The
Role
of
the
Extended
Family
in
Saudi
Arabia
By
David
E.
Long
Many
years
ago,
a
friend
of
mine
walking
down
the
sidewalk
of
a
small
Georgia
town
with
his
father
met
a
small
boy
whom
his
father
hailed,
"Howdy,
son;
how
are
your
folks?"
Surprised,
Ed
asked,
"Did
you
know
that
little
boy?"
"No,"
his
father
replied,
"but
everybody's
got
folks."
What
could
be
called
a
truism
in
small
town
America
is
a
fact
in
Saudi
Arabia.
Virtually
every
Saudi
citizen
is
a
member
of
an
extended
family,
including
siblings,
parents
and
grandparents,
cousins,
aunts
and
uncles.
The
extended
family
is
the
single
most
important
unit
of
Saudi
society,
playing
a
pivotal
role
not
only
in
Saudi
social
life,
but
economic
and
political
life
as
well.
Even
personal
self-identity
posits
a
collective
self.
Each
family
member
shares
a
collective
ancestry,
a
collective
respect
for
elders,
and
a
collective
obligation
and
responsibility
for
the
welfare
of
the
other
family
members.
It
is
to
the
extended
family,
not
to
the
government,
that
a
person
first
goes
to
seek
help.
The
Extended
Family
in
Saudi
Society
Raphael
Patai,
writing
in
the
1960s,
stated
that
in
every
place
where
Westernization
had
not
yet
made
appreciable
inroads,
the
Middle
Eastern
family
was
patrilocal,
patrilineal
and
patriarchal,
meaning
that
they
generally
lived
in
close
proximity,
computed
lineage
by
the
male
line,
and
were
guided
by
family
elders.
The
key
question
today
is
how
much
has
Westernization
modified
the
traditional
role
of
the
extended
Saudi
family.
Saudi
Arabia
is
currently
experiencing
social
change
at
an
unprecedented
rate,
driven
by
oil
wealth
and
the
government's
commitment
to
modernization.
In
the
past
fifty
years,
the
Kingdom
has
spent
billions
of
dollars
on
social,
physical
and
economic
infrastructure,
including
modern
education,
transportation,
communications,
health
care
and
sanitation.
As
a
result,
demographics
have
changed
dramatically.
Modern
health
care
has
helped
create
a
population
explosion
of
an
estimated
3.5
percent
a
year.
Saudi
Arabia's
population
increased
from
about
2
to
4
million
in
the
1960s
to
about
16
million
by
the
end
of
the
century.
Urbanization
has
changed
the
face
of
the
country.
In
the
1960s,
the
population
lived
predominantly
in
small
towns
and
villages.
Jiddah,
then
the
largest
city,
had
a
population
of
about
250,000,
and
Riyadh
had
about
200,000.
Today,
the
great
majority
of
Saudis
live
in
urban
areas;
Riyadh
now
numbers
over
3.5
million,
and
Jiddah
over
3
million.
The
information
revolution
has
also
had
an
impact
on
society,
finally
eradicating
the
physical
isolation
that
has
historically
shrouded
most
of
Arabia.
Personal
computers
are
now
commonplace,
and
even
small
children
can
now
be
seen
(and
heard!)
walking
with
their
elders
in
modern
shopping
centers
jabbering
away
on
mobile
telephones.
News
from
around
the
globe
is
instantly
available,
and
Saudis
living
and
studying
abroad
are
in
daily
communication
with
home.
It
is
no
longer
possible
to
control
information,
not
only
about
what
is
happening
in
Saudi
Arabia,
but
about
events
impacting
on
the
Kingdom
from
around
the
world.
One
of
the
most
obvious
results
of
the
population
explosion
and
rapid
modernization
over
the
last
fifty
years
is
the
creation
of
sequential
generation
gaps.
If
you
were
to
interview
a
representative
sample
of
children,
young
people,
young
adults,
middle-aged
people,
and
the
elderly,
you
would
probably
get
five
very
different
views
of
Saudi
behavioral
tastes
and
mores.
Despite
rapid
modernization
and
adoption
of
many
superficial
aspects
of
Western
pop
culture,
the
extended
family
has
been
remarkably
resilient
to
Westernization.
With
the
move
to
the
cities,
members
of
Saudi
extended
families
still
tend
to
live
in
close
proximity
to
each
other
whenever
possible,
and
when
not,
they
do
a
great
deal
of
socializing
with
other
members.
In
addition,
many
families
retain
homes
in
their
hometowns
as
well
as
where
they
work.
A
major
reason
for
the
resilience
of
the
traditional
extended
family
structure
however,
is
the
extraordinary
strength
of
traditional
Islamic
social,
economic
and
political
values.
