. Young eventually succeeded, by distilling cannel coal at a low heat, in creating a fluid resembling petroleum, which when treated in the same way as the seep oil gave similar products. Young found that by slow distillation he could obtain a number of useful liquids from it, one of which he named "paraffine oil" because at low temperatures it congealed into a substance resembling paraffin wax.[14]

The production of these oils and solid paraffin wax from coal formed the subject of his patent dated 17 October 1850. In 1850 Young & Meldrum and Edward William Binney entered into partnership under the title of E.W. Binney & Co. at Bathgate in West Lothian and E. Meldrum & Co. at Glasgow; their works at Bathgate were completed in 1851 and became the first truly commercial oil-works in the world with the first modern oil refinery, using oil extracted from locally-mined torbanite, shale, and bituminous coal to manufacture naphtha and lubricating oils; paraffin for fuel use and solid paraffin were not sold till 1856.[15]


The first commercial oil well in Canada became operational in 1858 at Oil Springs, Ontario (then Canada West). Businessman James Miller Williams dug several wells between 1855 and 1858 before discovering a rich reserve of oil four metres below ground. Williams extracted 1.5 million litres of crude oil by 1860, refining much of it into kerosene lamp oil. William's well became commercially viable a year before Drake's Pennsylvania operation and could be argued to be the first commercial oil well in North America. The discovery at Oil Springs touched off an oil boom which brought hundreds of speculators and workers to the area. Advances in drilling continued into 1862 when local driller Shaw reached a depth of 62 metres using the spring-pole drilling method. On January 16, 1862, after an explosion of natural gas Canada's first oil gusher came into production, shooting into the air at a recorded rate of 3,000 barrels per day. By the end of the 19th

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Another early refinery was built by Ignacy Łukasiewicz, providing a cheaper alternative to whale oil. The demand for petroleum as a fuel for lighting in North America and around the world quickly grew. Edwin Drake's 1859 well near Titusville, Pennsylvania, is popularly considered the first modern well. Drake's well is probably singled out because it was drilled, not dug; because it used a steam engine; because there was a company associated with it; and because it touched off a major boom. However, there was considerable activity before Drake in various parts of the world in the mid-19th century. A group directed by Major Alexeyev of the Bakinskii Corps of Mining Engineers hand-drilled a well in the Baku region in 1848. There were engine-drilled wells in West Virginia in the same year as Drake's well. An early commercial well was hand dug in Poland in 1853, and another in nearby Romania in 1857. At around the same time the world's first, small, oil refinery was opened at Jasło in Poland, with a larger one opened at Ploiești in Romania shortly after. Romania is the first country in the world to have had its annual crude oil output officially recorded in international statistics: 275 tonnes for 1857.

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The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

century the Russian Empire, particularly the Branobel company in Azerbaijan, had taken the lead in production.

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Access to oil was and still is a major factor in several military conflicts of the twentieth century, including World War II, during which oil facilities were a major strategic asset and were extensively bombed. Operation Barbarossa included the goal to capture the Baku oilfields, as it would provide much needed oilsupplies for the German military which was suffering from blockades. Oil exploration in North America during the early 20th century later led to the U.S. becoming the leading producer by mid-century. As petroleum production in the U.S. peaked during the 1960s, however, the United States was surpassed by Saudi Arabia and the Soviet Union. Today, about 90 percent of vehicular fuel needs are met by oil. Petroleum also makes up 40 percent of total energy consumption in the United States, but is responsible for only 1 percent of electricity generation. Petroleum's worth as a portable, dense energy source powering the vast majority of vehicles and as the base of many industrial chemicals makes it one of the world's most important commodities. Viability of the oil commodity is controlled by several key parameters, number of vehicles in the world competing for fuel, quantity of oil exported to the world market (Export Land Model), Net Energy Gain (economically useful energy provided minus energy consumed), political stability of oil exporting nations and ability to defend oil supply lines. The top three oil producing countries are Russia, Saudi Arabia, and the United States. About 80 percent of the world's readily accessible reserves are located in the Middle East, with 62.5 percent coming from the Arab 5: Saudi Arabia, UAE, Iraq, Qatar and Kuwait. A large portion of the world's total oil exists as unconventional sources, such as bitumen in Canada and oil shale in Venezuela. While significant volumes of oil are extracted from oil sands, particularly in Canada, logistical and technical hurdles


Conventional crude oil production, those having Net Energy Gain above 10 stopped growing in 2005 at about 74 million barrels per day (11,800,000 m3/d). The International Energy Agency's (IEA) 2010 World Energy Outlook estimated that conventional crude oil production has peaked and is depleting at 6.8 percent per year. US Joint Forces Command's Joint Operating Environment 2010 issued this warning to all US military commands "By 2012, surplus oil production capacity could entirely disappear, and as early as 2015, the shortfall in output could reach nearly 10 million barrels per day." Composition In its strictest sense, petroleum includes only crude oil, but in common usage it includes all liquid, gaseous, and solid hydrocarbons. Under surface pressure and temperature conditions, lighter hydrocarbons methane, ethane, propane and butane occur as gases, while pentane and heavier ones are in the form of liquids or solids. However, in an underground oil reservoir the proportions of gas, liquid, and solid depend on subsurface conditions and on the phase diagram of the petroleum mixture. An oil well produces predominantly crude oil, with some natural gas dissolved in it. Because the pressure is lower at the surface than underground, some of the gas will come out of solution and be recovered (or burned) as associated gas or solution gas. A gas well produces predominantly natural gas. However, because the underground temperature and pressure are higher than at the surface, the gas may contain heavier hydrocarbons such as pentane, hexane, and heptane in the gaseous state. At surface conditions these will condense out of the gas to form natural gas

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remain, as oil extraction requires large amounts of heat and water, making its net energy content quite low relative to conventional crude oil. Thus, Canada's oil sands are not expected to provide more than a few million barrels per day in the foreseeable future.

