Saudi Arabia: A Culture not Understood by Most

Saudi Arabia: A Culture not Understood by Most

Akeim Channels
University of Kentucky
CIS 110: Composition and Communication
10/10/14

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Abstract
This paper will be focused on the culture and life styles that are only found in Saudi Arabia.
In the first section of this paper I plan on taking the stereotypes that we have about the people
who come from countries like Saudi Arabia and compare those stereotypes to how things really
work in Saudi Arabia. After I have shown that the stereotypes about Saudi Arabia are far from
the truth, the next section of the paper will be about the dishes that are served in Saudi Arabia
and a experience I had with one of my interviewees, who is from Saudi Arabia. Then after that
the paper will discuss the government of Saudi Arabia. The last part of this paper will talk about
the people in general, who live in Saudi Arabia and traditions that are common throughout Saudi
Arabia such as holidays, rites of passage and other social customs. Hopefully after reading this
paper, the reader should have a much clearer understanding of the culture and customs of Saudi
Arabia.

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Stereotypes

Within the last 10 to 15 years, there have been events that have made many Americans
become very suspicious and even frightened of anyone from the Egypt to Afghanistan area. It
was because of events like 9/11 people started to think anyone from places like Saudi Arabia
were up to no good, simply because they fit the description of what a terrorist looks like in their
head, that is a stereotype. In Saudi Arabia it is actually quite common there to wear a long white
gown and to wear a scarf on their head. Which is the same outfit the terrorists wore who attacked
the twin towers and tried to attack the Pentagon, but that doesnt mean everyone in Saudi Arabia
is a terrorist, right? Of course not but, because of previous events just like 9/11, anyone from
Saudi Arabia would be easily judged because of the stereotypes we have made about them.

This is a picture of Saudi Arabia on a map, for readers who didnt know where it was located
Picture retrieved from: saudi-directory.net-

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These stereotypes are not completely true but at the same time they are not completely false.
For example another common stereotype is that supposedly everyone in places like Saudi Arabia
all ride camels everywhere and there are no roads so they just have to travel for miles on camel
back. Camels are still used as a way of transportation in Saudi Arabia but it is 2014, and Saudi
Arabians are more up to date and, modern than people give them credit for. In Saudi Arabia they
have many cities, that have plenty of roads and some of their cities are even known for having
phenomenal skyscrapers. Just about everyone in the cities of Saudi Arabia owns a car, and camel
riding to some Saudi Arabians is mostly for fun.

To show how modern Saudia Arabia is this is a picture of one of the cities there
Picture retrieved from: www.zastavki.com-

For this paper I conducted two interviews, one was with my roommate Saliegh (personal
communication, October 2014) who is another UK student from Saudi Arabia, and the second
interview was with one of Salieghs close friends Franst (personal communication, October
2014) who is also from Saudi Arabia. They did not know each other before they came to the
United States, which is funny because when they became friends they found out that back home
they both lived in the same city. I asked each of them a set of six questions about their culture

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and lifestyles they had back in Saudi Arabia. The both of them were able to give me some great
insight on their culture; their culture is so different from our way of life that there are barely any
comparisons that can be made in our two cultures.
The Arabian people have eaten the same cuisines for years and their dishes usually consist
of foods like wheat, rice, lamb, chicken, fish, vegetables and for desserts yogurt, pudding,
pastries, and fruit are used. They also use a lot of spices in their food. The two most common
dishes in Saudi Arabia are Shawarma and Falafel, which were originally Syrian and Egyptian
dishes. Arabians do not always dine at home; in the last few recent years going out has become
popular in Saudi Arabia, restaurants like McDonalds, Taco Bell, and Little Caesars can be found
in Saudi Arabia.
Saliegh (personal communication, October 2014) one of the two people I interviewed,
insisted on making dinner for me and our other two roommates. In the name of research for my
paper I agreed, but I never expected what came next. Apparently in Saudi Arabia it is common
for a family or group of friends to sit at a table (or in our case on the floor) and eat from a large
platter stacked with food. The real kicker about that is the fact that they do not use spoon or forks
but instead use only their bare hands. The experience is like eating with a pack of wolves; If you
do not eat your half someone else will. Saliegh explained to me that in Saudi Arabia they use
very little dishes, so that it is easier to clean up and simply because they find it to be a lot simpler
than using plates and silverware.

