Kuwait City

{{see also|Timeline of Kuwait City}}

File:Kuwait1944.jpg in 1944 for Sheikh Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah]]

In the early to mid 1700s, Kuwait City was a small fishing village. Sometime in the mid 1700s, the Bani Utubs settled in Kuwait.{{Cite web |title=History of Kuwait |url=https://kuwaitembassy.se/history/ |access-date=2023-03-29 |department=The Embassy of The State of Kuwain in Sweden |location=Stockholm |publisher=Kuwait Embassy to Sweden |language=en-US}} At the time of the arrival of the Utubs, Kuwait was inhabited by a few fishermen.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=R0NH1CbXf24C&pg=PA64|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150905215834/https://books.google.com/books?id=R0NH1CbXf24C&pg=PA64|url-status=dead|archive-date=5 September 2015|title=Constancy and Change in Contemporary Kuwait City: The Socio-cultural Dimensions of the Kuwait Courtyard and Diwaniyya|author=Mohammad Khalid A. Al-Jassar|year=2009|page=64|isbn=9781109229349}} In the eighteenth century, Kuwait gradually became a principal commercial center for the transit of goods between India, Muscat, Baghdad, Persia, and Arabia.{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/shadowsonsandthe00bell|url-access=registration|title=Shadows on the Sand: The Memoirs of Sir Gawain Bell|publisher=C. Hurst |page=[https://archive.org/details/shadowsonsandthe00bell/page/222 222]|year=1983|isbn=9780905838922|last=Bell|first=Sir Gawain}}{{cite book|title=ʻAlam-i Nisvāṉ – Volume 2, Issues 1–2|page=18|quote=Kuwait became an important trading port for import and export of goods from India, Africa and Arabia.}} By the late 1700s, Kuwait had already established itself as a trading route from the Persian Gulf to Aleppo.

During the Persian siege of Basra in 1775–1779, Iraqi merchants took refuge in Kuwait and were partly instrumental in the expansion of Kuwait's boat-building and trading activities.{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/beyondstormgulf00benn|url-access=registration|title=Beyond the Storm: A Gulf Crisis Reader|publisher=Olive Branch Press |pages=[https://archive.org/details/beyondstormgulf00benn/page/42 42]|isbn=9780940793828|last1=Bennis|first1=Phyllis|last2=Moushabeck|first2=Michel|date=31 December 1990}} As a result, Kuwait's maritime commerce boomed. Between the years 1775 and 1779, the Indian trade routes with Baghdad, Aleppo, Smyrna and Constantinople were diverted to Kuwait.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=R0NH1CbXf24C&pg=PA66|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150905214654/https://books.google.com/books?id=R0NH1CbXf24C&pg=PA66|url-status=dead|archive-date=5 September 2015|title=Constancy and Change in Contemporary Kuwait City|author=Mohammad Khalid A. Al-Jassar|year=2009|page=66|isbn=9781109229349}}{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5xVSkGtcT5YC&pg=PA4|title=The Kuwait Crisis: Basic Documents|page=4|year=1991|isbn=9780521463089|last1=Lauterpacht|first1=E|last2=Greenwood|first2=C. J|last3=Weller|first3=Marc|publisher=Cambridge University Press }} The East India Company was diverted to Kuwait in 1792.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=R0NH1CbXf24C&pg=PA67|title=Constancy and Change in Contemporary Kuwait City |page=67|year=2009|isbn=9781109229349 }} The East India Company secured the sea routes between Kuwait, India and the east coasts of Africa. After the Persian withdrawal from Basra in 1779, Kuwait continued to attract trade away from Basra.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=t6v2HHoWgbsC&pg=PA72|title=Merchants, Mamluks, and Murder: The Political Economy of Trade in Eighteenth-Century Basra|author=Thabit Abdullah|page=72|isbn=9780791448076|year=2001|publisher=SUNY Press }}