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condensate, often shortened to condensate. Condensate resembles petrol in appearance and is similar in composition to some volatile light crude oils.

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The proportion of light hydrocarbons in the petroleum mixture varies greatly among different oil fields, ranging from as much as 97 percent by weight in the lighter oils to as little as 50 percent in the heavier oils and bitumens.

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Crude oil varies greatly in appearance depending on its composition. It is usually black or dark brown (although it may be yellowish, reddish, or even greenish). In the reservoir it is usually found in association with natural gas, which being lighter forms a gas cap over the petroleum, and saline water which, being heavier than most forms of crude oil, generally sinks beneath it. Crude oil may also be found in semi-solid form mixed with sand and water, as in the Athabasca oil sands in Canada, where it is usually referred to as crude bitumen. In Canada, bitumen is considered a sticky, black, tar-like form of crude oil which is so thick and heavy that it must be heated or diluted before it will flow. Venezuela also has large amounts of oil in the Orinoco oil sands, although the hydrocarbons trapped in them are more fluid than in Canada and are usually called extra heavy oil. These oil sands resources are called unconventional oil to distinguish them from oil which can be extracted using traditional oil well methods. Between them, Canada and Venezuela contain an estimated 3.6 trillion barrels (570Ă—109 m3) of bitumen and extra-heavy oil, about twice the volume of the world's reserves of conventional oil. Petroleum is used mostly, by volume, for producing fuel oil and petrol, both important "primary energy" sources. 84 percent by volume of the hydrocarbons present in petroleum is converted into energy-rich fuels (petroleum-based fuels), including petrol, diesel, jet, heating, and other fuel oils, and liquefied petroleum gas. The


Due to its high energy density, easy transportability and relative abundance, oil has become the world's most important source of energy since the mid-1950s. Petroleum is also the raw material for many chemical products, including pharmaceuticals, solvents, fertilizers, pesticides, and plastics; the 16 percent not used for energy production is converted into these other materials. Petroleum is found in porous rock formations in the upper strata of some areas of the Earth's crust. There is also petroleum in oil sands (tar sands). Known oil reserves are typically estimated at around 190 km3 (1.2 trillion (short scale) barrels) without oil sands,[37] or 595 km3 (3.74 trillion barrels) with oil sands. Consumption is currently around 84 million barrels (13.4Ă—106 m3) per day, or 4.9 km3 per year. Which in turn yields a remaining oil supply of only about 120 years, if current demand remain static.

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lighter grades of crude oil produce the best yields of these products, but as the world's reserves of light and medium oil are depleted, oil refineries are increasingly having to process heavy oil and bitumen, and use more complex and expensive methods to produce the products required. Because heavier crude oils have too much carbon and not enough hydrogen, these processes generally involve removing carbon from or adding hydrogen to the molecules, and using fluid catalytic cracking to convert the longer, more complex molecules in the oil to the shorter, simpler ones in the fuels.

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Chemistry


Octane, a hydrocarbon found in petroleum. Lines represent single bonds; black spheres represent carbon; white spheres represent hydrogen.

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Petroleum is a mixture of a very large number of different hydrocarbons; the most commonly found molecules are alkanes (paraffins), cycloalkanes (naphthenes), aromatic hydrocarbons, or more complicated chemicals like asphaltenes. Each petroleum variety has a unique mix of molecules, which define its physical and chemical properties, like color and viscosity.

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The alkanes, also known as paraffins, are saturated hydrocarbons with straight or branched chains which contain only carbon and hydrogen and have the general formula CnH2n+2. They generally have from 5 to 40 carbon atoms per molecule, although trace amounts of shorter or longer molecules may be present in the mixture. The alkanes from pentane (C5H12) to octane (C8H18) are refined into petrol, the ones from nonane (C9H20) to hexadecane (C16H34) into diesel fuel, kerosene and jet fuel. Alkanes with more than 16 carbon atoms can be refined into fuel oil and lubricating oil. At the heavier end of the range, paraffin wax is an alkane with approximately 25 carbon atoms, while asphalt has 35 and up, although these are usually cracked by modern refineries into more valuable products. The shortest molecules, those with four or fewer carbon atoms, are in a gaseous state at room temperature. They are the petroleum gases. Depending on demand and the cost of recovery, these gases are either flared off, sold as liquified petroleum gas under pressure, or used to power the refinery's own burners. During the winter, butane (C4H10), is blended into the petrol pool at high rates, because its high vapor pressure assists with cold starts. Liquified under pressure slightly above atmospheric, it is best known for powering cigarette lighters, but it is also a main fuel source for many developing countries. Propane


can be liquified under modest pressure, and is consumed for just about every application relying on petroleum for energy, from cooking to heating to transportation.

