Social and Ethnic Differentiation in Kuwait
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SOCIAL AND ETHNIC DIFFERENTIATION IN KUWAIT: A SOCIAL. GEOGRAPHY OF AN INDIGENOUS SOCIETY By Waleed A.A. Al-Munais A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy to the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London 1981 ProQuest Number: 10731547 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a com plete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. uest ProQuest 10731547 Published by ProQuest LLC(2017). Copyright of the Dissertation is held by the Author. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States C ode Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106- 1346 2 ABSTRACT The aim of this study is to illustrate the various aspects of social and ethnic differentiation in Kuwait, In order to understand these aspects, the study will investigate two main elements: (1) analysing the origin and the current aspects of differentiation through time, i.e, 1710-1980, and (2) tracing the spatial aspects of socio-ethnic differentiation over the inhabited area of the country. The study as a whole is a contribution to social and spatial studies of Kuwait society. In addition, it also contributes to other branches of geography like social, urban and electoral geography as it examines related aspects of group segregation and other socio ethnic aspects. The study consists of 7 chapters each of which examines separate aspects but all with one common feature in relation to the theme of the study, The first chapter is primarily an introduction, concerned with three main elements, i.e. the importance of such studies to Kuwait, the objective and approach to the study, and the relation of such studies to the field of social geography. Chapter two is a socio-geographical perspective about the area under study. Chapter three examines the aspects of differentiation in Kuwait since its appearance on the map of the Peninsula until the discovery of oil, i.e, 1710-1946. Chapter four keeps on the same approach of chapter three but for the oil 3 era, i.e. from the year 1946 until 1980, Chapter five is about the segregation of the groups over the inhabited area of Kuwait, It also involved a field work study in relation to the spatial aspects of differentiation in the oil era. Chapter six, follows the year of National Assembly elections and other related aspects, i,e. early features of legislative participation, voting potential of each group and election returns for the election years 1963-67, 1967-71, 1971-75 and 1975-76. Finally chapter seven gives a summary of findings and the conclusion of the study. 4 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS A word of gratitude is recorded for my supervisor, Dr. K.S. Mclachlan for his guidance, encouragement and valuable suggestions on this study. I am indebted to the University of Kuwait for the scholarship and for their constant but constructive follow-up which kept me vigilant all through the accom plishment of this work. Appreciation is also due to Mr. E. Al-Muhanna, the Cultural Attache, and Mr. F, Al- Khayyat,(in charge of Kuwait University students at the Embassy of Kuwait in London for their help in solving many problems I faced. I would like also to thank the staff members, particularly Dr. T, Allan, for their encouragement. I am deeply grateful to my family, especially my dear parents and my brother Adnan, for their endless help and encouragement, I am also grateful to my uncle Yus if Al-Munais and his son Tariq, To a great many friends of mine like Mr, S a rad Al- Qadeeri, Mr. Mohammad Najmul-Haq, and Mr, Wajeeh Abd Al- Rahman, I owe so much which is indescribable, I also want to acknowledge and thank many friends and relatives for the services they have rendered in various ways. I cannot conclude without expressing my gratitude especially to Mr, A, Al-Rubah, former deputy assistant in the Ministry of Justice, Mr, A. Al-Sabt, Mr, I, Al- Shatti, Mr. A, Al-Bodi, Mr. F, Al-Wuhaib, Mr, K, Al-Esa, Mr, W. Al-Manna'i, Mr, M, Al-Allush and Mr, M. Al-Dagmah, Appreciations are also due to all of those whom I inter viewed through my field work. 5 CONTENTS Page Abstract 2 Acknowledgements 4 Table of Contents 5 List of Tables 10 List of Maps and Diagrams 12 Chapter One: Introduction 14 Purpose of the study 15 Approach and Methodology 17 The Area under Study 18 Social Differentiation in Relation to Social Geography 19 Chapter Two; Kuwait: A Socio-Geographical Perspective 25 Location and Physical Geography 2 5 Climate 30 1, The Oil 35 2, Industrial Sector 40 3, Agricultural Sector 44 4, Population 