File:Kuwait harbour 1961.jpg

Kuwait was the centre of boat building in the Persian Gulf region.{{cite book|url=http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/1266/1/1266.pdf|title=The impact of economic activities on the social and political structures of Kuwait (1896–1946)|page=108|access-date=8 July 2014|archive-date=4 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304053950/http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/1266/1/1266.pdf|url-status=live}}{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tmGfM_JPLigC&q=The+port+of+Kuwait+was+then,+and+is+still,+the+principal+dhow-+building+and+trading+port+of+the+Arabian+Gulf,+though+offering+little+trade+itself.+I|title=Peoples and Cultures of the Middle East: Cultural depth and diversity|year=1970|page=156|quote=The port of Kuwait was then, and is still, the principal dhow- building and trading port of the Persian Gulf, though offering little trade itself.|access-date=5 April 2023|archive-date=13 March 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240313101853/https://books.google.com/books?id=tmGfM_JPLigC&q=The+port+of+Kuwait+was+then,+and+is+still,+the+principal+dhow-+building+and+trading+port+of+the+Arabian+Gulf,+though+offering+little+trade+itself.+I|url-status=live}} During the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, ship vessels made in Kuwait carried the bulk of trade between the ports of India, East Africa and the Red Sea.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xCMiAQAAMAAJ&q=For+centuries+its+native+vessels,+designed+for+ocean+travel,+carried+the+bulk+of+the+trade+between+India,+East+Africa,+and+the+Red+Sea+ports.+The+building+of+these+dhows+became+an+important+industry,+and+the+waterfront+of+the+town+of+Kuwait+was|title=Bijdragen tot de taal-, land- en volkenkunde, Volume 130|author=M. Nijhoff|page=111|year=1974|access-date=5 April 2023|archive-date=13 March 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240313101851/https://books.google.com/books?id=xCMiAQAAMAAJ&q=For+centuries+its+native+vessels,+designed+for+ocean+travel,+carried+the+bulk+of+the+trade+between+India,+East+Africa,+and+the+Red+Sea+ports.+The+building+of+these+dhows+became+an+important+industry,+and+the+waterfront+of+the+town+of+Kuwait+was|url-status=live}}{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9-MZAAAAMAAJ&q=From+India+to+Fast+Africa,+and+from+the+Red+Sea+ports+to+North+Eastern+Arabia,+the+bulk+of+the+trade+was+carried+on+by+Kuwaiti+vessels.|title=Indian Foreign Affairs|page=29|year=1965 |last1=Aggarwal |first1=Jatendra M. }}{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hcMmAQAAMAAJ&q=During+this+and+the+succeeding+century+its+native+vessels,+designed+for+ocean+travel,+carried+the+bulk+of+the+trade+between+India,+East+Africa,+and+Red+Sea+ports+and+northeastern+Arabia.|title=The Arabian Peninsula|author=Richard Harlakenden Sanger |page=150|year=1970|publisher=Books for Libraries Press |isbn=9780836953442 }} Kuwaiti ship vessels were renowned throughout the Indian Ocean.{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zXXGAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA93|title=The Postal Agencies in Eastern Arabia and the Gulf |year=2008 |page=93|isbn=9781409209423 |last1=Donaldson |first1=Neil |publisher=Lulu.com }} Regional geopolitical turbulence helped foster economic prosperity in Kuwait in the second half of the 18th century.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=R0NH1CbXf24C&pg=PA68|title=Constancy and Change in Contemporary Kuwait City|author= Mohammad Khalid A. Al-Jassar|page=68|isbn=9781109229349}} Kuwait became prosperous due to Basra's instability in the late 18th century.{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iT_8KzTECwMC&pg=PA18|title=Waqai-i manazil-i Rum: Tipu Sultan's mission to Constantinople |year=2007|page=18|quote=For owing to Basra's misfortunes, Kuwait and Zubarah became rich.|isbn=9788187879565 |last=Hasan |first=Mohibbul |publisher=Aakar Books }} At the time, Kuwait functioned partly as a haven for Basra's merchants fleeing Ottoman persecution.{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g5MewSBHkG4C&pg=PA114|title=The Politics of Regional Trade in Iraq, Arabia, and the Gulf, 1745–1900 |year=1997 |page=114|isbn=9780791431139 |last1=Fattah |first1=Hala Mundhir |publisher=SUNY Press }} According to Palgrave, Kuwaitis developed a reputation as the best sailors in the Persian Gulf.{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DRtWm-UkS-oC&pg=PA48|title=Seafaring in the Arabian Gulf and Oman: People of the Dhow |year=2012|page=48|isbn=9781136201820|last1=Agius|first1=Dionisius A.|publisher=Routledge }}{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QjzYdCxumFcC&dq=The+Kuwaitis+developed+a+reputation+as+the+best+sailors+in+the+Persian+Gulf&pg=PA321 |title=Encyclopedia of the Ottoman Empire |year=2009 |page=321 |isbn=9781438110257 |last1=Ágoston|first1=Gábor A. |last2=Masters |first2=Bruce Alan |publisher=Infobase |access-date=5 April 2023 |archive-date=13 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240313101854/https://books.google.com/books?id=QjzYdCxumFcC&dq=The+Kuwaitis+developed+a+reputation+as+the+best+sailors+in+the+Persian+Gulf&pg=PA321 |url-status=live }}

During the reign of Mubarak Al-Sabah, Kuwait was dubbed the "Marseille of the Gulf" because its economic vitality attracted a large variety of people.{{cite book |author-last=Peterson |author-first=J. E. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ncfIAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA272|title=The Arabian Gulf in History

|page=272 |year=2009|isbn=9780230618459

|editor-last=Potter

|editor-first=L.

|publisher=Springer

}} In the first decades of the twentieth century, Kuwait had a well-established elite: wealthy trading families who were linked by marriage and shared economic interests.{{cite book |last1=Crystal |first1=Jill |year=1995 |title=Oil and Politics in the Gulf: Rulers and Merchants in Kuwait and Qatar |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=D8di8GN_hKsC&pg=PA37 |edition=Updated |publisher=Cambridge University Press |page=37 |isbn=9780521466356}}

In 1937, Freya Stark wrote about the extent of poverty in Kuwait at the time:

Poverty has settled in Kuwait more heavily since my last visit five years ago, both by sea, where the pearl trade continues to decline, and by land, where the blockade established by Saudi Arabia now harms the merchants.

Some prominent merchant families left Kuwait in the early 1930s due to the prevalence of economic hardship. At the time of the discovery of oil in 1937, most of Kuwait's inhabitants were impoverished.