The aromatic hydrocarbons are unsaturated hydrocarbons which have one or more planar six-carbon rings called benzene rings, to which hydrogen atoms are attached with the formula CnHn. They tend to burn with a sooty flame, and many have a sweet aroma. Some are carcinogenic. These different molecules are separated by fractional distillation at an oil refinery to produce petrol, jet fuel, kerosene, and other hydrocarbons. For example, 2,2,4-trimethylpentane (isooctane), widely used in petrol, has a chemical formula of C8H18 and it reacts with oxygen exothermically.

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The cycloalkanes, also known as naphthenes, are saturated hydrocarbons which have one or more carbon rings to which hydrogen atoms are attached according to the formula CnH2n. Cycloalkanes have similar properties to alkanes but have higher boiling points.

The number of various molecules in an oil sample can be determined in laboratory. The molecules are typically extracted in a solvent, then separated in a gas chromatograph, and finally determined with a suitable detector, such as a flame ionization detector or a mass spectrometer. Due to the large number of coeluted hydrocarbons within oil, many cannot be resolved by traditional gas chromatography and typically appear as a hump in the chromatogram. This unresolved complex mixture (UCM) of hydrocarbons is particularly apparent when analysing weathered oils and extracts from tissues of organisms exposed to oil. Incomplete combustion of petroleum or petrol results in production of toxic byproducts. Too little oxygen results in carbon monoxide. Due to the high temperatures and high pressures involved,

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exhaust gases from petrol combustion in car engines usually include nitrogen oxides which are responsible for creation of photochemical smog.

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Reservoirs Crude oil reservoirs Three conditions must be present for oil reservoirs to form: a source rock rich in hydrocarbon material buried deep enough for subterranean heat to cook it into oil; a porous and permeable reservoir rock for it to accumulate in; and a cap rock (seal) or other mechanism that prevents it from escaping to the surface. Within these reservoirs, fluids will typically organize themselves like a three-layer cake with a layer of water below the oil layer and a layer of gas above it, although the different layers vary in size between reservoirs. Because most hydrocarbons are less dense than rock or water, they often migrate upward through adjacent rock layers until either reaching the surface or becoming trapped within porous rocks (known as reservoirs) by impermeable rocks above. However, the process is influenced by underground water flows, causing oil to migrate hundreds of kilometres horizontally or even short distances downward before becoming trapped in a reservoir. When hydrocarbons are concentrated in a trap, an oil field forms, from which the liquid can be extracted by drilling and pumping. The reactions that produce oil and natural gas are often modeled as first order breakdown reactions, where hydrocarbons are broken down to oil and natural gas by a set of parallel reactions, and oil eventually breaks down to natural gas by another set of reactions. The latter set is regularly used in petrochemical plants and oil refineries. 40

Wells are drilled into oil reservoirs to extract the crude oil. "Natural lift" production methods that rely on the natural reservoir pressure to force the oil to the surface are usually sufficient for a while after


Unconventional oil reservoirs

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reservoirs are first tapped. In some reservoirs, such as in the Middle East, the natural pressure is sufficient over a long time. The natural pressure in most reservoirs, however, eventually dissipates. Then the oil must be extracted using "artificial lift" means. Over time, these "primary" methods become less effective and "secondary" production methods may be used. A common secondary method is "waterflood" or injection of water into the reservoir to increase pressure and force the oil to the drilled shaft or "wellbore." Eventually "tertiary" or "enhanced" oil recovery methods may be used to increase the oil's flow characteristics by injecting steam, carbon dioxide and other gases or chemicals into the reservoir. In the United States, primary production methods account for less than 40 percent of the oil produced on a daily basis, secondary methods account for about half, and tertiary recovery the remaining 10 percent. Extracting oil (or "bitumen") from oil/tar sand and oil shale deposits requires mining the sand or shale and heating it in a vessel or retort, or using "in-situ" methods of injecting heated liquids into the deposit and then pumping out the oil-saturated liquid.

Oil-eating bacteria biodegrade oil that has escaped to the surface. Oil sands are reservoirs of partially biodegraded oil still in the process of escaping and being biodegraded, but they contain so much migrating oil that, although most of it has escaped, vast amounts are still present—more than can be found in conventional oil reservoirs. The lighter fractions of the crude oil are destroyed first, resulting in reservoirs containing an extremely heavy form of crude oil, called crude bitumen in Canada, or extra-heavy crude oil in Venezuela. These two countries have the world's largest deposits of oil sands. On the other hand, oil shales are source rocks that have not been exposed to heat or pressure long enough to convert their trapped hydrocarbons into crude oil. Technically speaking, oil shales are

41


not always shales and do not contain oil, but are fined-grain sedimentary rocks containing an insoluble organic solid called kerogen. The kerogen in the rock can be converted into crude oil using heat and pressure to simulate natural processes. The method has been known for centuries and was patented in 1694 under British Crown Patent No. 330 covering, "A way to extract and make great quantities of pitch, tar, and oil out of a sort of stone." Although oil shales are found in many countries, the United States has the world's largest deposits.[49]

