Where is Saudi Arabia?
About Saudi Arabia
The Land
The People
Life and Death
Health, Energy and the Environment
Education and Work
Travel, Communication and the Media
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Saudi Arabia is a vast country in the south west of Asia.
Saudi Arabia has a border on the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea.
The land is a mostly sandy desert.
The geographical coordinates for the centre of Saudi Arabia, also known as lines of latitude and longtitude, are:-
Latitude - 25 00N
Longitude - 45 00E
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Check the weather in Riyadh now.
This is the time in Riyadh now
The Saudi flag is green with white writing in Arabic just above the centre line.
The text says "There is no god but God, Muhammad is the Messenger of God". Below the script is a white sword with tip pointing toward the flag pole.
The capital of Saudi Arabia is Riyadh.
Saudi Arabia is an absolute monarchy with a Sheikh as head of state and head of the government.
In elections everyone over the age of 18 can vote.
The currency in Saudi Arabia is the riyal.
Arabic is the official language.
Hear the National Anthem
These are the anthem words
Saudi Arabia is an absolute monarchy with a Sheikh as head of state and head of the government.
In elections everyone over the age of 18 can vote.
The currency in Saudi Arabia is the riyal.
Arabic is the official language.
Hear the National Anthem
These are the anthem words
We have already written our own history of England but are asking schools in Saudi Arabia to provide us with a detailed history of
their own country. Check how here.
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The total land area of Saudi Arabia is 229,891 sq kms which is the 5th largest in Asia.
Saudi Arabia has no lakes, rivers and canals.
Saudi Arabia has boundaries with 7 countries
- Yemen 1,307 kms
- Iraq 811 kms
- Jordan 731 kms
- Oman 658 kms
- United Arab Emirates 457 kms
- Kuwait 221 kms
- Qatar 87 kms
Saudi Arabia has a coastline of 2,640 kms which is the 11th longest in Asia.
The highest point in Saudi Arabia is Jabal Swada at 3,133 metres.
The pie chart below shows how the land is split between agricultural land (crops and pastures), forests and other, which can be towns, villages, desert or frozen waste called tundra.
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The total population of Saudi Arabia is 28.16 million people, making it the 20th largest country in Asia by population.
Of this number 12.85 million are females and 15.31 million are males.
A person from Saudi Arabia is called a Saudi.
To be a citizen of Saudi Arabia, your father must be a citizen of Saudi Arabia. It is not sufficient to be born in Saudi Arabia. You have to live in Saudi Arabia for
5 years before you can begin to apply for citizenship.
The largest five cities in Saudi Arabia, by population are:-
- Riyadh 4,205,961 people
- Jeddah 2,867,446
- Mecca 1,323,624
- Medina 1,300,000
- Sultanah 946,697
For each country we will give you a diagram showing the population density. This is the average number of people for each square kilometre.
Each little Owlbut is 1 person and
the big yellow rectangle is 1 sq km. After a while you can compare countries and see which ones are the most crowded. Remember it is only an average as
more people live closer together in towns and cities than in villages out in the country.
54.6% of the people live in cities or towns.
Each little Owlbut is 1 person and
the big yellow rectangle is 1 sq km. After a while you can compare countries and see which ones are the most crowded. Remember it is only an average as
more people live closer together in towns and cities than in villages out in the country.
54.6% of the people live in cities or towns.
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The birth rate in Saudi Arabia is 18.4 births per 1,000 of population
The death rate in Saudi Arabia is 3.3 deaths per 1,000 people.
Check this against the birth rate. If the death rate is higher than the birth rate then
the population will decrease unless immigrants arrive in the country.
There are 11.5 deaths of girls under 1 year per 1,000 of births and 15.6 deaths of boys.
The median age for females is 26.7 and for males is 28.2. The median age is that age which divides the population exactly in half so there are the same number
of people above the median age as below it.
We have no figures for the average age of a woman when she has her first child.
The elderly dependency ratio is 4.3. This is the number of elderly people (ages 65+) per 100 people of working age (ages 15-64).
The potential support ratio is 23.2. This is the number of working-age people (ages 15-64) per one elderly person (ages 65+). As a population ages, the potential support ratio tends to fall, meaning there are fewer potential workers to support the elderly.
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Saudi Arabia spends 4.7% of its total income on health care.
There are 2.49 doctors per 1,000 people.
There are 2.1 hospital beds per 1,000 people.
35.4% of the population are estimated as obese.
97.0% of the urban population and 97.0% of the rural population have drinking water that is either piped into their home or they have access to a public tap, a protected borehole, well, spring or
protected rainwater collection facility.
100% of Saudi Arabians have access to a flushing toilet that is connected to a sewer, a pit latrine (that is a
permanent hole in the ground that is looked after) or a composting toilet.
Saudi Arabia releases 594.0 million metric tons of carbon dioxide by burning fossil fuels in the process of producing and consuming energy. This puts it as the 7th highest in Asia.
Saudi Arabia spends 5.1% of its total income on education.
Children usually start school at age 6 in Saudi Arabia. Primary education is for six years until age 12 and secondary education must continue till 15 but can go on to 18/19. This may be followed
by further education at a university or college.
Generally the school year consists of 3 terms and starts in the first week of September and finishes at the end of June. There is usually a 2 week
break at Christmas and in April, and a one week break in the middle of each of the first two terms.
91.1% of females and 97.0% of males are able to read and write by the age of 15.
24.2% of all people aged between 16 and 24 are not in work. Among females 46.3% are unemployed while with males 17.4% can't find work.
The total number of people available for work in Saudi Arabia is 12.34 million.
They work in the following sectors.
- Agriculture includes farming, fishing and forestry work
- Industry includes mining, manufacturing, construction and energy workers
- Services is everything else
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There are 82 paved airports in Saudi Arabia, which is the 10th highest number in Asia.
There are 5,410 kilometres of railways in Saudi Arabia, the 11th longest in Asia.
There are 47,529 kilometres of roads in Saudi Arabia, which means Saudi Arabia is in 19th place for the most kilometres of roads in Asia.
There are 9 major national newspapers in Saudi Arabia.
There are 47.93 million mobile phone users.
13% of the people have a fixed landline.
20.77 million people have access to the internet at home via any device (computer or mobile).
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