Kuwait (country)

I

Introduction

Kuwait (country), nation in the Middle East, located at the northwestern tip of the Persian Gulf. Kuwait is a small, desert country, but it possesses a strategic stretch of Persian Gulf coastline and significant petroleum reserves. Kuwaiti citizens, who are Arab Muslims, make up less than half of the country’s population—most of the remainder are immigrant workers.

For many years Kuwait was a minor emirate whose economy centered on sea trade and especially pearl exports. The discovery of oil in the 20th century transformed all aspects of Kuwaiti society, and today the country has one of the highest per capita incomes in the world. In 1990 neighboring Iraq invaded Kuwait, precipitating the 1991 Persian Gulf War, in which an international force expelled the Iraqis.

II

Land and Resources

Kuwait is one of the world’s smallest countries, occupying 17,818 sq km (6,880 sq mi). The greatest distance from north to south is 200 km (120 mi) and from east to west 170 km (110 mi). Kuwait is bordered on the north and west by Iraq, on the south and west by Saudi Arabia, and on the east by the Persian Gulf. The capital is Kuwait city.

A

Natural Regions

The Kuwaiti interior is covered by arid, pebbly desert. The topography is flat with some small rolling hills. Kuwait’s highest point, in the far west, is just 281 m (922 ft) above sea level.

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Kuwait’s coastal plain is low and marshy, and the coastline is dotted with mudflats, offshore bars, and low islands. Larger islands include Būbiyān, near the Iraqi border, and Faylakah, the only island with a significant population. Midway along the coast is Kuwait Bay, on which the city of Kuwait is located. This inlet is the only deepwater harbor on the west coast of the Persian Gulf and accounts, in part, for Kuwait’s prominence in maritime activity.

B

Climate

Climatically, Kuwait is a tropical desert. Summer day temperatures are extremely high–routinely surpassing 45°C (113°F)—but the air is dry except along the coast, where it is often very humid. Winter days are usually warm and pleasant—the average temperature in January, the coldest month, is 13.5°C (56°F). Annual rainfall is typically less than 127 mm (5 in) per year, and almost all of it falls in the cooler winter. Frost occurs at times in the interior on winter nights.

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