From 1946 to 1982, Kuwait experienced a period of prosperity driven by oil and its liberal atmosphere.{{cite book |editor-first=Noura |editor-last=Al Sager |url={{google books|201yBgAAQBAJ|page=7|plainurl=yes}} |title=Acquiring Modernity: Kuwait's Modern Era Between Memory and Forgetting|date=2014 |page=7 |publisher=National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters |isbn=9789990604238}}{{cite web|author=Farid, Alia |url=http://aliafarid.net/Art-Papers |title=Acquiring Modernity: Kuwait at the 14th International Architecture Exhibition |website=aliafarid.net |date=2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150221184242/http://aliafarid.net/Art-Papers |archive-date=21 February 2015 |author-link=Alia Farid }} In popular discourse, the years between 1946 and 1982 are referred to as the "Golden Era".{{cite journal |last=Gonzales |first=Desi |date=November–December 2014 |title=Acquiring Modernity: Kuwait at the 14th International Architecture Exhibition |url=http://www.artpapers.org/feature_articles/feature3_2014_1112.html |journal=Art Papers |access-date=31 July 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170426171107/http://www.artpapers.org/feature_articles/feature3_2014_1112.html |archive-date=26 April 2017 |url-status=dead }} In 1950, a major public-works programme began to enable Kuwaitis to enjoy a modern standard of living. By 1952, the country became the largest oil exporter in the Persian Gulf region. In the following year, the country's annual oil income grew to $169 million. This massive growth attracted many foreign workers, especially from Jordan, Egypt and India and helped finance the development of a new master plan, which the state approved in 1952. In June 1961, Kuwait became independent with the end of the British protectorate and the sheikh Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah became an Emir. Under the terms of the newly drafted constitution, Kuwait held its first parliamentary elections in 1963. Kuwait was the first Persian Gulf country to establish a constitution and parliament.

In the 1960s and 1970s, Kuwait was the most developed country in the region.{{cite news |title=Looking for Origins of Arab Modernism in Kuwait |url=http://hyperallergic.com/191773/looking-for-the-origins-of-arab-modernism-in-kuwait/ |journal=Hyperallergic |access-date=31 July 2015 |archive-date=11 July 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150711090946/http://hyperallergic.com/191773/looking-for-the-origins-of-arab-modernism-in-kuwait/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=http://gulfartguide.com/essay/cultural-developments-in-kuwait/ |title=Cultural developments in Kuwait |date=March 2013 |access-date=16 November 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141129021858/http://gulfartguide.com/essay/cultural-developments-in-kuwait/ |archive-date=29 November 2014 |url-status=usurped |df=dmy-all }} Kuwait was the pioneer in the Middle East in diversifying its earnings away from oil exports.{{cite journal |first=Sam |last=Chee Kong |url=http://www.marketoracle.co.uk/Article44637.html |title=What Can Nations Learn from Norway and Kuwait in Managing Sovereign Wealth Funds |journal=Market Oracle |date=1 March 2014 |access-date=14 December 2014 |archive-date=13 September 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140913235403/http://www.marketoracle.co.uk/Article44637.html |url-status=live }} The Kuwait Investment Authority is the world's first sovereign wealth fund. From the 1970s onward, Kuwait scored highest of all Arab countries on the Human Development Index. Kuwait University was established in 1966. Kuwait's theatre industry was well-known throughout the Arab world. In the 1960s and 1970s, Kuwait's press was described as one of the freest in the world. Kuwait was the pioneer in the literary renaissance in the Arab region.{{cite web|url=http://www.arabtimesonline.com/NewsDetails/tabid/96/smid/414/ArticleID/191792/reftab/36/t/Kuwait-literary-scene-a-little-complex/Default.aspx |title=Kuwait Literary Scene A Little Complex |quote=A magazine, Al Arabi, was published in 1958 in Kuwait. It was the most popular magazine in the Arab world. It came out it in all the Arabic countries, and about a quarter million copies were published every month. |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141129040817/http://www.arabtimesonline.com/NewsDetails/tabid/96/smid/414/ArticleID/191792/reftab/36/t/Kuwait-literary-scene-a-little-complex/Default.aspx |archive-date=29 November 2014 }} In 1958, Al Arabi magazine was first published, the magazine went on to become the most popular magazine in the Arab world. Many Arab writers moved to Kuwait for freedom of expression because Kuwait had greater freedom of expression than elsewhere in the Arab world.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=t4DFAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA24|title=News Media in the Arab World: A Study of 10 Arab and Muslim Countries|page=24|isbn=9781441102393|last1=Gunter|first1=Barrie|last2=Dickinson|first2=Roger|date=6 June 2013|publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing USA }}{{cite book |editor-first1=Abdulaziz |editor-last1=Sager |editor-first2=Christian |editor-last2=Koch |editor-first3=Hasanain |editor-last3=Tawfiq Ibrahim |url={{google books|FMsuAQAAIAAJ|page=39|plainurl=yes}} |title=Gulf Yearbook 2006-2007 |publisher=I. B. Tauris |location=Dubai, UAE |date=2008 |page=39 |quote=The Kuwaiti press has always enjoyed a level of freedom unparalleled in any other Arab country. }} Kuwait was a haven for writers and journalists from all parts of the Middle East, with the Iraqi poet Ahmed Matar leaving Iraq in the 1970s to take refuge in the more liberal environment of Kuwait.{{cite web |first=Jane |last=Kinninmont |url=http://islamicommentary.org/2013/02/jane-kinninmont-the-case-of-kuwait-debating-free-speech-and-social-media-in-the-gulf/ |title=The Case of Kuwait: Debating Free Speech and Social Media in the Gulf |website=ISLAMiCommentary |date=15 February 2013 |access-date=20 November 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170214055949/https://islamicommentary.org/2013/02/jane-kinninmont-the-case-of-kuwait-debating-free-speech-and-social-media-in-the-gulf/ |archive-date=14 February 2017 |url-status=dead }}

