Kuwait

Kuwait, (Arabic: الكويت)[a] officially the State of Kuwait,[b] is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the north and Saudi Arabia to the south.[13] With a coastline of approximately 500 km (311 mi), Kuwait also shares a maritime border with Iran, across the Persian Gulf.[14] Most of the country's population reside in the urban agglomeration of Kuwait City, the capital and largest city.[15] As of 2024[], Kuwait has a population of 4.82 million, of which 1.53 million are Kuwaiti citizens while the remaining 3.29 million are foreign nationals from over 100 countries.[16] Kuwait has the third largest foreign-born population in the world.[17]

The territory of modern-day Kuwait has been occupied by humans since antiquity, particularly due to its strategic location at the head of the Persian Gulf.[18] A first Kuwaiti state known as the Bani Khalid Emirate existed under the Bani Khalid clan; then the region gained independence as the Sheikdom of Kuwait which would rule for most of the 18th and 19th centuries, until it became an British protectorate. The agreements with the United Kingdom ended in June 1961 when Kuwait became an independent state. Prior to the discovery of oil reserves in 1938, the region was a regional trade port;[19][20] from 1946 to 1982, the country underwent large-scale modernization, largely based on income from oil production. In the 1980s, Kuwait experienced a period of geopolitical instability and an economic crisis following the stock market crash. In 1990, Kuwait was invaded and subsequently annexed by Iraq under the leadership of Saddam Hussein following disputes over oil production.[21] The Iraqi occupation of Kuwait ended on 26 February 1991, after an American-led international coalition expelled Iraqi forces from the country during the Gulf War.

Like most other Arab states of the Persian Gulf, Kuwait is an emirate; the emir is the head of state and the ruling Al Sabah family dominates the country's political system. Kuwait's official state religion is Islam, specifically the Maliki school of Sunni Islam.

Kuwait is a high-income economy, backed by the world's sixth largest oil reserves. Kuwait is considered to be a pioneer in the region when it comes to the arts and popular culture, often called the "Hollywood of the Gulf"; the nation started the oldest modern arts movement in the Arabian Peninsula and is known to have created among the leading artists in the region.[22][23] Kuwaiti popular culture, in the form of theatre, radio, music, and television soap opera, is exported to neighboring Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states.[24] Kuwait is a founding member of the GCC and is also a member of the United Nations, the Arab League, and OPEC.