| Also on Encarta |
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| Basic Facts |
| Official name |
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia |
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| Capital |
Riyadh |
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| Area |
2,240,000 sq km |
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864,900 sq mi |
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| Largest cities (population) |
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| Riyadh |
5,126,000 (2003 estimate) |
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| Jiddah |
2,801,481 (2004 estimate) |
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| Mecca (Makkah) |
1,294,168 (2004 estimate) |
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| Medina |
918,889 (2004 estimate) |
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| Ad Dammām |
482,300 (1992) |
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| Saudi Arabian Flag and Anthem |
 Expand |
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| People |
| Population |
28,686,633 (2009 estimate) |
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| Population growth rate |
1.85 per cent (2009 estimate) |
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| Population density |
13 persons per sq km (2009 estimate) |
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34 persons per sq mi (2009 estimate) |
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| Urbanization |
| Per cent urban |
88 per cent (2005 estimate) |
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| Per cent rural |
12 per cent (2005 estimate) |
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| Life expectancy |
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| Total |
76.3 years (2009 estimate) |
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| Female |
78.5 years (2009 estimate) |
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| Male |
74.2 years (2009 estimate) |
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| Infant mortality rate |
| 12 deaths per 1,000 live births (2009 estimate) |
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| Literacy rate |
| Total |
85 per cent (2007 estimate) |
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| Female |
79.4 per cent (2007 estimate) |
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| Male |
89.1 per cent (2007 estimate) |
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| Ethnic divisions |
| Arab |
82 per cent |
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| Yemeni |
13 per cent |
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| Other |
5 per cent |
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| Languages |
| Standard Arabic (official), Najdi Spoken Arabic, Hijazi Spoken Arabic, Gulf Spoken Arabic; English is often the language of business |
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| Religions |
| Sunni Muslim, Shiite Muslim |
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| Government |
| Type of government |
Monarchy |
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| Independence |
September 23, 1932 (unification) |
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| Constitution |
None; governed according to Sharia (Islamic law); the Basic Law of Government introduced in 1992 |
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| Voting rights |
Adult male citizens aged 21 or older (for municipal council elections) |
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| Economy |
| Gross domestic product (GDP) (US$) |
| 381,683 million (2007) |
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| GDP per capita (US$) |
15,799.80 (2007) |
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| GDP by economic sector |
| GDP, agriculture |
2.8 per cent (2007) |
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| GDP, industry |
65.4 per cent (2007) |
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| GDP, services |
31.8 per cent (2007) |
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| National budget (US$) |
| Total revenue |
Not available |
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| Total expenditure |
Not available |
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| Monetary unit |
| 1 Saudi riyal (SR), consisting of 100 halalah |
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| Exports |
| Petroleum and petroleum products, petrochemicals, construction material |
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| Imports |
| Transport equipment, chemicals, clothing, metal products, textiles, manufactured goods, food and livestock, wood and paper products, precious stones, machinery |
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| Major trading partners for exports |
| Japan, United States, South Korea, Singapore, France, India |
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| Major trading partners for imports |
| United States, United Kingdom, Japan, Germany, Italy, France, Switzerland |
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| Industries |
| Crude-oil production, petroleum refining, basic petrochemicals, fertilizers, cement, steel |
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| Agriculture |
| Principal products: wheat, barley, sorghum, millet, tomatoes, melons, dates, grapes, vegetables; livestock and livestock products: goats, sheep, camels, poultry, meat, eggs, milk |
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| Natural resources |
| Petroleum, natural gas, limestone, gypsum, marble, clay, salt, iron ore, gold |
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| Sources |
| Basic Facts and People sections |
| Area data are from the statistical bureaus of individual countries. Population, population growth rate, and population projections are from the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center, International Data Base (IDB) (www.census.gov). Urban and rural population data are from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations (UN), FAOSTAT database (www.fao.org). Largest cities population data and political divisions data are from the statistical bureaus of individual countries. Ethnic divisions and religion data are largely from the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook and from various country censuses and reports. Language data are largely from the Ethnologue, Languages of the World, Summer Institute of Linguistics International (www.sil.org). |
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| Health and Education section |
| Life expectancy and infant mortality data are from the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center, International database (IDB) (www.census.gov). Population per physician and population per hospital bed data are from the World Health Organization (WHO) (www.who.int). Education data are from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) database (www.unesco.org). |
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| Government section |
| Government, independence, legislature, constitution, highest court, and voting qualifications data are largely from various government Web sites, the latest Europa World Yearbook, and the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook. The armed forces data are from Military Balance. |
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| Economy section |
| Gross domestic product (GDP), GDP per capita, GDP by economic sectors, employment, and national budget data are from the World Bank database (www.worldbank.org). Monetary unit, agriculture, mining, manufacturing, exports, imports, and major trade partner information is from the latest Europa World Yearbook and various International Monetary Fund (IMF) publications. |
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| Energy, Communication, and Transportation section |
| Electricity information is from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) database (www.eia.doe.gov). Radio, telephone, television, and newspaper information is from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) database (www.unesco.org). Internet hosts, motor vehicles, and road data are from the World Bank database (www.worldbank.org). |
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| Note |
| Figures may not total 100 per cent due to rounding. |
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