47 (i) Age Structure 49 (ii) Religion Structure 51 5, Social Welfare 51 (i) Health Services 51 (ii) Education 54 6 Page Chapter Three: Social and Ethnic Differentiation 59 in the Pre-Oil Era, 1710-1946, The Rise of Kuwait 59 Early Features of Economic Development in Kuwait 62 The Formation of Main Groups in the Society 65 1, The Ruling Family 69 (i) Tribal Leadership (1756-1896) 70 (a) Trad and Pearl Fishing Development 72 (b) The total collapse of Bani-Khalid Authority 73 (ii) The Single-Family Rule (1896-1915) 74 2, The British 80 (iii) The Dual-Family System (1915-1950) 84 3, The Influential Families 89 4, The Judges 96 5, The Working Class 99 (i) The Najdis 101 (a) Pearl Fishing Industry 103 (ii) The Badu HO- . (a) Badu Tribes of Kuwait 118 - (iii) The Baharnah 124 (iv) The Hasawiyah 12 7 (a) The Baharnah and Hasawiyah Techno-craft Families 129 (b) Factors Behind the Influx of the Baharnah and the Hasawiyah into 130 Kuwait - Push Factors 131 - Pull Factors 134 7 Page ’ (v) The Persians 136 (a) Group 'A' Migration 146 (b) Group ' B’ Migration 147 6. The Slaves 151 - Factors Behind Slavery in Kuwait 151 - Slavery in Kuwait 154 - Their Affairs in Town 157 Chapter Four: Social and Ethnic Differentiation in the Oil-Era, 1946-1980 162 Aspects of Differentiation in the Oil-Era 162 The Citizenship Laws 163^> 1, The Kuwaitis of First Citizenship Degree 168 (i) The Ruling Family 170 (ii) The Influential Families 173 (iii) The Middle Class 177 (iv) The Low Class 179 2, The Kuwaitis of Second Citizenship Degree 180 3, The Non-Kuwaitis 184- 4, The Illegals 194- 5, The Constitution of Kuwait and the Differentia tion in the Oil-Era 194 (i) The Constitutional Guarantees 194 (ii) The Practicality and the Constitution 197 Chapter Five: Urban Segregation in the Pre and Post Oil Eras 200 1. Group Segregation before Oil Discovery 201 (i) Qiblah 204 8 Page (ii) Al-Wasat 206 (iii) Sharg 208 (iv) Al-Mirgab 210 (v) Al-Jahrah 212 2, Group Segregation AfterOil Discovery 216 (i) The Government Land Purchase Scheme 218"^ (ii) Urban Expansion 219^ (iii) Subsequent Plans 223 (iv) Housing Groups in Kuwait 22 5 (a) Neighbourhood Units 226 (b) Popular Housing for Badu Resettle ment 2 26 (c) Private Development Schemes 22 7 3, Social Segregation in the City, Kuwaitis versus non-Kuwaitis, 227 4, Field Work Study - Ethnic Segregation of the Kuwaitis in the City 234 (i) The Questionnaire 234 (a) Areas of the field study 236 (b) Aim of the field study 236 (c) Characteristics of the sample 239 (d) Population and the sample 240 (ii) Property Records Sample 241 (iii) The Field Study 242 (a) Shamiyah 242 (b) Di ’iyah 242 (c) Al-Jahrah 255 9 Page Chapter Six: National Assembly Elections: Participation in Legislative Power As A Means of Socio-Ethnic Activities, 262 1, Early Features of Legislative Participation 262 (i) Council of 1921 263 (ii) Council of 1938 265 2, Attitudes of Other Groups in the Society 271 (i) The British 271 (ii) The Najdis 273 (iii) The Badu 274 (iv) The Baharnah, Hasawiyah and Persians 2 75 3. The National Assembly 2 78 (i) Parties in Kuwait 281 (ii) Socio-Ethnic Characteristics of the Electoral Districts and Seats Won by Each Group 283 4. Socio-Ethnic Competition in Parliament 298 Chapter Seven.: Conclusion and General Consideration 308 Appendix 1 Glossary of Common Terms related to the Study 328 Appendix 2 Sample of the Questionnaire 330 Appendix 3 The New Divisions ofElectoral Districts 337 Bibliography 342 10 LIST OF TABLES Page Table 1, Utilization of Land 46 2, Population in Kuwait, 1957-1980 50 3, Wage Rates Before and After the First World War 110 4, Arabs and non-Arabs of the Second Degree of Citizenship 182 5, Foreign Nationals Arriving in Kuwait by Individual years up to 1957, 186 6, Percentage of non-Kuwaitis in the Census Years, 1957-1980, 188 7, Hawalli Population in Comparison to Selected Kuwaiti Areas (19 70-19 75-1980) 229 8, Distribution of Low Income Houses to Selected Areas, 235 9, Percentage of the Sample to the Male Kuwaitis Over Shamiyah, Di'iyah, and Al-Jahrah 240 10, Occupation Before Oil Discovery (Shamiyah) 243 11, Location of Residence Before Oil Discovery 243 12, Town Divisions Before Oil Discovery 244 13, Occupation of the Ward's Residents Before Oil Discovery 244 14, Residence Information After Oil Discovery 245 15, Occupations of the Ward's Residents After Oil Discovery 245 16, Land Property Records Sample in Shamiyah 24 7 17, Occupation Before Oil Discovery (Di'iyah) 250 18, Location of Residence Before Oil Discovery 250 19, Town Divisions Before Oil Discovery 251 20, Occupations of the Ward's Residents Before Oil Discovery 251 11 Page 21.