Kuwaiti society embraced liberal and Western attitudes throughout the 1960s and 1970s.{{cite book |title=Muslim Education Quarterly |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CyftAAAAMAAJ&q=Kuwait+is+a+primary+example+of+a+Muslim+society+which+embraced+liberal+and+Western+attitudes+throughout+the+sixties+and+seventies. |publisher=Islamic Academy |date=1990 |volume=8 |page=61 |quote=Kuwait is a primary example of a Muslim society which embraced liberal and Western attitudes throughout the sixties and seventies. |access-date=5 April 2023 |archive-date=13 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240313101856/https://books.google.com/books?id=CyftAAAAMAAJ&q=Kuwait+is+a+primary+example+of+a+Muslim+society+which+embraced+liberal+and+Western+attitudes+throughout+the+sixties+and+seventies. |url-status=live }} Most Kuwaiti women did not wear the hijab in the 1960s and 1970s.{{cite book|editor-last=Rubin |editor-first=Barry |url={{google books|wEih57-GWQQC|page=306|plainurl=yes}} |title=Guide to Islamist Movements |volume=1 |publisher=M.E. Sharpe |location=Armonk, New York |date=2010 |page=306 |isbn=9780765641380}}{{cite book |first=Deborah L. |last=Wheeler |url={{google books|v6aWc8fM1iEC|page=99|plainurl=yes}} |title=The Internet In The Middle East: Global Expectations And Local Imaginations |publisher=State University of New York Press |location=Albany, New York |page=99 |isbn=9780791465868|year=2006 }} At Kuwait University, mini-skirts were more common than the hijab.{{cite news |first=Evan |last=Osnos |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2004/07/11/in-kuwait-conservatism-a-launch-pad-to-success/ |title=In Kuwait, conservatism a launch pad to success |newspaper=Chicago Tribune |date=11 July 2004 |quote=In the 1960s and most of the '70s, men and women at Kuwait University dined and danced together, and miniskirts were more common than hijab head coverings, professors and alumni say. |access-date=14 December 2014 |archive-date=29 November 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141129035552/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2004-07-11/news/0407110232_1_kuwait-university-mutairi-kuwaiti/2 |url-status=live }}

In the early 1980s, Kuwait experienced a major economic crisis after the Souk Al-Manakh stock market crash and decrease in oil price.{{cite web |url=http://www.stock-market-crash.net/souk.htm |title=Kuwait's Souk al-Manakh Stock Bubble |publisher=Stock-market-crash.net |date=23 June 2012 |access-date=14 January 2013 |archive-date=19 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120519011132/http://www.stock-market-crash.net/souk.htm |url-status=live }}

The Kuwait National Assembly Building, a parliament building designed by the works of Jørn Utzon in its elements of Islamic architecture, was completed in 1982 by orders of his son Jan Utzon.

During the Iran–Iraq War, Kuwait supported Iraq. Throughout the 1980s, there were several terror attacks in Kuwait, including the 1983 Kuwait bombings, hijacking of several Kuwait Airways planes and attempted assassination of Emir Jaber in 1985.{{cite book|last=Hunter|first=Shireen T.|title=Iran and the world : continuity in a revolutionary decade|url=https://archive.org/details/iranworldcont00hunt|url-access=registration|year=1990|publisher=Indiana University Press|page=[https://archive.org/details/iranworldcont00hunt/page/117 117]}} Kuwait was a leading regional hub of science and technology in the 1960s and 1970s up until the early 1980s, the scientific research sector significantly suffered due to the terror attacks.

File:BrennendeOelquellenKuwait1991.jpg policy of Iraqi military forces retreating from Kuwait.]]The Kuwaiti government strongly advocated Islamism throughout the 1980s.{{cite web|url=http://fpif.org/frankensteins_lament_in_kuwait/|title=Frankenstein's Lament in Kuwait|date=November 2001}} At that time, the most serious threat to the continuity of Al Sabah came from home-grown secular democrats. The secular Kuwaiti opposition were protesting the 1976 suspension of the parliament. Al Sabah were attracted to Islamists preaching the virtues of a hierarchical order that included loyalty to the Kuwaiti monarchy. In 1981, the Kuwaiti government gerrymandered electoral districts in favour of the Islamists. Islamists were the government's main allies, hence Islamists were able to colonize state agencies, such as the government ministries. By the mid-1980s, Kuwait was described as an autocracy. In 1986, Emir Jaber suspended the parliament.