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Classification

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The petroleum industry generally classifies crude oil by the geographic location it is produced in (e.g. West Texas Intermediate, Brent, or Oman), its API gravity (an oil industry measure of density), and its sulfur content. Crude oil may be considered light if it has low density or heavy if it has high density; and it may be referred to as sweet if it contains relatively little sulfur or sour if it contains substantial amounts of sulfur. The geographic location is important because it affects transportation costs to the refinery. Light crude oil is more desirable than heavy oil since it produces a higher yield of petrol, while sweet oil commands a higher price than sour oil because it has fewer environmental problems and requires less refining to meet sulfur standards imposed on fuels in consuming countries. Each crude oil has unique molecular characteristics which are understood by the use of crude oil assay analysis in petroleum laboratories. Barrels from an area in which the crude oil's molecular characteristics have been determined and the oil has been classified are used as pricing references throughout the world. Some of the common reference crudes are:


   

West Texas Intermediate (WTI), a very high-quality, sweet, light oil delivered at Cushing, Oklahoma for North American oil Brent Blend, comprising 15 oils from fields in the Brent and Ninian systems in the East Shetland Basin of the North Sea. The oil is landed at Sullom Voe terminal in Shetland. Oil production from Europe, Africa and Middle Eastern oil flowing West tends to be priced off this oil, which forms a benchmark Dubai-Oman, used as benchmark for Middle East sour crude oil flowing to the Asia-Pacific region Tapis (from Malaysia, used as a reference for light Far East oil) Minas (from Indonesia, used as a reference for heavy Far East oil) The OPEC Reference Basket, a weighted average of oil blends from various OPEC (The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) countries Midway Sunset Heavy, by which heavy oil in California is priced

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There are declining amounts of these benchmark oils being produced each year, so other oils are more commonly what is actually delivered. While the reference price may be for West Texas Intermediate delivered at Cushing, the actual oil being traded may be a discounted Canadian heavy oil delivered at Hardisty, Alberta, and for a Brent Blend delivered at Shetland, it may be a Russian Export Blend delivered at the port of Primorsk. Petroleum industry The petroleum industry is involved in the global processes of exploration, extraction, refining, transporting (often with oil tankers and pipelines), and marketing petroleum products. The largest volume products of the industry are fuel oil and petrol. Petroleum is also the raw material for many chemical products, including

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The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

pharmaceuticals, solvents, fertilizers, pesticides, and plastics. The industry is usually divided into three major components: upstream, midstream and downstream. Midstream operations are usually included in the downstream category. Petroleum is vital to many industries, and is of importance to the maintenance of industrialized civilization itself, and thus is a critical concern to many nations. Oil accounts for a large percentage of the world's energy consumption, ranging from a low of 32 percent for Europe and Asia, up to a high of 53 percent for the Middle East, South and Central America (44%), Africa (41%), and North America (40%). The world at large consumes 30 billion barrels (4.8 km続) of oil per year, and the top oil consumers largely consist of developed nations. In fact, 24 percent of the oil consumed in 2004 went to the United States alone, though by 2007 this had dropped to 21 percent of world oil consumed. In the US, in the states of Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon and Washington, the Western States Petroleum Association (WSPA) represents companies responsible for producing, distributing, refining, transporting and marketing petroleum. This non-profit trade association was founded in 1907, and is the oldest petroleum trade association in the United States. Shipping

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In the 1950s, shipping costs made up 33 percent of the price of oil transported from the Persian Gulf to USA, but due to the development of supertankers in the 1970s, the cost of shipping dropped to only 5 percent of the price of Persian oil in USA. Due to the increase of the value of the crude oil during the last 30 years, the share of the shipping cost on the final cost of the delivered commodity was less than 3% in 2010. For example, in 2010 the shipping cost from the Persian Gulf to the USA was in the range of 20 $/t and the cost of the delivered crude oil around 800 $/t.


Price After the collapse of the OPEC-administered pricing system in 1985, and a short lived experiment with netback pricing, oilexporting countries adopted a market-linked pricing mechanism. First adopted by PEMEX in 1986, market-linked pricing was widely accepted, and by 1988 became and still is the main method for pricing crude oil in international trade. The current reference, or pricing markers, are Brent, WTI, and Dubai/Oman.

The chemical structure of petroleum is heterogeneous, composed of hydrocarbon chains of different lengths. Because of this, petroleum may be taken to oil refineries and the hydrocarbon chemicals separated by distillation and treated by other chemical processes, to be used for a variety of purposes. See Petroleum products. Agriculture

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

Uses

Since the 1940s, agricultural productivity has increased dramatically, due largely to the increased use of energy-intensive mechanization, fertilizers and pesticides. Nearly all pesticides and many fertilizers are made from oil.

