Dawlat al-Kuwayt

Political Status: Constitutional hereditary emirate; independent since June 19, 1961, save for occupation by Iraq from August 2, 1990, to February 26, 1991.

Area: 6,880 sq. mi. (17,818 sq. km.).

Population: 2,213,403 (2005C), including 880,774 Kuwaitis and 1,332,629 non-Kuwaitis; 3,604,000 (2008E). The 2005 figure is not adjusted for underenumeration.

Major Urban Centers (2005E): KUWAIT CITY (32,000), Salmiya (145,000), Hawalli (107,000).[Page 806]

Official Language: Arabic.

Monetary Unit: Dinar (official rate December 1, 2009: 1 dinar = $3.47US). In May 2007 Kuwait abandoned the dinar’s peg to the dollar, instead pegging it to a basket of international currencies.

Sovereign (Emir): Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jabir al-SABAH; inaugurated on January 29, 2006, after unanimous confirmation the same day by the National Assembly, following the abdication on January 24 of Sheikh Saad al-Abdallah ...