After the Iran–Iraq War ended, Kuwait declined an Iraqi request to forgive its US$65 billion debt.{{cite web|url=http://www.acig.org/artman/publish/article_213.shtml|title=Iraqi Invasion of Kuwait; 1990|website=Acig.org|access-date=28 June 2010|archive-date=6 October 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006231817/http://www.acig.org/artman/publish/article_213.shtml|url-status=usurped}} An economic rivalry between the two countries ensued after Kuwait increased its oil production by 40 percent.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DejCbO1mvCYC&q=Kuwait+slant+drilling&pg=PA156 |title=The Colonial Present: Afghanistan … |author=Derek Gregory |publisher=Wiley|access-date=28 June 2010|isbn=978-1-57718-090-6|year=2004}} Tensions between the two countries increased further in July 1990, after Iraq complained to OPEC claiming that Kuwait was stealing its oil from a field near the Iraq–Kuwait border by slant drilling of the Rumaila field.

In August 1990, Iraqi forces invaded and annexed Kuwait. After a series of failed diplomatic negotiations, the United States led a coalition to remove the Iraqi forces from Kuwait, in what became known as the Gulf War. On 26 February 1991, the coalition succeeded in driving out the Iraqi forces. As they retreated, Iraqi forces carried out a scorched earth policy by setting oil wells on fire.{{cite web|url=http://earthshots.usgs.gov/Iraq/Iraqtext |title=Iraq and Kuwait: 1972, 1990, 1991, 1997 |publisher=Earthshots: Satellite Images of Environmental Change |access-date=14 January 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120429014811/http://earthshots.usgs.gov/Iraq/Iraqtext |archive-date=29 April 2012 }} During the Iraqi occupation, more than 1,000 Kuwaiti civilians were killed.{{cite web|title=The Use of Terror During Iraq's Invasion of Kuwait|url=http://jafi.org/JewishAgency/English/Jewish+Education/Compelling+Content/Eye+on+Israel/Current+Issues/Peace+and+Conflict/The+Use+of+Terror+in+Kuwait.htm|access-date=20 November 2014|archive-date=6 October 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006074959/http://jafi.org/JewishAgency/English/Jewish+Education/Compelling+Content/Eye+on+Israel/Current+Issues/Peace+and+Conflict/The+Use+of+Terror+in+Kuwait.htm|url-status=dead}} In addition, more than 600 Kuwaitis went missing during Iraq's occupation,{{cite news |title=Iraq and Kuwait Discuss Fate of 600 Missing Since Gulf War |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2003-jan-09-fg-missing9-story.html |work=Los Angeles Times |date=9 January 2003 |access-date=14 December 2014 |archive-date=6 October 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006195140/http://articles.latimes.com/2003/jan/09/world/fg-missing9 |url-status=live }} approximately 375 remains were found in mass graves in Iraq.

In March 2003, Kuwait became the springboard for the US-led invasion of Iraq. Upon the death of the Emir Jaber, in January 2006, Saad Al-Sabah succeeded him but was removed nine days later by the Kuwaiti parliament due to his ailing health. Sabah Al-Sabah was sworn in as Emir.

{{Main|Geography of Kuwait}}

File:Playa Dasman, ciudad de Kuwait, Kuwait, 2024-08-12, DD 03.jpg

Kuwait City is located on Kuwait Bay, a natural deep-water harbor. Ninety percent of Kuwait's population live within the Kuwait Bay coast. The country is generally low-lying, with the highest point being {{convert|306|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} above sea level.{{cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/kuwait/ |title=Kuwait |website=The World Factbook |publisher=Central Intelligence Agency |date=10 April 2015 |access-date=24 January 2021 |archive-date=10 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210110072824/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/kuwait/ |url-status=live }} It has nine islands, all of which, with the exception of Failaka Island, are uninhabited.{{cite encyclopedia |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/eb/topic-82709/Bubiyan |title=Bubiyan (island, Kuwait) |access-date=28 June 2010 |archive-date=10 December 2008 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20081210093103/http://www.britannica.com/eb/topic-82709/Bubiyan |url-status=live }} With an area of {{convert|860|km2|mi2|abbr=on}}, Bubiyan is the largest island in Kuwait and is connected to the rest of the country by a {{convert|2380|m|ft|adj=mid|-long|0}} bridge.{{cite web |url=http://en.structurae.de/structures/data/index.cfm?ID=s0000613 |title=Structurae [en]: Bubiyan Bridge (1983) |website=En.structurae.de |date=19 October 2002 |access-date=28 June 2010 |archive-date=28 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110428185717/http://en.structurae.de/structures/data/index.cfm?ID=s0000613 |url-status=live }} The land area is considered arable and sparse vegetation is found along its {{convert|499|km|mi|adj=mid|-long}}{{dubious||date=July 2023 |reason= Coastline paradox — 499 km measured how? Improper rounding/double unit conversion?}} coastline.