Petroleum by country Export Oil exports by country. In order of net exports in 2011, 2009 and 2006 in thousand bbl./d and thousand m続/d: 45


Exporting 103bbl/d 103m3/d 103bbl/d 103m3/d 103bbl/d 103m3/d # Nation (2011) (2011) (2009) (2009) (2006) (2006) Saudi 1 Arabia (OPEC)

8,336

1,325

7,322

1,164

8,651

1,376

2 Russia 1

7,083

1,126

7,194

1,144

6,565

1,044

Iran (OPEC)

2,540

403

2,486

395

2,519

401

2,524

401

2,303

366

2,515

400

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

3

United Arab 4 Emirates (OPEC) 5

Kuwait (OPEC)

2,343

373

2,124

338

2,150

342

6

Nigeria (OPEC)

2,257

359

1,939

308

2,146

341

7

Iraq (OPEC)

1,915

304

1,764

280

1,438

229

8

Angola (OPEC)

1,760

280

1,878

299

1,363

217

1,752

279

2,132

339

2,542

404

Venezuela 1,715 (OPEC) 1

273

1,748

278

2,203

350

9 Norway 1 46

10


Source: US Energy Information Administration Import Oil imports by country.

103bbl/d 103m3/d 103bbl/d 103m3/d 103bbl/d 103m3/d Importin # ay ay ay ay ay ay g Nation (2011) (2011) (2009) (2009) (2006) (2006) 1

United 8,728 States 1

1,388

9,631

1,531

12,220

1,943

2 China 2 5,487

872

4,328

688

3,438

547

3 Japan

4,329

688

4,235

673

5,097

810

4 India

2,349

373

2,233

355

1,687

268

5

German 2,235 y

355

2,323

369

2,483

395

6

South Korea

2,170

345

2,139

340

2,150

342

7 France 1,697

270

1,749

278

1,893

301

8 Spain

1,346

214

1,439

229

1,555

247

9 Italy

1,292

205

1,381

220

1,558

248

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

In order of net imports in 2011, 2009 and 2006 in thousand bbl./d and thousand m続/d:

47


103bbl/d 103m3/d 103bbl/d 103m3/d 103bbl/d 103m3/d Importin # ay ay ay ay ay ay g Nation (2011) (2011) (2009) (2009) (2006) (2006) 1 Singapo 1,172 0 re

186

916

146

787

125

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

Source: US Energy Information Administration

The story of oil in Saudi Arabia

48

As the oil empire Aramco celebrates its 75th anniversary on May 20 graced by King Abdullah, its success story stands out quite unprecedented in the history of mankind. A trip to a single Aramco oil installation in the harsh desert can give one an idea of the power, the glory, and the sheer uniqueness of Saudi Aramco. It has been a hugely profitable enterprise that underpinned Saudi Arabia’s might after its unification by late King Abdul Aziz.


The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

Now the country has more than a quarter of the world’s total proven reserves, over 264 billion barrels, and is also the largest producer and exporter on the planet. It was a story of adventure and bridging of cultures starting in 1933 when the Kingdom granted oil concessions to Standard Oil of California (SOCAL, today’s Chevron). The east coast of the Kingdom was the beginning of oil prospecting. The early signs of hope started with the second drill site known as Dammam 2 in May 1936 where it produced a total daily production of 3840 barrels a day, encouraging SOCAL to boost its operations in the area by increasing its American employees to 62 and Saudis to 1076. As more Saudis joined the operations, Socal passed the concession to a wholly-owned subsidiary called California-Arabian Standard Oil Co. (CASOC). But soon the company began to worry as Dammam 2 started to produce 9 times more water than oil as the drilling went deeper. Hope became even dimmer with Dammam 3 production capacity of only 100 barrels a day. Dammam 4 and Dammam 5 were completely dry. Dammam 6 produced a little oil mixed with water. In 1936, the Texas Oil Company (now Texaco) purchased a 50 percent stake of the concession. And after enduring five years of baking heat and mirages in the salt flats of the eastern desert in the Kingdom, oil was still not discovered in commercial quantities, prompting SOCAL to have second thoughts about its whole operation in the Kingdom. But drilling in the desert continued with Dammam 7. SOCAL, however, was on the verge of halting all its operations in the Kingdom to put an end to its losses, recalling its chief geologist Max Steinke in March 1938 to San Francisco for serious talks. During his exploration mission, Steinke teamed up with Khamis Bin Ramthan, a Bedouin who guided Steinke through the desert to found an oil empire later called Aramco. Steineke bonded deeply with his Arabian hosts and brought his family to live with him in the Kingdom. ―He left the most beautiful impression in the heart,‖ said Abdulaziz Shalfan, one of SOCAL’s