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Government
In Saudi Arabia they live under Islamic laws and their government is a monarchy ruled by a
king who consults with royal families and a cabinet made up of 22 ministries who help guide the
kings decisions. The country of Saudi Arabia is divided into 13 provinces which all are
controlled by a governor that reports to the king. Citizens of Saudi Arabia do not have much say
in their government, they actually did not have any say until 2003. Franst (personal
communication, October 2014) told me during my interview with him that it really is different
living in a democracy compared to living under a monarchy were the king can change his mind
about a law at any time. He prefers living here over living in Saudi Arabia.
The People in General
The people of Saudi Arabia are virtually all Arabs and Muslims. According to Long, D.E.
(2005) culture and customs of Saudi Arabia; Bloodlines are very important in the Saudi Arabian
culture, Saudis consider themselves the first and the only pure Arabs by blood. According to
tradition all Arabians are descendents of two ancestors: Adnan and Joktan. The Arabic language
is a major element in identifying someone of Saudi Arabian culture. Arabic is a Semitic language
just like Hebrew and Sabaean. The Country of Saudi Arabia is home to over twenty eight million
people. Out of all those people some have went on to become famous actors, singers, producers,
and dancers such as Melora Walters who starred in movie, The Butterfly Effect. There are many
others just like her but, every country has its villains for Saudi Arabia, it was Osama bin Laden.
That was just one bad egg out of a million, Saudi Arabians are actually said to show great
hospitality.

Holidays
Every Country has their own special holidays, in Saudi Arabia their holidays are based on a
lunar calendar which means their holidays fall on a different day every year. They have only a
few holidays but, the holiday that they are most famous for is Hajj, which is when a little over
two million Muslims (maybe more) travel to Mecca then pray to what they call the Kaaba and
chant the words: Here I am at your service, oh Lord, here I am - here I am. No partner do you
have. Here I am. Truly, the praise and the favor are yours, and the dominion. No partner do you
have. It is highly suggested that only the healthy and wealthy enough should attempt to make
the trip to Mecca. Most Muslims try to make the trip at least once in their life. Back in the earlier
years when hajj was still becoming a major holiday for Muslims, it was a known fact that
hardships would happen and some people would not return home. So many Muslims would take
precaution and write out a very detailed will that would then be followed out by a chosen family
member if that family member did not return. Now in modern times the condition of the trip has
improved greatly, and thanks to the invention of airlines many Muslims take a plane to Mecca
instead of walking the entire way and then having to walk back. Once they make it to Mecca the
Muslims are shown great hospitality by the city, to make sure the event goes well the city makes
preparations a year in advance for a holiday that only lasts five days.
Another holiday that should be mentioned is Ramadan; it is the second most important
holiday to Muslims. It occurs on the ninth month of the lunar calendar and ends at the sight of
moon signaling the next month, Shawwal. Because Ramadan is based on the lunar year, it occurs
eleven days earlier each year. During Ramadan it is required of Muslims to Fast during this
month. Muslims must show discipline a virtue that is praised in Islam. Muslims must refrain
from food, beverages, drinking alcohol, smoking and surprisingly sex for the entire month. Only

two meals are served during Ramadan a day, one is served before sunup and the other is served
after sundown. Due to the lack of food during Ramadan it can be a physically challenging time
for some people, especially since every day activities still have to be fulfilled such as going to
work and school.
Rites of Passage
Saudi Arabias rites of passage such as child birth, marriage, divorces and funerals are
unlike any others seen in different cultures. For example, when a child is born in Saudi Arabia it
is not just wait nine months and BAM you are now a parent like in U.S. When a child is born in
Saudi Arabia the mother is given gifts from both sides of the family, a sheep is butchered (some
families butcher one for a girl or two for a boy), the child is not named until the seventh day after
the birth and depending if the child is a boy or not on that day the boy is to be circumcised. In
other cultures they dont have to do all that there is no killing an animal in your childs name and
the child is usually named in the first one to two days.
Their marriage laws are sometimes looked downed at in other cultures, mostly by women
because in Saudi Arabia they allow polygamy which allows a man to marry up to four women at
once. It is very popular there and polygamy has been a tradition for years in Saudi Arabia but,
now in modern times marriages in Saudi Arabia have started to become just a union between one
man and one woman. Arranged marriages are common in Saudi Arabia, most of the arranged
marriages are agreements made between two families but if the person the family is trying to
wed off disagrees with the wedding, then that person cannot be forced to marry the other person
that they were paired up with under Islamic law. Proposals are a lot more complicated in Saudi
Arabia. Unlike in the U.S. were a man could just get on his knee and propose to the woman he

loves; in Saudi Arabia the mans grandmother must go to the womans mother and tell the
mother of the mans intentions, the parents of the woman must consent to the marriage or if the
woman is of legal age she can agree or disagree to the marriage. To be officially married in
Saudi Arabia a contract must be signed and the terms of the contract are discussed between the
groom and the father of the bride, usually there are two males or one male and two females who
act as witnesses.
Getting married in Saudi Arabia is a long process but getting divorced in Saudi Arabia is
even more complicated, it is discouraged in Saudi Arabia to even go through with a divorce. The
divorce process is legally more difficult for a woman than a man, a man just has to simply say I
repudiate you three times whereas a woman must have a good reason to divorce her husband,
like if her husband broke their marriage contract. According to Long, D.E. (2005) culture and
customs of Saudi Arabia, it does not say anything about child support but it states that when a
boy reaches the age of five he usually goes to the father and if it is a girl the child could go with
the father but usually stays with the mother. It is expected for the father to support his children
but, it is not enforced.

