Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Arab States Today: An Encyclopedia of Life in the Arab States, Volumes 1 + 2

This extremely timely and helpful ready reference will familiarize all students and readers with the Gulf region and Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Dubai, the UAE, Kuwait, Oman, Yemen, and Qatar. These states are bound by the desert culture, the Gulf, new oil economy, and Islam, to name some commonalities. Most Americans know something about the region, such as oases, dates, camels, oil, Bedouin tribes, and the legends of Lawrence of Arabia to Osama bin Laden. Islamic concepts and practices are still unfamiliar. On one extreme, Saudi Arabia, the cradle of Islam, has been largely closed off to Western tourists. On the other extreme, Dubai courts tourist dollars as it constructs modern architectural showcases. This is the first A-Z encyclopedia to focus on the Gulf, illuminating the land, people, religion, culture and traditions, institutions, economy, and much more for general readers. The more than 200 essay entries have a current focus with historical context as necessary.The breadth of coverage means that this resource will be of use for a wide range of researchers and browsers. Besides individual entries on each state, major cities and regions are also profiled. The natural environment and human adaptation to it receives significant space. Islamic customs and rules and various interpretations are clearly explained. Essays on topics such as key public figures, institutions, major events, politics, and state structures—some based on sources often not available in English—make this two-volume set the first-choice resource for accurate information. Suggestions for further reading accompany most entries; a chronology, selected bibliography, and photos also complement the text. "This extremely timely and helpful ready reference will familiarize all students and readers with the Gulf region and Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Dubai, the UAE, Kuwait, Oman, Yemen, and Qatar. These states are bound by the desert culture, the Gulf, new oil economy, and Islam, to name some commonalities. Most Americans know something about the region, such as oases, dates, camels, oil, Bedouin tribes, and the legends of Lawrence of Arabia to Osama bin Laden. Islamic concepts and practices are still unfamiliar. On one extreme, Saudi Arabia, the cradle of Islam, has been largely closed off to Western tourists. On the other extreme, Dubai courts tourist dollars as it constructs modern architectural showcases. This is the first A-Z encyclopedia to focus on the Gulf, illuminating the land, people, religion, culture and traditions, institutions, economy, and much more for general readers. The more than 200 essay entries have a current focus with historical context as necessary. The breadth of coverage means that this resource will be of use for a wide range of researchers and browsers. Besides individual entries on each state, major cities and regions are also profiled. The natural environment and human adaptation to it receives significant space. Islamic customs and rules and various interpretations are clearly explained. Essays on key public figures, institutions, major events, politics, and state structures and more also make this the first-choice resource for accurate information. Further reading accompanies per most entries. The contributors have mined sources often not available in English. A chronology, selected bibliography, and photos complement the text."--Publisher's description This extremely timely and helpful ready reference will familiarize all students and readers with the Gulf region and Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Dubai, the UAE, Kuwait, Oman, Yemen, and Qatar. These states are bound by the desert culture, the Gulf, new oil economy, and Islam, to name some commonalities. Most Americans know something about the region, such as oases, dates, camels, oil, Bedouin tribes, and the legends of Lawrence of Arabia to Osama bin Laden. Islamic concepts and practices are still unfamiliar. On one extreme, Saudi Arabia, the cradle of Islam, has been largely closed off to Western tourists. On the other extreme, Dubai courts tourist dollars as it constructs modern architectural showcases. This is the first A-Z encyclopedia to focus on the Gulf, illuminating the land, people, religion, culture and traditions, institutions, economy, and much more for general readers. The more than 200 essay entries have a current focus with historical context as necessary. The breadth of coverage means that this resource will be of use for a wide range of researchers and browsers. Besides individual entries on each state, major cities and regions are also profiled. The natural environment and human adaptation to it receives significant space. Islamic customs and rules and various interpretations are clearly explained. Essays on topics such as key public figures, institutions, major events, politics, and state structuressome based on sources often not available in Englishmake this two-volume set the first-choice resource for accurate information. Suggestions for further reading accompany most entries; a chronology, selected bibliography, and photos also complement the text. VOLUME 1: A-J......Page 4 Contents......Page 6 Alphabetical List of Entries......Page 8 Topical List of Entries......Page 12 Preface......Page 16 Acknowledgments......Page 20 Introduction......Page 24 Note on Transliteration......Page 34 Chronology......Page 36 Maps......Page 46 A......Page 56 B......Page 102 C......Page 124 D......Page 152 E......Page 186 F......Page 204 G......Page 232 H......Page 242 I......Page 266 J......Page 288 Selected Bibliography......Page 556 VOLUME 2: K-Z......Page 306 Contents......Page 308 Alphabetical List of Entries......Page 310 Topical List of Entries......Page 314 Maps......Page 318 K......Page 328 L......Page 338 M......Page 352 N......Page 400 O......Page 412 P......Page 426 Q......Page 444 R......Page 456 S......Page 464 T......Page 498 U......Page 516 W......Page 534 Y......Page 544 Z......Page 554 A......Page 578 B......Page 580 C......Page 581 D......Page 582 F......Page 583 H......Page 585 I......Page 586 K......Page 588 M......Page 589 N......Page 591 O......Page 592 P......Page 593 Q......Page 594 R......Page 595 S......Page 596 T......Page 598 V......Page 600 Y......Page 601 Z......Page 602 About the Editors and Contributors......Page 604 V. 1. A-j -- V. 2. K-z. Edited By Sebastian Maisel And John A. Shoup. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [477]-498) And Index.