Kuwait's Burgan field has a total capacity of approximately {{convert|70|Goilbbl|m3}} of proven oil reserves. During the 1991 Kuwaiti oil fires, more than 500 oil lakes were created covering a combined surface area of about {{convert|35.7|km2|mi2|abbr=on}}.{{cite encyclopedia|first=Daniel |last=Pendick |title=Kuwaiti Oil Lakes |encyclopedia=Encarta |url=http://encarta.msn.com/sidebar_761594234/Kuwaiti_Oil_Lakes.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091101114016/http://encarta.msn.com/sidebar_761594234/Kuwaiti_Oil_Lakes.html |archive-date= 1 November 2009 |url-status=dead }} The resulting soil contamination due to oil and soot accumulation had made eastern and south-eastern parts of Kuwait uninhabitable. Sand and oil residue had reduced large parts of the Kuwaiti desert to semi-asphalt surfaces.{{cite web|url=http://www1.american.edu/ted/kuwait.htm |title=The Economic and Environmental Impact of the Gulf War on Kuwait and the Persian Gulf |publisher=American University |access-date=28 June 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101219043510/http://www1.american.edu/ted/kuwait.htm |archive-date=19 December 2010 }} The oil spills during the Gulf War also drastically affected Kuwait's marine resources.{{cite encyclopedia |title=Kuwait (country) |encyclopedia=Encarta |url=http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761563200_2/Kuwait_(country).html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091021011805/http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761563200_2/Kuwait_(country).html |archive-date=21 October 2009 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all |access-date=4 July 2011 }}

File:Kuwait City, Kuwait.JPG

Kuwait City has a hot desert climate (Köppen: BWh) with extremely hot, very prolonged summers and mild, short winters. It is one of the hottest cities in summer on Earth.{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/jul/22/where-world-hottest-city-kuwait-karachi-ahvaz|title=Where is the world's hottest city?|newspaper=the Guardian|access-date=3 March 2016|date=22 July 2015|last1=Birch|first1=Hayley|archive-date=9 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201209050452/https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/jul/22/where-world-hottest-city-kuwait-karachi-ahvaz|url-status=live}} Average summer high temperatures are above {{convert|45|°C}} for three months of the year, and during heat waves; the daytime temperature regularly exceeds {{convert|50|°C}} with nighttime lows often remaining above {{convert|30|°C}}. In winter, nighttime temperatures frequently drop below {{convert|8|°C}}. Considering its coastal position and relative distance to the equator in comparison with the hot desert climates in Africa and Saudi Arabia, the heat in the city is rather extreme—being surrounded in almost every direction by the hot desert.

Sand storms occur at times during summer from the shamal wind. Sand storms can occur any time of year but occur mostly during summer, and less frequently during autumn.

{{Weather box

|location = Kuwait City (1991–2020, extremes 1956–present)