49


The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

50

first Saudi employees. He established the foundation for a mutually beneficial partnership between Saudi Arabia and American oil companies that would last for decades. Torn between his enthusiasm to continue the search and evidence of oil in the desert, he argued his way through during a SOCAL executive meeting recommending more exploration. While Steinke was on the spot with SOCAL executives in the midst of the great American depression, it was a particularly hard decision to make. But on March 4, Ohliger cabled electrifying news: Dammam No. 7 was flowing 1,585 barrels a day. Three days later figures had soared to 3,690 and three weeks later total production was over 100,000 barrels. When wells No. 2 and No. 4 were deepened to the same zone with the same results, San Francisco finally relaxed and the men in Saudi Arabia cheered. Dammam 7 was declared a commercial oil field. SOCAL executives took their hats off to honor Steinke. Crude oil was started to be exported to Bahrain by barge. In 1939, a great celebration marked the moment which five years of effort had been aimed at, the loading of the first tanker exported. With Dammam 7, oil exploration picked up steam throughout the Eastern Province. The company name was changed in 1944 from California-Arabian Standard Oil Company to Arabian American Oil Company (or Aramco). A year later, Ras Tanura Refinery began operations. Ras Tanura has since served as a major oil port and oil operations center for Aramco. In 1948, Standard Oil of New Jersey and SOCONY-Vacuum Oil (both now Exxon Mobil) join SOCAL and Texaco as owners of Aramco. Standard Oil of New Jersey purchased 30 percent of the company, and SOCONY Vacuum 10 percent, leaving Standard Oil of California and the Texas Oil Company with equal 30 percent shares. Measuring 280 km by 30 km, Ghawar oil field was discovered in 1948, by far the largest conventional oil field in the world.


The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

In 1950, the 1,700 Trans-Arabia Pipe Line (Tapline) was completed, linking the Eastern Province to Lebanon and the Mediterranean. With oil exploration operations heating up throughout the region, Safaniya field, world’s second largest offshore oil field, was discovered in 1951. Its reserve amounts to around 37 billion barrels of oil and 5,360 billion cubic feet of natural gas. It wasn’t until the 1960s, however, that the country began to see tangible results from its oil wealth, which began to transform the kingdom. The world was quickly becoming a customer of Aramco. In 1961, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) – propane and butane – was first processed and shipped to customers. Due to a boom in global prices in the 1970s, Saudi Arabia became one of the fastest-growing economies in the world. In 1973, Saudi Arabia’s government acquired a 25 percent participation interest in Aramco. And in 1980, the Saudi government acquired 100 percent participation interest in Aramco, purchasing almost all of the company’s assets. In 1980, the Eastern Province was linked to Yanbu on the Red Sea through East-West Pipelines, which were completed in 1987 boosting capacity to 3.2 million barrels a day, and later to 5 million barrels a day. Reduced global consumption and the development of fields in other countries through the 1980s led the Kingdom to lower its production from 10 million barrels per day to 2 million, and to accept a production quota within OPEC, and eventually shutting operations at Dammam 7 (or the well of benefits as it was called by King Abdullah) in 1982 after 45 years in service with 32 million barrels. In 1988, Saudi Arabian Oil Company, or Saudi Aramco was established. And it was a great beginning. One year later, highquality oil and gas were discovered south of Riyadh, the first find outside the company’s original operating area. Upon the Second Gulf War of 1991, the Kingdom was hit by a major environmental hazard, oil spills. Aramco played a major role

51


The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

to combat marine pollution. King Abdullah inaugurated the Shaybah field in the Empty Quarter in 1999, one of the largest projects of its kind in the world on stream. With the beginning of the new millennium, Petroleum Intelligence Weekly ranked Saudi Aramco No.1 in the world for the 11th straight year, based on the Kingdom’s crude oil reserves and production. As Saudi Aramco ranked first, so did its discoveries. In 2004, King Abdullah inaugurated the 800,000 barrel-per-day Qatif Abu Sa’fah Producing Plants mega project. In addition to the crude, the plant would provide 370 million standard cubic feet of associated gas daily.

Transport in Saudi Arabia

52

With the arrival of petrodollar over the period of time, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has initiated many mega infrastructure development projects in the country, and extensive development of transportation network has followed suit to support various economic developments. As a result, the country now boasts an extensive transportation network.


Transportation in Saudi Arabia There are several transportation modes in the Saudi Arabia.

Riyadh-Mecca Road near Tuwaiq Escarpment in November 2006

Highway 60 passing through Hejaz Mountain Ranges near Taif

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

Road Transportation

53


The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

Total: 221,372 km Paved: 47,529 km (includes 3,891 km of expressways) Unpaved: 173,843 km (2006) Roads in Saudi Arabia vary from eight laned roads to small two laned roads in rural areas. The city highways and other major highways are well maintained, specially the roads in the capital Riyadh. The roads have been constructed to resist the consistently high temperatures and do not reflect the strong sunshine. The outer city highways such as the one linking from coast to coast are not as great as the inner-city highways but the government is now working on rebuilding those roads. Saudi Arabia encourages road transport as it has maintained one of the lowest petrol prices in the world, at $0.48 per gallon ($0.13 per liter) Some of the important inter-city highways include the following:[ Dammam - Abu Hadriya - Ras Tanura Highway (257 km)         

Khaybar - Al Ola Highway (175 km) Mecca - Madinah Al Munawarah Highway (421 km) Riyadh - Dammam Highway (383 km) Riyadh - Sedir - Al Qasim Highway (317 km) Riyadh - Taif Highway (750 km) Taif - Abha - Gizan Highway (750 km) Medina - Tabuk Highway (680 km) Jeddah - Al Leith - Jizan Highway (775 km) Jeddah - Mecca Highway (80 km)

Sea Transportation

54

Saudi Arabia has a well development sea transport network developed primarily to support the transport of petrolcmhemicals. Saudi Ports Authority is the ports management organisation in the country, overseeing the operations.


