The UAE was established in 1971 as a federation of seven emirates and is strategically situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Southwest Asia on the Persian Gulf, and bordering Oman and Saudi Arabia and sharing sea borders with Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar and Iran. It is comprised of seven states called as Emirates. They are Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm al-Quwain, Ras al-Khaimah and Fujairah. The capital and second largest city of the United Arab Emirates is Abu Dhabi. It is also the center of political, industrial and cultural activities of the country. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has a stable political and economic system capable of supporting long term civil aviation planning.
Immediately after its foundation and in realization of the enormous potential for civil aviation to serve as a catalyst for economic growth and to enhance the quality of life of its citizens, the UAE joined the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) in 1972.
Culture of the United
Arab Emirates
The United
Arab Emirates has a diverse,
cosmopolitan and multicultural society. The country's historical
population as a small, diverse pearling community has been
changed with the arrival of other nationals — first by the Iranians in 1810, and later by Indians and Pakistanis in the 1960s.
Dubai has been criticized for
perpetuating a class-based society, where migrant workers are in the lower classes. Despite the diversity of
the population, only minor and infrequent episodes ofethnic tensions,
primarily between expatriates, have been reported in the city. Major holidays
in Dubai include Eid ul-Fitr, which
marks the end of Ramadan, and National Day (2 December), which marks
the formation of the United Arab Emirates.
Being a highly cosmopolitan society, the
UAE has a diverse and vibrant culture. The influence of Islamic, Persian and
Arabian culture on its architecture, music, attire, cuisine, and lifestyle are very prominent as
well. Five times every day, Muslims are called to prayer from
the minarets of mosques, which are
scattered around the country. The weekend begins on Friday due to Friday being the
holiest day for Muslims. Most Muslim countries have a Friday-Saturday or
Thursday-Friday weekend.
Due to growth in trade, many expatriates
from Arab countries, the Indian subcontinent, and Europe came to the UAE
seeking better lives and higher-income jobs.
The population as a whole is estimated by
the U.S. State Department to be at 4.4 million
people, with only 15–20% of these being citizens. The population growth rate is
4% per year. The primary religion in the United Arab Emirates is Islam, with the population estimated to be 96%
Muslim. Hinduism and Christianity are minorities as stated
by the United States State Department. The official language is Arabic. Other
languages such as English, Persian, Hindi and Urdu are spoken among the
different peoples. The U.S. State Department estimates the people of the UAE to
have an average life expectancy of seventy-seven years.
The United Arab Emirates's architecture is
inspired by Islamic
architecture, Arabian architecture and Persian architecture. Arabian
and Persian inspired architecture is part of the expression
of the local Emirati identity.For example, the "barjeel" has
become an identifying mark of traditional Emirati architecture and is
attributed to Persian influence.
Emirati architecture reflects the
traditional lifestyles and customs of the people. Building materials are
simple, but well-adapted to local living and climatic circumstances. Portable
tents traditionally provided shelter during tribal wanderings in the winter
season. Inland more permanent houses were built ofstone guss and were roofed with
palm trees leaves. Fossilized coral,
cut in blocks, bonded with sarooj, or a lime mixture derived from seashells, and
plastered with chalk and water paste, was used extensively in coastal regions.
Privacy and ventilation were important influences in the layout of the houses.
Many of the older Emirati men prefer
wearing the traditional Emirati clothes, such as the kandoora, an ankle-length white shirt woven from wool
or cotton while many local women wear an abaya, a black over-garment covering most
parts of the body.[14] On an average a UAE male
national would have up to 50 kanduras as they keep changing their clothing to
ensure the dress being kept clean.This attire is particularly
well-suited for the UAE's hot and dry climate. Western-style clothing is also
fairly popular, especially among the Emirati youth.
Etiquette is an important aspect of
UAE culture and tradition, and whilst in the UAE, visitors are expected to show
appropriate manners and etiquette. There have been several recent cases of
expatriates not respecting the laws and being arrested. For example, there have
been instances of expats for not wearing enough clothing at beaches, and some
even being completely rude.