|metric first = yes

|single line = yes

|Jan record high C = 30.6

|Feb record high C = 35.8

|Mar record high C = 44.4

|Apr record high C = 46.2

|May record high C = 49.0

|Jun record high C = 51.5

|Jul record high C = 52.1

|Aug record high C = 51.5

|Sep record high C = 49.0

|Oct record high C = 45.2

|Nov record high C = 39.6

|Dec record high C = 30.6

|year record high C = 52.1

|Jan high C = 19.6

|Feb high C = 22.1

|Mar high C = 26.5

|Apr high C = 32.7

|May high C = 39.9

|Jun high C = 45.1

|Jul high C = 46.6

|Aug high C = 46.4

|Sep high C = 43.0

|Oct high C = 36.1

|Nov high C = 27.1

|Dec high C = 21.6

|year high C = 33.6

| Jan mean C = 13.5

| Feb mean C = 15.3

| Mar mean C = 19.8

| Apr mean C = 25.9

| May mean C = 32.6

| Jun mean C = 37.2

| Jul mean C = 38.7

| Aug mean C = 38.2

| Sep mean C = 34.7

| Oct mean C = 28.4

| Nov mean C = 20.8

| Dec mean C = 15.3

| year mean C = 27.2

|Jan low C = 7.6

|Feb low C = 9.1

|Mar low C = 13.3

|Apr low C = 19.1

|May low C = 24.9

|Jun low C = 28.7

|Jul low C = 30.4

|Aug low C = 29.7

|Sep low C = 26.1

|Oct low C = 20.7

|Nov low C = 14.2

|Dec low C = 9.2

|year low C = 19.5

|Jan record low C = -4.0

|Feb record low C = -3.3

|Mar record low C = -0.1

|Apr record low C = 6.9

|May record low C = 14.4

|Jun record low C = 17.3

|Jul record low C = 21.1

|Aug record low C = 20.6

|Sep record low C = 16.0

|Oct record low C = 9.4

|Nov record low C = 0.7

|Dec record low C = -6.0

|year record low C = -6.0

|rain colour = green

|Jan rain mm = 30.2

|Feb rain mm = 10.5

|Mar rain mm = 18.2

|Apr rain mm = 11.5

|May rain mm = 0.4

|Jun rain mm = 0.0

|Jul rain mm = 0.0

|Aug rain mm = 0.0

|Sep rain mm = 0.0

|Oct rain mm = 1.4

|Nov rain mm = 18.5

|Dec rain mm = 25.5

|year rain mm = 116.2

|unit rain days = 0.1 mm

|Jan rain days = 5

|Feb rain days = 3

|Mar rain days = 3

|Apr rain days = 1

|May rain days = 0

|Jun rain days = 0

|Jul rain days = 0

|Aug rain days = 0

|Sep rain days = 0

|Oct rain days = 1

|Nov rain days = 3

|Dec rain days = 3

|year rain days = 19

|Jan sun = 198.1

|Feb sun = 222.5

|Mar sun = 217.6

|Apr sun = 229.3

|May sun = 272.5

|Jun sun = 304.5

|Jul sun = 307.1

|Aug sun = 301.6

|Sep sun = 285.1

|Oct sun = 252.2

|Nov sun = 216.5

|Dec sun = 193.5

|year sun = 3000.5

|Jand sun = 7.1

|Febd sun = 7.7

|Mard sun = 7.5

|Aprd sun = 7.9

|Mayd sun = 9.4

|Jund sun = 10.5

|Juld sun = 10.6

|Augd sun = 10.8

|Sepd sun = 10.2

|Octd sun = 9.0

|Novd sun = 7.7

|Decd sun = 6.9

|yeard sun = 8.8

|Jan percentsun = 68

|Feb percentsun = 69

|Mar percentsun = 63

|Apr percentsun = 62

|May percentsun = 69

|Jun percentsun = 77

|Jul percentsun = 76

|Aug percentsun = 78

|Sep percentsun = 77

|Oct percentsun = 79

|Nov percentsun = 72

|Dec percentsun = 67

|year percentsun = 72

|source 1 = Météo Climat{{cite web

| url = http://meteo-climat-bzh.dyndns.org/listenormale-1991-2020-1-p122.php

| title = Météo Climat stats for Kuwait City 1991–2020

| publisher = Météo Climat

| access-date = 15 October 2017}}{{cite web

| url = http://meteo-climat-bzh.dyndns.org/index.php?page=stati&id=2012

| title = Station Kuwait

| publisher = Meteo Climat

|language = French

| accessdate = 15 June 2016}}

| source 2 = World Meteorological Organization (rainfall 1994–2008);{{cite web

|url=http://worldweather.wmo.int/113/c01498.htm

|title=World Weather Information Service – Kuwait City

|publisher=World Meteorological Organization

|access-date=19 February 2014

|archive-date=9 December 2020

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201209045928/http://worldweather.wmo.int/113/c01498.htm

|url-status=live

}} NOAA (sunshine 1961–1990){{cite web

| url = ftp://ftp.atdd.noaa.gov/pub/GCOS/WMO-Normals/TABLES/REG_II/KW/40582.TXT

| title = Kuwait International Airport Climate Normals 1961–1990

| publisher = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20201209045956/ftp://ftp.atdd.noaa.gov/pub/GCOS/WMO-Normals/TABLES/REG_II/KW/40582.TXT

| archive-date = 2020-12-09

| url-status = dead

| access-date = 15 January 2015

}}}}

File:Kuwait City Souq Sharq Marina 09.jpg

{{Main|Economy of Kuwait}}Kuwait has a petroleum-based economy, petroleum and fertilizers are the main export products. The Kuwaiti dinar is the highest-valued currency unit in the world.{{Cite web |date=2024-04-16 |title=What are the strongest currencies in the world? (2024) |url=https://wise.com/gb/blog/strongest-currencies-in-the-world |access-date=2024-06-15 |website=Wise |language=en-GB |archive-date=30 May 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240530061837/https://wise.com/gb/blog/strongest-currencies-in-the-world |url-status=live }} Petroleum accounts for 43% of GDP and 70% of export earnings.{{cite web|url=https://santandertrade.com/en/portal/analyse-markets/kuwait/foreign-trade-figures|title=Foreign Trade in Figures|access-date=14 May 2021|archive-date=26 November 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221126224416/https://santandertrade.com/en/portal/analyse-markets/kuwait/foreign-trade-figures|url-status=live}}

File:Kuwait Airways, 9K-AOE, Boeing 777-369 ER (49570672987).jpg Boeing 777-300ER at Kuwait International Airport]]

File:Kuwait highway.jpg

There are two airports in Kuwait. Kuwait International Airport serves as the principal hub for international air travel. State-owned Kuwait Airways is the largest airline in the country. A portion of the airport complex is designated as Al Mubarak Air Base, which contains the headquarters of the Kuwait Air Force, as well as the Kuwait Air Force Museum. In 2004, the first private airline of Kuwait, Jazeera Airways, was launched.{{cite web|url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2002594401_kuwait31.html|title=First flight for Kuwait's Jazeera Airways|work=The Seattle Times|date=31 October 2005|access-date=29 August 2016|archive-date=21 December 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111221124401/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2002594401_kuwait31.html|url-status=live}} In 2005, the second private airline, Wataniya Airways was founded.

File:Plaza Sief, ciudad de Kuwait, Kuwait, 2024-08-12, DD 45.jpg

{{Main|Culture of Kuwait}}

Kuwait is known for its home-grown tradition of theatre.{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-12025499|title=Reviving Kuwait's theatre industry|work=BBC News|access-date=21 July 2018|archive-date=11 November 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141111041620/http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-12025499|url-status=live}} Kuwait is the only Arab country in the Gulf region with a theatrical tradition.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=O06bOHRW7s8C&pg=PA277|title=Popular Culture in the Arab World: Arts, Politics, and the Media|page=277|isbn=9789774160547|last1=Hammond|first1=Andrew|year=2007|publisher=American Univ in Cairo Press }} The Arabic theatrical movement in Kuwait constitutes a major part of the country's Arabic cultural life. Theatrical activities in Kuwait began in the 1920s when the first spoken dramas were released.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Nsqec4PcdmYC&pg=PT143|title=The World Encyclopedia of Contemporary Theatre: The Arab world|isbn=9780415059329|last1=Rubin|first1=Don|date=January 1999|publisher=Taylor & Francis }} Theatre activities are still popular today.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TG2mP5KTDn8C&pg=PA147|title=The World of Theatre: An Account of the Theatre Seasons 1996–97, 1997–98 and 1998–99|page=147|isbn=9780415238663|last1=Herbert|first1=Ian|last2=Leclercq|first2=Nicole|last3=Institute|first3=International Theatre|year=2000|publisher=Taylor & Francis }}

