The Kuwait Times (n.d.) reported that this year, the 82nd Saudi National Day celebrates the day in 1932 when the present day unified Kingdom of Saudi Arabia finally became one entity on September 23rd of that year, at that time under the rule of the late King Abdelaziz bin Abdelrahman Al Saud.
At WKU, the Saudi Student Club celebrated their country’s special day, though on Wednesday 26th September, as reported in an article “Saudi Student Club celebrates national heritage” in the Bowling Green Daily News on Thursday 27th September. The celebrations were not restricted to the Saudi students though. Other students were invited to attend and during the afternoon were able to join the Club members who were serving lamb kebabs, special Arabic coffee, as well as dates and chicken stuffed inside a folded flat bread called kimaje. Saudi students took the opportunity to tell other students something about Saudi culture and the country’s history, while some of the male Saudi students demonstrated some of our traditional folk dances, wearing the traditional flowing white robe known as a thobe, topped by the cloth headdress known as the ghutra, held in place by the iqal (cord). Some of our female Club members wore a face veil as well as other suitably modest clothing. Other Club members manned booths, distributing brochures about Saudi Arabia and its culture, including information about the hajj, the annual pilgrimage to Mecca.
According to our Saudi Student Club president, Faisal Alzomily, the club comprises around 200 members at WKU. He stated that the day is a good opportunity to help the other students understand more about Saudi history and culture, admitting that many have little knowledge of Saudi Arabia.
Works Cited
“Saudi celebrates 82nd National Day.” (n.d.). Kuwait Times. Web. 2 December 2012.
“Saudi Student Club celebrates national heritage.” (27 September 2012). Bowling Green Daily News. Web. 2 December 2012.
