Geography of Saudi Arabia

Where is the country of Saudi Arabia located on world map? According to COUNTRYAAH.COM, Saudi Arabia is an independent nation located in Western Asia. The independence day of Saudi Arabia is celebrated on September 23rd, and is known as ‘National Day’. This marks the day in 1932 when Saudi Arabia declared its independence from the Ottoman Empire. The formal name of the country is ‘Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’, and its symbols are the Flag, Coat of Arms, and National Anthem. The Flag of Saudi Arabia consists of a green background with a white Arabic inscription, which reads “There Is No God But Allah And Muhammad Is His Prophet”. The Coat of Arms displays a shield featuring symbols representing a palm tree; two crossed swords; and a Quranic inscription. Finally, the national anthem is called ‘Aash Al Maleek’, which celebrates the beauty and freedom of Saudi Arabia. See historyaah for Saudi Arabia history.

Saudi Arabia has long been closed to Western tourists. Now, with the Vision 2030 project, the country is looking to the future with more open eyes and is gradually breaking the curtain on tourism in a broader sense.

Terrain shapes and bedrock

Within the narrow coastal plain of the Red Sea in the west, the country rises with high slopes and reaches Hijaz in the north over 2,500 meters above sea level and in Asir south of it nearly 3,000 m above sea level. The plateau inside, whose surface is covered by lava and gravel fields with deep dry valleys, wadier, gradually descends to the east and is occupied by large desert areas, Nafud in the north and Rub al-Khali in the south. They are joined by ad-Dahna in the east, an approximately 80 km wide strand of red-colored sand, 1,300 km long with dunes of 50-150 m height. The bedrock here consists of sedimentary rocks. Harder layers occur in their places in the day as high, sharp cuesta ridges, e.g. Tuwayq Mountains in southern Najd. The coastal areas along the Persian Gulf are low, have deep bays, large salt plains and rich oil deposits.

  • AbbreviationFinder: Offer a full list of commonly used abbreviations, acronyms, and initialisms related to the state of Saudi Arabia.

Climate

The location at the high-pressure belt around the northern tropic and in the rain shadow for winds from the sea gives a dry climate. Only in the mountainous regions in the southwest, the annual rainfall is over 400 mm. In the Rub al-Khali desert, ten years or more can pass between the rain showers. In the northwest, most of the precipitation falls during the winter due to low pressure from the Mediterranean. In the south, the occasional rain is due to the summer monsoon from the Indian Ocean.

The average temperature in January is around 10 ° C in the north of the country and around 20 ° C in the south. In July, the average temperature is around 25 ° C in most of the country, but temperatures of up to 50 ° C have been measured in the desert. In winter, the temperature can reach well below the zero point, and the mountain peaks in the southwest can then be snow-covered.

Plant-and animal life

Saudi Arabia Wildlife

There are a total of more than 1,700 species of hiding-seeded plants. In the mountain and plateau area Najd there are natural springs and sometimes plenty of water in winter. In their places, juniper and olive trees dominate, in other areas there are shrubs of acacias and tamarisk as well as larger acacias and locusts. In more desert areas, euphorbias, Zygophylllum species, shrub- covered amaranth plants, and the grass genus dominate as Ariʹstida.

There are about 77 species of mammals, 155 species of nesting birds and 84 species of reptiles. Among mammals, small species such as barbed mice (the genus Acoʹmys), desert rats, and capers dominate. Arabian gazelle (Gazeʹlla gazeʹlla) is rare and Arabian oryx has been transplanted. Caracal, fennel and sand fox (Vuʹlpes rueppeʹllii) are fairly common, while striped hyena are rare and leopard and cheetah are likely extinct. Characteristic birds are larches, stoneflies and flying chickens. Typical reptiles include dabbagams, hams and fringe lizards.

Nature conservation

In 2010, there were about 30 major nature-protected areas in Saudi Arabia, most of them from the late 1980s to the mid-1990s. Only one area – Asir (4,500 km2) – is called the National Park.

Oil and gas extraction infrastructure

Government intervention is aimed at diversifying the productive sectors, particularly in the banking, agricultural and heavy industry sectors. In services, the Saudi Arabia is the main financial center of the Near East; the contribution of the tourism sector is also considerable, with a flow of visitors almost doubled in the last ten years (14,276,000 in 2012). From the agricultural point of view, the huge investments have led to an increase in arable land; despite this, the Saudi permeability in the food sector is still considerable. The production of dates is substantially unchanged, of which the Saudi Arabia has the world record. In heavy industry, significant progress has been made in the cement sector, where Saudi Arabia has become the 13th largest producer in the world, with a 50% increase in production in less than ten years. The yields in the sectors of natural phosphates, ammonia, nitrogen fertilizers and sulfur, where it is firmly among the top fifteen producers in the world, are also remarkable. Thanks to the sharp rise in the price of hydrocarbons, the SA increased its revenues, almost doubling it, but increasing costs even more. Military spending remains among the highest in the world (8% of GDP), while the commitment to education is significant (5.6% of GDP). In recent years there have also been major investments in the road system, which went from 167,600 km to 221,372 km, with a consequent 40% increase in motor vehicles. where it is firmly among the top fifteen producers in the world. Thanks to the sharp rise in the price of hydrocarbons, the SA increased its revenues, almost doubling it, but increasing costs even more. Military spending remains among the highest in the world (8% of GDP), while the commitment to education is significant (5.6% of GDP). In recent years there have also been major investments in the road system, which went from 167,600 km to 221,372 km, with a consequent 40% increase in motor vehicles. where it is firmly among the top fifteen producers in the world. Thanks to the sharp rise in the price of hydrocarbons, the SA increased its revenues, almost doubling it, but increasing costs even more. Military spending remains among the highest in the world (8% of GDP), while the commitment to education is significant (5.6% of GDP). In recent years there have also been major investments in the road system, which went from 167,600 km to 221,372 km, with a consequent 40% increase in motor vehicles.