Kuwait

Kuwait is a small Arab country at the head of the Persian Gulf, with Iraq to the north and Saudi Arabia to the south. Its coast of about 500 km (311 mi) includes ten islands, the largest being Bubiyan. Kuwait City, the capital, lies on a natural deep-water bay; Modern Standard Arabic is the official language, while Kuwaiti Arabic is spoken in daily life.

Mesopotamian traders from Ur lived on Failaka island around 2000 BC. In the early 18th century the Bani Khalid clan controlled the area, and the Sheikhdom of Kuwait emerged in 1752. Shipbuilding and trade with India made its harbor busy, and up to 800 boats once worked the pearl banks until the Great Depression and Japanese cultured pearls ended the trade. Britain made Kuwait a protectorate in 1899; oil was found in 1938, and full independence came in June 1961. Iraq invaded and annexed the country in 1990, and a coalition led by the United States drove its troops out on 26 February 1991.

The emir, from the ruling Al Sabah family, is head of state and appoints the prime minister. The constitution dates from 1962, yet emirs have suspended parts of it several times, first in 1976. Oil makes up the bulk of exports, and all natural resources belong to the state; the Burgan field alone holds about 70 billion barrels, and the Al Zour Refinery was built as a joint project with China. The Kuwait Investment Authority, investing abroad since 1953, counts as the oldest sovereign wealth fund. The currency is the Kuwaiti dinar.

Kuwait was the first country to supply homes with desalinated sea water on a large scale. Two of the three Kuwait Towers also serve as water towers. The wooden dhows Fateh Al-Khayr and Al-Hashemi-II recall the age before oil; Al-Hashemi-II holds a Guinness record as the largest wooden dhow ever built. Each February the Hala Febrayer festival marks Liberation Day on the 26th. Kuwaiti theater, music and television soap operas are exported to neighboring Gulf states.