{{see also|Cinema of Kuwait}}

Kuwaiti soap operas (المسلسلات الكويتية) are among the most-watched soap operas in the Arab world.{{cite web|url=http://news.kuwaittimes.net/entertainment-gets-soapy-ramadan-kuwait/|title=Entertainment gets soapy during Ramadan in Kuwait|access-date=22 June 2018|archive-date=17 October 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191017125231/http://news.kuwaittimes.net/entertainment-gets-soapy-ramadan-kuwait/|url-status=dead}} Most Gulf soap operas are based in Kuwait. Although usually performed in the Kuwaiti dialect, they are aired in the majority of Arabic-speaking countries and are highly popular.{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Uzy_AAAAIAAJ&q=Some+Kuwaiti+soap+operas+have+become+extremely+popular+and,+although+they+are+usually+performed+in+the+Kuwaiti+dialect,+they+have+been+shown+with+success+as+far+away+as+Tunisia. |title=Kuwait: vanguard of the Gulf |page=113 |isbn=9780091736040 |quote=Some Kuwaiti soap operas have become extremely popular and, although they are usually performed in the Kuwaiti dialect, they have been shown with success as far away as Mauritania. |last1=Mansfield |first1=Peter |year=1990 |publisher=Hutchinson |access-date=5 April 2023 |archive-date=13 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240313101852/https://books.google.com/books?id=Uzy_AAAAIAAJ&q=Some+Kuwaiti+soap+operas+have+become+extremely+popular+and,+although+they+are+usually+performed+in+the+Kuwaiti+dialect,+they+have+been+shown+with+success+as+far+away+as+Tunisia. |url-status=live }}

{{Main|Sport in Kuwait}}

The city is home to the Al Kuwait SC, which has traditionally provided Kuwait's national basketball team with key players.[https://www.fiba.basketball/asia/2015/Kuwait tab=roster 2015 FIBA Asia Championship – Kuwait Roster], FIBA.com, accessed 16 February 2016.

From 13 to 15 February 2020 it held the first Aquabike World Championship Grand Prix of Kuwait.{{cite web |title=Double delight for Team Abu Dhabi riders at Kuwait Grand Prix |url=https://www.gulftoday.ae/sport/2020/02/14/double-delight-for-team-abu-dhabi-riders-at-kuwait-grand-prix |archive-date=9 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201209051151/https://www.gulftoday.ae/sport/2020/02/14/double-delight-for-team-abu-dhabi-riders-at-kuwait-grand-prix |url-status=live |publisher=GulfToday |date=14 February 2020 |accessdate=2022-03-16}}{{cite web |last=Al-Kandari |first=Mashari |title=Kuwait's Abdulrazzeq wins ITU Aquabike World Championships' ... |url=https://menafn.com/1100996435/Kuwaits-Abdulrazzeq-wins-ITU-Aquabike-World-Championships-slalom-GPI |archive-date=22 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210422163433/https://menafn.com/1100996435/Kuwaits-Abdulrazzeq-wins-ITU-Aquabike-World-Championships-slalom-GPI |url-status=live |publisher=Menafn.Com |date=2020-10-21 |accessdate=2022-03-16}}

• Abdulhussain Abdulredha (1939–2017), Kuwaiti actor
• Rania Al-Abdullah (born 1970 as Rania Al-Yassin), Kuwaiti-born queen consort of Jordan
• Yasser Al-Masri (1970–2018), Kuwaiti-born Jordanian actor
• Mishary Rashid Alafasy (born 1976), qāriʾ, imam, preacher and nasheed singer
• Adline Castelino (born 1998), model, represented India in the Miss Universe 2020 pageant
• Diana Karazon (born 1983), Kuwaiti-born Jordanian singer
• Saleem Haddad (born 1983), Kuwaiti author and aid worker
• Khaled Mazeedi (born 1986), Kuwaiti media magnate, internet entrepreneur, author and philanthropist
• Omar Jarun (born 1983), former footballer and currently an assistant coach for Atlanta United 2
• Abdulfattah Owainat (born 1972), Kuwaiti-born Palestinian singer and songwriter

• List of twin towns and sister cities of Kuwait

{{Reflist|colwidth=30em}}

{{Commons category|Kuwait City}}

• {{Wikivoyage inline|Kuwait City}}
• {{Cite EB1911|wstitle=Kuwēt|volume=15|page=956|first=Robert Alexander|last=Wahab}} This gives some data from its 19th century history.
• [https://kuwaittales.com Kuwait Tales]

{{Kuwait City}}

{{Kuwait topics}}

{{List of Asian capitals by region}}

{{Capitals of Arab countries}}

{{Arab Capital of Culture}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kuwait City}}

Category:Capitals in Asia

Category:Populated coastal places in Kuwait

Category:Populated places established in 1752

Category:Populated places in Kuwait

Category:Port cities and towns in Kuwait

Category:Port cities and towns of the Persian Gulf