Conclusion
There are a lot of rumors and stereotypes about the country of Saudi Arabia but, these do
not define their culture and they do not make Saudi Arabia the country that it is. The culture of
Saudi Arabia is one of a kind. Every part of Saudi Arabias culture is unique in its own way,
from their food to their rites of passage. The culture of Saudi Arabia is more modernized than it
is given credit for. In this culture their way of doing things might seem odd or unnecessary to

outsiders not from this culture, but their culture is based on traditions that have been done for
thousands of years and it is because of those traditions that have brought them this far and made
their culture so unique. Through this paper the culture of Saudi Arabia that was once
misunderstood by the reader, is now hopefully better understood by the reader.

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References
This paper would not have been possible without these sources:
Long, D.E. (2005) culture and customs of Saudi Arabia
Figure one is retrieved from: saudi-directory.net
Figure two is retrieved from: www.zastavki.com
http://www.saudiembassy.net/about/country-information/government/, 2013
http://www.imdb.com/search/name?birth_place=Saudi+Arabia

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Here are the questions I asked in interviews and the responses I got back:
Saliegh
Me: Ok so lets hurry up and get this over with I have work in a hour, it shouldnt take us long I just have
to ask you six questions then we can go on with our days. First question, why come to the university of
Kentucky, why even Kentucky?
Saliegh: umm I know that its a good school. Kentucky is a place that my family first came to. Ive been
here since I was 15. So it just came natural to me to just go to the school I was raised around.
Me: Oh Ok. Alright next question, since youve been here since you were fifth teen do you still
participate in traditions that you would in your umm native country?
Saliegh: wait what did say? Oh never mind I thought you said something else. Well back in my home
country we have certain times of the day that we must, what do you call it? Oh yeah pray. I do that in
my room and I smoke hookah which is something big we do back..home.
Me: Ok. Has it been easy to adjust here? Is there anything about your country that you miss?
Saliegh: that was two questions right?
Me: yeah sorry Im in a rush.
Saliegh: its ok. I have things to do also but, to answer your questions, it was hard at first for me to get
use to things here but it didnt take too long for me to adjust and as far as stuff that I miss in my
country I have to say the food there.
Me: alright and for the last question, what do you like to do in your spare time?
Saliegh: be out with friends, skateboard and smoke hookah.
Me: Thanks bro for taking the time, to do this with me
Saliegh: No problem man, I will see ya later

Franst
Me: Hey Franst, did I say that right?
Franst: yeah you did, its keim right?

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Me: no it is Akeim with an A but never mind its cool

Franst: Oh Akeim, sorry about that
Me: it is alright never mind that, now lets get down to business
Franst: alright shoot, whats the first question?
Me: Ok so, how different is the government in Saudi Arabia from our government in the U.S.?
Franst: the government!? Its so different in Saudi Arabia; we dont have different branches of
government like in the U.S. We have a . Government ruled by one person a.king that has a few
people under him that work for him.
Me: huh thats interesting. Ummm why do the women cover themselves up so much?, doesnt it get hot
wearing all of that?
Me: Im counting that as two questions by the way
Franst: hahahaha ok. Ummmm its not as hot as it looks, the oufits are thin and lighter than you think.
They wear it because of traditions we have, its all part of the marriage process.
Me: Really? Hmmm ok. Sooo how do you know if a girl is cute or not?
Franst: ummm well sometimes the girls outfits are tight and we can see their figure but sometimes we
.. just have to take a chance. Like for example, there was this one girl who I didnt know how she
would look until we were in a . Bedroom. I told her that second put your clothes back on and we are
through.
Me: hahahahahahahahahahahaha thats hilarious and kind of messed up. What type of jobs did you
do in Saudi Arabia?
Franst: well I did use to work at this restaurant, were I would just sweep floors and clear tables but
that was only for a little while.
Me: true true. Alright for the last question, how are the houses in Saudi Arabia, like hows rent or
mortgage compared to here?
Franst: . Back in Saudi Arabia I lived in a two story house with my family, it was a pretty nice house
and . As far as rent and stuff, I think its more expensive over there if I remember correctly.
Me: hmmm ok. Well thanks for helping me dude
Franst: No problem man, see ya