The major ports in the country are as follows; Persian Gulf     

Dammam Jubail Ras Tanura Khafji Khobar Ras Al-Zour (under construction)

Red Sea       

Jeddah Yanbu' al Bahr Al Lith Duba Rabigh Jizan Farasan (city)

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

Air Transportation See also: List of airports in Saudi Arabia There are an estimated 204 airports in Saudi Arabia (2003 est.). Airports with paved runways total: 71 over 3,047 m: 32 2,438 to 3,047 m: 13 1,524 to 2,437 m: 12 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 2 (2003 est.)

55


Airports with unpaved runways total: 133 over 3047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 75 914 to 1,523 m: 38 under 914 m: 14 (2003 est.) (Saudia is the nation's flag carrier airline)

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

Heliports 9 (2009 est.) Rail Transport As a result of over-reliance on road and air travel, the rail transport has not received a similar level of investment in Saudi Arabia. However, there are now plans to add more tracks and develop new railway routes. The Saudi Railways Organization (SRO) is a state-owned company that operates Saudi Arabia's rail network. SRO provides freight services on two main lines totalling 1018 km. These connect Riyadh with the port of Dammam on the coast of the Persian Gulf SRO passenger trains operate between Riyadh and Dammam. Land Bridge will connect Jeddah with Dammam in the east. There are plans to extend the network to the Red Sea port of Jeddah and, eventually to the borders of Jordan, Yemen, and perhaps all the way to Egypt. 56

There is a large scale railway project Haramain High Speed Rail Project underway currently in the Western province, connecting Makkah with Jeddah and Madinah city. The primary objective of this railway line is to


provide an alternative for the Muslim pilgrims travelling between the 3 cities. Riyadh metro is a metro being built and will be done in 2017. Jeddah metro will start soon.

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

A recent addition is the Al Mashaaer Al Mugaddassah Metro also known as the Makkah Metro tram system, which was developed in Makkah city. This is a 18.1 kilometers (11.2 miles) track developed to shuttle a forecasted 8 million pilgrims between Mecca, Mount Arafat, Muzdalifa and Mina in the annual Hajj pilgrimage.

Saudi Railways Organization

57


The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

The Saudi Railways Organization (SRO) is a state-owned company that operates Saudi Arabia's rail network. SRO provides freight services on two main lines totalling 1018 km. These connect Riyadh with the port of Dammam on the coast of the Persian Gulf. SRO passenger trains operate between Riyadh and Dammam. 58

There are plans to extend the network to the Red Sea port of Jeddah and, eventually to the borders of Jordan, Yemen, and perhaps all the way to Egypt.


History

Modern railways were introduced in Saudi Arabia after World War II, to facilitate the transport of goods to ARAMCO (Now Saudi Aramco) from ports located on the coast of the Persian Gulf to warehouses in Dhahran. Construction started in October 1947 and the first line was inaugurated on October 20, 1951. It was initially run by Aramco, but subsequently transferred to the state and since 1968 has been operated as a public corporation. Several development projects have been completed since then, including an extension of the line to Riyadh, construction of several passenger terminals and the opening of a dry port in Riyadh. Network The Saudi rail network consist of the following main lines:  

Line 1: Dammam - Abqaiq - Hofuf - Riyadh (449.11 km), used by passenger trains. Line 2: Dammam - Abqaiq - Hofuf - Haradh - Al Kharj Riyadh (555.951 km), used by freight trains

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

The first railway in modern Saudi Arabia was the Hejaz railway, from the border of Jordan to Medina. This 1,050 mm (3 ft 5 11⁄32 in) narrow gauge railway opened in 1908, but was shut down in 1915.

Note: Despite the tracks of both lines running parallel on the same alignment between Dammam and Hofuf, they are operated as separate lines.  

Dammam Port Line (12.854 km) The link to Jordan is defunct.

Saudi Railways Expansion Programme SRO is planning to expand the network. Projects include:

59


The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

60

The Saudi Landbridge, a 945 km line from Riyadh to Jeddah and a 115 km line from Dammam and Jubail, connecting the Persian Gulf with the Red Sea. The North South Railway from Riyadh via Buraidah, Hail and Al Jawf to Al Haditha, with a branch to Ras Azzwar on the coast of the Persian Gulf and some minor branches to bauxite and phosphate mines. This will mainly be for mineral transport, but general freight and passenger transport is also planned. The Haramain High Speed Rail Project or Western Railway linking Mecca and Medina, and connecting with the network at Jeddah. This will provide a safe and comfortable means of transport for Hajj pilgrims arriving via Jeddah. Construction works is due to start in March 2009 and 320 km/h electric trains are planned.

Saudi Arabia - Driving and Public Transportation


Traffic accidents are very common in Saudi Arabia as the standard of driving is quite poor. Moreover, many cars are uninsured as there is no legal requirement to insure vehicles. If an accident occurs in which someone is injured, it is the usual practice for everyone involved to be taken to the local police station while responsibility is determined. Under Islamic law blood money of up to SR 100,000 can be imposed for injuries, so it is important to take out insurance to cover this. If you are held by the police, you should contact your own Embassy or consulate. Speed detection devices are in use in the country, and there are standard fines for exceeding the speed limits of 45kph in urban areas and 80 to 120kph on motorways. There are automatic jail sentences, or corporal punishment, for some driving offences.

