User:Tarafa15/Saudi Arabia Culture section
Culture
Saudi Arabia has centuries-old attitudes and traditions, often derived from Arab civilization. This culture has been heavily influenced by the austerely puritanical
Religion in society
The Hejazi region, where the Islamic holy cities of Mecca and Medina are located, is the destination of the Ḥajj pilgrimage, and often deemed to be the cradle of Islam.[2][a]
Islam is the state religion of Saudi Arabia and its law
Saudi Arabia is one of the few countries that have "
Until 2016, the kingdom used the lunar Islamic calendar, not the international Gregorian calendar,[20] but in 2016 the kingdom announced its switch to the Gregorian calendar for civil purposes.[21][22]
Daily life is dominated by Islamic observance. Businesses are closed three or four times a day
As of 2004[update] approximately half of the broadcast airtime of Saudi state television was devoted to religious issues.[28] 90% of books published in the kingdom were on religious subjects, and most of the doctorates awarded by its universities were in Islamic studies.[29] In the state school system, about half of the material taught is religious. In contrast, assigned readings over twelve years of primary and secondary schooling devoted to covering the history, literature, and cultures of the non-Muslim world comes to a total of about 40 pages.[28]
"Fierce religious resistance" had to be overcome to permit such innovations as paper money (in 1951), female education (1964), and television (1965) and the abolition of slavery (1962).[30] Public support for the traditional political/religious structure of the kingdom is so strong that one researcher interviewing Saudis found virtually no support for reforms to secularize the state.[31]
Because of religious restrictions, Saudi culture lacks any diversity of religious expression, buildings, annual festivals and public events.
In 2016 the Saudi government stripped the religious police of the power to pursue, arrest or detain members of the public.[45]
In 2017 Crown Prince
In March 2018 the Crown Prince met the
Islamic heritage sites
Saudi
Four cultural sites in Saudi Arabia are designated as
In June 2014, the Council of Ministers approved a law that gives the
Dress
Saudi Arabian dress strictly follows the principles of hijab (the Islamic principle of modesty, especially in dress). The predominantly loose and flowing, but covering, garments are suited to Saudi Arabia's desert climate. Traditionally, men usually wear a white ankle length garment woven from wool or cotton (known as a thawb), with a keffiyeh (a large checkered square of cotton held in place by an agal) or a ghutra (a plain white square made of finer cotton, also held in place by an agal) worn on the head. For rare chilly days, Saudi men wear a camel-hair cloak (bisht) over the top. In public women are required to wear a black abaya or other black clothing that covers everything under the neck with the exception of their hands and feet, although most women cover their head in respect for their religion. This requirement applies to non-Muslim women too and failure to abide can result in police action, particularly in more conservative areas of the country. Women's clothes are often decorated with tribal motifs, coins, sequins, metallic thread, and appliques.
- sun exposure, and also protection of the mouth and eyes from blown dust and sand.
- Ghutrahto hold it in place. The agal is usually black in colour.
- Arabic: ثوب) is the standard Arabic word for garment. It is ankle-length, usually with long sleeves, similar to a robe.
- Arabic: بشت) is a traditional Arabic men's cloakusually only worn for prestige on special occasions such as weddings.
- Arabic: عبائة) is a women's garment. It is a black cloak which loosely covers the entire body except the head. Some women choose to cover their faces with a niqāb and some do not. Some abayas cover the top of the head as well.[56]
Arts and entertainment
During the 1970s, cinemas were numerous in the Kingdom although they were seen as contrary to Wahhabi norms..
From the 18th century onward,
Censorship has limited the development of Saudi literature, although several Saudi novelists and poets have achieved critical and popular acclaim in the Arab world-albeit generating official hostility in their home country. These include
In 2016, the
Developments in the arts in 2018 included Saudi Arabia's debut appearances at the Cannes Film Festival and the Venice Biennale.[65][66]
Sport
Football is the national sport in Saudi Arabia. The Saudi Arabia national football team is considered as one of Asia's most successful national teams, having reached a joint record 6 AFC Asian Cup finals, winning three of those finals (1984, 1988, and 1996) and having qualified for the World Cup four consecutive times ever since debuting at the 1994 tournament.
In the
In September 2018, the
More traditional sports such as horse racing and camel racing are also popular. A stadium in Riyadh holds races in the winter. The annual King's Camel Race, begun in 1974, is one of the sport's most important contests and attracts animals and riders from throughout the region. Falconry, another traditional pursuit, is still practiced.[25]
Women's sport is controversial due to the suppression of female participation in sport by conservative Islamic religious authorities[70], however this restriction has eased slightly in recent years.[71][72][73] Until 2018 women were not permitted in sport stadiums. Segregated seating, allowing women to enter, has been developed in three stadiums across major cities.[74]
Cuisine
Women
Women do not have equal rights to men in the kingdom. The
Under Saudi law, every adult female must have a male relative as her "guardian" (wali),[75] As of 2008, a woman was required to have permission from her male guardian in order to travel, study, or work.[75][77] A royal decree passed in May 2017 allowed them to avail government services such as education and healthcare without the need of a consent of a male guardian. The order however also stated that it should only be allowed if it doesn't contradict the Sharia system.[78][79]
According to a leading Saudi feminist and journalist, Wajeha al-Huwaider, "Saudi women are weak, no matter how high their status, even the 'pampered' ones among them, because they have no law to protect them from attack by anyone."[80]
Women face discrimination in the courts, where the testimony of one man equals that of two women
The average
Obesity is a problem among middle and upper class Saudis who have domestic servants to do traditional work but, until 2018, were forbidden to drive and so are limited in their ability to leave their home.[90] As of April 2014, Saudi authorities in the education ministry have been asked by the Shoura Council to consider lifting a state school ban on sports for girls with the proviso that any sports conform to Sharia rules on dress and gender segregation, according to the official SPA news agency.[91]
The religious police, known as the mutawa, impose many restrictions on women in public in Saudi Arabia.[75][92] The restrictions include forcing women to sit in separate specially designated family sections in restaurants, to wear an abaya and to cover their hair.[75]
Although Saudi Arabia imposes a strict dress code on women throughout the country by using
A few Saudi women have risen to the top of the medical profession; for example, Dr. Ghada Al-Mutairi heads a medical research center in California
In February 2017, Saudi Arabia appointed its first woman to head the
Reforms
A number of reforms have aimed to improve the position of women in Saudi society.
