The Kingdom of Bahrain (abbreviated as Bahrain) is an island nation near the western coast of the Persian Gulf, Bahrain Island is Bahrain's largest island. Saudi Arabia is located in the western part of Bahrain and is connected by the King Fahd Bridge; Iran is located north of Bahrain; The Qatar Peninsula is located on the southeastern side of the Gulf of Bahrain. The capital, Manama, has a land area of 780 square kilometers and a population of 1.7 million (2021).
1. Bahrain is the third smallest country in Asia, with only the city-states of Singapore and the Maldives having smaller land areas. It is an island nation consisting of 36 islands, the largest of which is called Bahrain. Don't look at its small country, but it is the first country in the Gulf region to extract oil, and although its reserves are not as rich as other Arab countries, its per capita GDP still reaches 26,000 US dollars.
2. Bahrain, from Arabic, means "two streams of water, two seas".
3. The Kingdom of Bahrain has a small population of 1.7 million. But of these 1.7 million people, 55 per cent are foreign, equivalent to half of Bahrain's population serving the other half.
4. The ancient book "Yuan History and Northwest Appendix" on the mainland refers to Bahrain. At that time, Chinese silk and porcelain were distributed on Bahrain Island and Kuwait. For centuries to come, Bahrain was the prey of Portuguese colonial powers and Persian dynasties. In 1820, the British infiltrated the Gulf region and forced Bahrain to sign a general peace treaty in the Persian Gulf. Since then, Bahrain has gradually become a dependent colony of the United Kingdom. It was not until 14 August 1971 that Bahrain gained full independence. Only then will Bahrainis have a chance to regain sovereignty and reorganize.
4. There are three micro-states in the Persian Gulf, namely Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait. And during the colonial era, all three countries were British spheres of influence. Bahrain, in particular, was historically the same country as Qatar, ruled by the Al-Khalifa family of Bahrain, and later the Bahrainis were driven out of Qatar. Therefore, the flags of the two countries are basically identical, but the length and width ratio and color shade are different.
5. Bahrain's national anthem is called "Our Bahrain", it is one of the shortest national anthem in the world, only 7 bars long, humming twice quickly finished.
6. Bahrain is a hereditary monarchy with a dual constitutional monarchy, and the king holds the political, economic and military power of the country. The current king's name is Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa.
7. Bahrain knows how to hold its thighs, and has always held the thighs of the United States, so that all countries that have ideas about it are jealous. Bahrain has the U.S. Issa Air Base and the Muharraq Air Base, and more importantly, the Jafar Naval Base, which is home to the headquarters of the U.S. Fifth Fleet, and is full of U.S. warships, even aircraft carriers.
8. Although Bahrain is a small country, it is very concerned about the military, there are more than 10,000 soldiers in the country, almost one in every 100 people is a soldier, which is a very high percentage.
9. Bahrain is mostly pro-Iranian Shia, and the royal family is pro-Saudi Sunnis (62% Shiites, 38% Sunnis), which is clearly a typical minority majority country. This is mainly due to the fact that after 1602, the Persians ruled the island of Bahrain for more than a hundred years. The Bahraini royal family has been suppressing Shiites, who are far less than Sunnis in terms of employment, housing, health care, and social security. Shiites have been fighting, and the Bahraini royal family has been cracking down, with about 3,000 casualties in 2011 alone, a huge number for a small country of just over 1 million people. That is, even if there is no external threat, without the protection of the US military, the Bahraini royal family will be overthrown in minutes.
10. Although Bahrain believes in Islam, the overall popular style is open. The women of Bahrain are open women in today's Arab world. They have long broken through the shackles of the world and entered society, keeping pace with men. On the streets of the capital Manama, girls in short skirts can be seen everywhere, and young girls bathed in the sun can be seen from time to time on the beach on the beach. They can also dance in dance halls, watch Western movies in movie theaters and drive cars.
11. Bahrain is known as Saudi Arabia's backyard. On weekends, people from Saudi Arabia and the surrounding Arab regions will drive to Bahrain to party, go to the sea, drink, party, entertainment, etc. Especially some women, usually wear a big robe in Saudi Arabia, cover only two eyes, after arriving in Bahrain began to let go of themselves, bikini wear, drink wine, don't be too happy!
12. Bahrain implements universal free medical care, the penetration rate of health services is as high as 100%, and the average life expectancy is 73.5 years. At the same time, Bahrain, which has long since universalized nine-year compulsory education, has an education rate of 99% of young people aged 15 to 25, which is the most educated country in the Gulf region of the Middle East.
13. Bahrain is the first country in the Gulf region to extract oil, but it also produces the least oil among the Gulf countries (although a super large oil field was discovered in 2018). In order to avoid returning to poverty after the oil is harvested, Bahrain has implemented transformation and development since the 70s of last century, not only in the refining, petrochemical, aluminum products industry and other industries diversification, but also vigorously develop the financial industry. After years of hard work, Bahrain's economy has successfully weaned itself off oil. In the 50 years since the economic reform, the share of oil and gas in GDP has fallen from 44.5% to 11.1%. At present, the energy industry accounts for only about 20%, while the financial services industry accounts for more than 25%, which has become an important financial center in the Gulf region.
14. Bahrain's currency is called Bahraini dinar, which is one of the highest exchange rates in the world, 1 Bahraini dinar ≈17 yuan. In addition, Bahraini dinar has a special 1/2 currency value.
15. Bahrain has the largest underwater theme park in the world - Bahrain Diving Park. The park covers an area of 100,000 square meters and has a 70-meter-long Boeing 747 jumbo jet fully submerged.
16. Bahrain is not only rich in pearls, but also its pearl quality is world-famous, and the Kingdom of Bahrain is known as the "Pearl of the Gulf". Bahrain is the world's natural pearl trading center, and thousands of people work in the traditional pearl diving industry, where artificial pearls are still prohibited from trading. Today, the world's jewelers and wealthy people want to source natural jewelry, and Bahrain is still their best choice.
17. Bahrain has the world-famous F1 racing track - Bahrain International Circuit. The construction of the Bahrain International Circuit cost $150 million, and the Bahrain International Circuit has 6 tracks, a lap length of about 5.4km, with 15 corners, and the slope difference is close to 10%. At just 1,090 metres of the longest straight, F1 drivers race 57 laps. Because of this F1 racing track, Bahrain pays more than $300 million a year from the pockets of local tycoons.
18. The most worthwhile place in Bahrain is the "Five Ones": a castle, a mosque, a tree, a well, and a bridge. (See today's second article for details)
19. In April 2018, Bahrain discovered a huge oil field with reserves of 80 billion barrels in its western seas, the largest oil field discovered by Bahrain so far. After weighing the pros and cons, Bahrain gave the mining rights to China, which was also the beginning of China-Pakistan friendship. Is the second rail about to be born again?
20. According to incomplete statistics, there are currently less than 500 Chinese who come to Bahrain for pure tourism. Only those who are familiar with history and sports have a general impression of this country. Have you been to Bahrain? Have you learned about the country before?