Saudi males dressed and prepared for ardah, the national dance. It also includes swords, poetry, and singing.
The cultural setting of Saudi Arabia is greatly influenced by the Arab and Islamic culture. The society is in general deeply religious, conservative, traditional, and family-oriented. Many attitudes and traditions are centuries-old, derived from Arab civilization and Islamic heritage. However, its culture has also been affected by rapid change, as the country was transformed from an impoverished nomadic society into a rich commodity producer in just a few years in the 1970s. This change has also been affected by and the result of a number of factors including the communications revolution and external scholarships. The most recent ruler or king of Saudi is King Salman of Saudi Arabia.[1]
The Wahhabi Islamic movement, which arose in the 18th century and is sometimes described as austerely puritanical, now predominates in the country. Following the principle of "enjoining good and forbidding wrong", there are many limitations and prohibitions on behavior and dress which are strictly enforced both legally and socially, often more so than in other Muslim countries.[2] However, many of the traditional restrictions have been lifted recently by the government including allowing women to drive and many other female-related issues.[3] On the other hand, the things prohibited by Islam are banned in the country, for example, alcoholic beverages are strictly prohibited.
Daily life is dominated by Islamic observance. Five times each day, Muslims are called to prayer from the minarets of mosques scattered throughout the country. Because Friday is the holiest day for Muslims, the weekend is Friday to Saturday.[4] In accordance with Wahhabi doctrine, only two religious holidays, Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha, were publicly recognized, until 2006 when a non-religious holiday, the September 23 national holiday (which commemorates the unification of the kingdom) was reintroduced.[5][6] In terms of gender relations, Saudi Arabia's norms usually discourage non-familial free mixing between the sexes.[7]
^Tripp, Culture Shock, 2003: p.28
^Khelaif, Fahad (1996). Islamic law and the judiciary : development in Saudi Arabia in the 20th century (Ph.D. thesis). School of Oriental and African Studies (University of London). Archived from the original on August 24, 2022. Retrieved August 24, 2022.
^Shafi, Aadil (September 21, 2021). "The Changing Contours of Saudi Arabia: Mohammed bin Salman and the Paradox of Saudi Reforms". Insight Turkey (in Turkish). 23: 253–261. doi:10.25253/99.2021233.13. S2CID 244248052.
^"Weekend shift: A welcome change", SaudiGazette.com.sa, June 24, 2013 "Weekend shift: A welcome change | Front Page | Saudi Gazette". Archived from the original on October 29, 2014. Retrieved October 28, 2014.
^Cite error: The named reference Britannica was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Lacey, Robert (2009). Inside the Kingdom : Kings, Clerics, Modernists, Terrorists, and the Struggle for Saudi Arabia. Viking. p. 267. ISBN 9780670021185. "... for decades the sheikhs successfully resisted attempts to add September 23 to the shortlist of official holidays. But with the accession of [King] Abdullah, the battlefield changed. If the king wanted a holiday, the king could grant it, and whatever the clerics might mutter, the people approved. Since 2006 the night of September 23 has become an occasion for national mayhem in Saudi Arabia, the streets blocked with green-flag-waving cars, many of them sprayed with green foam for the night.
^Govender, Veloshnee, and Loveday Penn-Kekana. "Gender biases and discrimination: a review of health care interpersonal interactions." Global public health 3.S1 (2008): 90–103
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