On 25 September 2011,
In 2013 a law was passed that criminalized domestic violence against women, carrying a 12-month jail sentence and fines of up to 50,000 riyals ($13,000).[100] This was followed in 2018 by law criminalizing sexual harassment.[101]
In December 2017 the country's first ever concert by a female performer took place in Riyadh.[102] The following month Saudi women were allowed to enter sports stadiums for the first time.[103]
In March 2018 a law was passed allowing Saudi mothers to retain custody of their children after divorce without having to file any lawsuits.[104]
In June 2018, King Salman issued a decree allowing women to drive, lifting the world's only ban on women drivers.[105]
The Saudi Vision 2030 program includes a commitment to increase female participation in the workforce from 22% to 30% by 2030.[106] As of 2018 Saudi women can open their own businesses without a male's permission.[107] Also as of 2018 Saudi women can apply for work in the Public Prosecution Office and the General Directorate of Passports, and as notaries in the Ministry of Justice.[108][109][110] In February 2018 the first applications were opened for women to join the Saudi military.[111]
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- ^ Quran 2:7–286
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- ^ Quran 22:25–37
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- ^ the start of each lunar month determined not ahead of time by astronomical calculation, but only after the crescent moon is sighted by the proper religious authorities. (source: Tripp, Culture Shock, 2009: pp. 154-5)
- ^ Rasooldeen, Mohammed and Hassan, Rashid (3 October 2016). "KSA switches to Gregorian calendar".
{{cite web}}
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- ^ the time varying according to sunrise and sunset times
- ^ Tripp, Culture Shock, 2009: p. 214
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- Sulaiman, Tosin. Bahrain changes the weekend in efficiency drive, The Times, 2 August 2006. Retrieved 25 June 2008. Turkey has a weekend on Saturday and Sunday
- Prior to 29 June 2013, the weekend was Thursday-Friday, but was shifted to better serve the Saudi economy and its international commitments. (source: "Weekend shift: A welcome change", SaudiGazette.com.sa, 24 June 2013 "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 29 October 2014. Retrieved 28 October 2014.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link))
- ^ Tripp, Culture Shock, 2009: p. 35
- ^ a b Rodenbeck, Max (21 October 2004). "Unloved in Arabia (Book Review)". The New York Review of Books. 51 (16).
Almost half of Saudi state television's airtime is devoted to religious issues, as is about half the material taught in state schools" (source: By the estimate of an elementary schoolteacher in Riyadh, Islamic studies make up 30 percent of the actual curriculum. But another 20 percent creeps into textbooks on history, science, Arabic, and so forth. In contrast, by one unofficial count the entire syllabus for twelve years of Saudi schooling contains a total of just thirty-eight pages covering the history, literature, and cultures of the non-Muslim world.)
- ^ Rodenbeck, Max (21 October 2004). "Unloved in Arabia (Book Review)". The New York Review of Books. 51 (16).
Nine out of ten titles published in the kingdom are on religious subjects, and most of the doctorates its universities awards are in Islamic studies.
- ^ Review. "Unloved in Arabia" By Max Rodenbeck. The New York Review of Books, Volume 51, Number 16 · 21 October 2004.
- ^ from p.195 of a review by Joshua Teitelbum, Middle East Studies, Vol. 38, No. 4, Oct. 2002, of Changed Identities: The Challenge of the New Generation in Saudi Arabia by anthropologist Mai Yamani, quoting p.116 |quote=Saudis of all stripes interviewed expressed a desire for the kingdom to remain a Muslim society ruled by an overtly Muslim state. Secularist are simply not to be found. [Both traditional and somewhat westernized Saudis she talked to mediate their concerns] though the certainties of religion.
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"Saudi Arabia Imposes Death Sentence for Bible Smuggling" Archived 8 April 2016 at the Wayback Machine. handsoffcain.info. 28 November 2014. - ^ Saudi Arabia declares all atheists are terrorists in new law to crack down on political dissidents, The Independent, 4 March 2014
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Other historic buildings that have been destroyed include the house of Hilton hotel; the house of Ali-Oraid, the grandson of Muhammad, and the Mosque of abu-Qubais, now the location of the King's palace in Mecca. (source: 'Shame of the House of Saud: Shadows over Mecca', The Independent, 19 April 2006)
- ^ KSA Properties inscribed on the World Heritage List (4), Unesco, 2017
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{{cite news}}
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* Youth (15-24 years) literacy rate (%) 2008-2012*, male 99 *Youth (15-24 years) literacy rate (%) 2008-2012*, female 97
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the prevalence of sedentary lifestyle-related obesity has been escalating among Saudi females
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