Before the discovery of oil, pearling formed a crucial part of
UAE's economy. Pearl fishery, known as ghaus, suffered decline after the advent
of Japanese pearl farming. However, the UAE pearl industry laid the foundation
of its rich maritime history. Dhows, large wooden ships made from teak wood
imported from India, became an indistinct part of the
countries maritime fleet and how building is still practiced in this Persian
Gulf state and perform an important role of trade between countries like Iran, India, and Eastern Africa.[17]
Literature and poetry
Poetry in the United Arab Emirates has a
great influence on culture, being an Arab country in the Persian Gulf where
poetry has been part of since the dawn of time. The style and form of ancient
poetry in the UAE was strongly influenced by the 8th-century Arab scholar, Al Khalil bin Ahmed. This form underwent
slight modification (Al Muwashahat) during the period of Islamic
civilization in Andalucia (Spain), where "the line or bait adhered
to the two hemistitches form, each with an equal number of feet, all the second
hemistitches ending in the same rhyming letter and sound throughout the
poem". The indigenous Arabic poetry form, however, was not
spared from western influence; sometime in the 20th century, prose poetry started to make their way
into the local literary scene.
Ibn Majid, who was
born between 1432 and 1437 in Ras Al Khaimah was an iconic poet.
Coming from a family of successful sailors, Ibn Majid has a total of 40
surviving compositions, 39 of which are verses.
The greatest luminaries in the UAE literary
realm during the 20th century, particularly for Classical Arabic poetry, were Mubarak Al
Oqaili (1880–1954), Salem bin Ali al Owais (1887–1959), andAhmed bin Sulayem (1905–1976). Three other
poets from Sharjah, known as
the Hirah group, also thrived during the 20th century including Khalfan Musabah (1923–1946), Sheikh Saqr
Al Qasimi (1925–1993), an ex-ruler of Sharjah, and Sultan bin Ali al Owais
(1925–2000). The Hirah group's works are observed to have been heavily
influenced by the Apollo and romantic poets.[18]
The United Arab Emirates is a part of the
Arab khaleeji tradition. Yowla is a type of music and
dance performed mainly in communities of Bantu peoples from the African
Great Lakes region. During celebrations
singing and dancing also took place and many of the songs and dances, handed
down from generation to generation, have survived to the present time. Young
girls would dance by swinging their long black hair and swaying their bodies in
time to the strong beat of the music. Men would re-enact battles fought or
successful hunting expeditions, often symbolically using sticks, swords, or rifles. Hollywood and Bollywood movies are popular in
Dubai. The UAE has an active music scene, with musicians Amr Diab, Diana Haddad, Tarkan, Aerosmith, Santana, Mark Knopfler, Elton John, Pink, Bon Jovi, Pink Floyd, Shakira, Celine Dion, Coldplay, Linkin Park Slipknot and Phil Collins having performed in the
country. Kylie Minogue was paid 4.4 million
dollars to perform at the opening of the Atlantis
resort on November 20, 2008.[19] Dubai International Jazz Festival has been held annually
since 2003. The Dubai Desert Rock Festival (2004-2009) was another
major festival, consisting of heavy metal and rock artists.
Football is the most popular sport
in the UAE. Emirati football clubs Al-Ain, Al-Wasl, Al-Shabbab ACD, Al-Sharjah, Al-Wahda, and Al-Ahli are the most popular
teams and enjoy the reputation of long-time regional champions. The great rivalries keep
the streets of the UAE energized as people fill the streets when their favorite
team wins. The United Arab Emirates Football Association was first established in
1971, and since then has dedicated its time and effort to promoting the game,
organizing youth competitions and improving the abilities of not only its
players, but of the officials and coaches involved with its regional teams. The UAE national football team qualified for the FIFA World Cup in 1990 with Egypt. It was the third consecutive World Cup with
two Arab nations qualifying, after Kuwait and Algeria in 1982,
and Iraq and Algeria again in 1986.The UAE also recently won
the Gulf
Cup of Nations held inAbu Dhabi in January 2007.
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Date
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January 1
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New Year's Day
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Ra's as-Sana al-meladiah
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رأس السنة الميلادية
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zil hajjah 9
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Day of the Sacrifice
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عيد الأضحى
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Muharram 1
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Ra's as-Sana al-Hijria
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رأس السنة الهجرية
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variable
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The Night Journey
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الإسراء والمعراج
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December 2
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National Day
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اليوم الوطني
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Ramadan 30
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عيد الفطر
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