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

Saudi Arabia has recently undergone an upgrading of its road network, and this is now of the highest standard. There are inter-city highways with up to eight traffic lanes, and congestion in cities h as been eased by the construction of ring roads and over- or under-passes. Driving is on the right, and the middle lane of a three-lane road is the 'slow' lane,

You can drive for up to three months in Saudi Arabia on the licence from your home country or on an international licence. After this time, you are required to have a Saudi driving licence. Some licences, including those from the UK and US, are convertible to a Saudi licence without a driving test. The application procedure for a Saudi driving licence is as follows: - Obtain a translation of your own driving licence. - Obtain a green hanging file folder (yes, this is essential!) and insert into this a copy of your licence and its translation, a letter from your employer, a copy of your Igama and the relevant application form. - Take these in person to the Driving Licence Office, where you will be

61


required to undergo a blood test and an eye test. - If your application is successful you can pay the relevant fee and collect your licence.

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

Women are not allowed to drive cars in Saudi Arabia, and a woman can only travel by car if accompanied by her husband, male relative or male driver. Most expatriate compounds have regular bus services to schools and local shops, and employment contracts often include the use of a private or shared driver. Taxis are plentiful, and fares are reasonable, with some cars having meters. There are also car rental companies in the main cities, including international chains such as Avis.

62

Public buses operate in cities and towns, but this form of transport is mainly used by locals. Women are not allowed to travel on these city buses. The Saudi Arabian Public Transport Company (SAPTCO) has modern air-conditioned buses operating inter-city routes, which have screened-off sections for female passengers. For travel between Saudi Arabia's main cities, however, it is quicker to go by air due to the distances involved. Saudi Arabian airlines operate flights between all main population centres. There is also a rail service operating between Riyadh and Dammam. There were formerly restrictions on travel within the Kingdom, with a letter of authorization needed for travel more than 10 miles outside your city of residence, but these have now been lifted.


Of course, the oil has a great credit to transform the economy of the KSA

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

Economy and trade of KSA in the past

from economy depends on agriculture and trade essential to the economy depends heavily on oil.

But we will talk about Saudi economy before the oil.

63


Since ancient times until the thirties, was the kingdom's population of nomads who depend on livestock for survival, or to farmers and traders who are staying in a small number of villages, with some fishermen.

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

and later became their dependence on pearl divers along the coast

Pearl

Pearl the main product of the inhabitants of coastal areas in the Gulf region over thousands of years. 64

ever since the beginning of the trade until the dawn of the era of the black gold in the thirties of the last century with the discovery the oil in the KSA at 1925.


The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

Since ancient times known natural pearl of the Gulf, which is considered the most quality and purity and luster in the entire world.

This led to an increase in global demand before the oil era which made Pearl mainstay of the economy in the countries of the Arabian Peninsula.

Paved the civilization that built on the basis of pearl pave the way for the oil boom. It has proliferated villages and towns on the coasts, and many of the available jobs.

65


The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

Makah and al-madina

66

The area of the Red Sea coast, what is known today as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, called the kingdom of the Hejaz, which constitute an important area of Al-Hajj for thousands of Muslims who traveled to the holy cities Makah and al-madina during the month of Al-Hajj.


The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

The cities are the main source of income for the government, especially after its occupation by Saudi forces during the twenties (when it was created borders of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia), and this has become a mainstay of the proceeds of this new country.

Which helped KSA in order to facilitate by Muslims to perform the pilgrimage is that the Ottoman Empire has completed a major part of the economic infrastructure.

One of the economic infrastructures is railway line from Damascus to almadina which is opening in 1908

67


The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

The exchange of merchandise

There was exchange of goods between Nomads and urban.

For example:

Nomads were selling cattle, milk, margarine and wool. The urban selling vegetables, spices, tea, sugar and clothes. 68

This would be on the market within cities or villages.


Of course, many of the young Saudis old travel either for business or trade. Among the most famous destinations they visit India, Egypt and Iraq. They were going to buy fabrics and spices, rice, tea, and perhaps in some times jewelry Some were going thereby acting and be his own wealth and then start buying and selling.

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

Travel for business or trade

This does not preclude that the Saudi citizen suffered great difficulties before the oil boom.

But all of those circumstances and difficulties taught him patience and struggle for a living find. 69


References:

The Tradition and Culture in K.S.A

Fanack.com:http://fanack.com/ar/countries/saudi-arabia/economy/from-pastoral-nomadismto-an-oil-and-gas-economy/ Irhal.comhttp://www.irhal.com/ar -akhbar-alkhaleej.com http://www.akhbar-alkhaleej.com/12789/article/15848.html

http://sauditourism.sa/en/About/Pages/c-heritage.aspx http://abdul20.blogspot.com/2009/02/customs-and-traditions-of-saudiarabia.html http://www.saudiembassy.net/about/country-information/culture_art/

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