Although
behavioral
patterns
have
changed
with
mind-numbing
speed,
these
basic
values
are
deeply
held
and
are
not
likely
to
change
rapidly
over
time.
Moreover,
Saudi
Arabia
never
experienced
the
cultural
assault
of
direct
Western
colonial
rule
and
still
retains
an
essentially
closed
society.
Saudis
generally
prefer
to
socialize
with,
to
do
business
with,
and
in
general
to
communicate
with
their
"own
kind"
than
with
outsiders.
The
Extended
Family
Dynamics
Three
characteristics
of
extended
family
dynamics
particularly
stand
out:
gender
roles,
the
role
of
elders,
and
the
decision-making
process:
The
Role
of
Family
Elders:
It
has
already
been
noted
that
Saudi
Arabia
has
a
patriarchical
society,
maintaining
a
respect
for
age
and
seniority
that
has
all
but
disappeared
in
Western
society.
The
wisdom
and
authority
of
elders
is
seldom
challenged,
and
younger
men
and
women
must
wait
their
turn,
often
until
their
sixties
or
older,
before
they
are
accorded
the
role
of
family
patriarchs
and
matriarchs.
This
is
not
to
say
that
there
are
no
signs
of
change.
The
population
explosion
has
dramatically
lowered
the
median
age,
which
is
now
15
years
old.
At
the
same
time,
life
expectancy
has
risen
with
modern
health
care,
and
elders
are
not
relinquishing
their
leadership
roles
as
soon
as
they
once
did.
These
trends
have
helped
create
a
generation
of
young
people
who
are
increasingly
frustrated
in
seeking
to
create
meaningful
lives
of
their
own.
Indeed,
the
most
onerous
authority
figure
for
a
young
wife
can
often
be
her
mother-in-law
or
her
husband's
grandmother,
not
her
husband
who,
in
matters
dealing
with
the
home,
is
as
much
under
his
own
matriarchal
domination
as
is
his
wife.
Nevertheless,
although
young
people
find
domination
by
their
elders
increasingly
frustrating,
it
is
still
a
dominant
characteristic
in
family
dynamics.
Gender
Roles:
Traditional
gender
roles
in
Saudi
society
share
a
number
of
common
characteristics
with
other
traditional
societies,
the
most
notable
of
which
is
that
men's
roles
are
outside
the
home
as
family
providers,
protectors,
and
managers,
and
women's
roles
are
in
the
home.
Men
are
predominant
outside
the
home
--
in
business
and
public
affairs
and
business,
and
women
are
to
a
large
degree
predominant
within
the
home,
particularly
in
parental
decisions.
Increasingly,
however,
the
lines
of
distinction
are
being
blurred.
For
example,
as
the
population
explosion
has
greatly
reduced
the
per
capita
income,
many
young
wives
are
finding
employment
outside
the
home,
and
husbands
are
assuming
duties
in
the
home
unthinkable
a
generation
ago.
Marriage
customs
are
also
changing.
Many
women
are
waiting
longer
before
marrying,
and
although
most
marriages
are
still
"arranged,"
most
young
people
are
now
personally
acquainted
with
their
intended
spouses.
Young
couples
today
can
meet
surreptitiously,
often
with
the
help
of
siblings,
communicate
by
cellular
phone,
and
then
if
mutually
agreeable,
ask
their
mothers
to
arrange
the
marriage.
By
tradition,
however,
married
women
do
not
assume
their
husband's
surname,
and
if
they
are
divorcees
or
widowed,
may
be
reunited
with
their
own
families.
Frustration
is
increasing
among
Saudi
women
at
social
restrictions
on
mobility
outside
the
home,
such
as
wearing
a
veil
and
not
being
allowed
to
drive
an
automobile.
A
growing
number
of
younger
women
in
particular
echo
Western
critics'
views
that
such
practices
are
demeaning
and
confirm
an
inferior
status
of
women
in
Saudi
society.
In
order
fully
to
understand
such
practices
and
the
frustration
they
engender,
however,
it
is
necessary
to
view
them
from
the
context
of
Saudi
cultural
norms
and
values,
not
Western
norms
and
values.
From
a
Western
perspective,
women
should
be
liberated
from
such
practices
because
they
prevent
them
from
achieving
individual
self-fulfillment.
From
a
Saudi
perspective,
however,
self-fulfillment
is
a
far
more
collective
concept,
rooted
in
family
identity.
Ironically,
however,
the
extended
family,
as
the
basic
structural
unit
in
the
traditional
society,
is
the
source
of
these
traditional
practices;
and
it
is
inconceivable
that
a
Saudi
woman
would
seek
to
liberate
herself
from
the
institution,
i.e.
the
extended
family,
that
forms
the
backdrop
for
her
own
self-identity.
From
a
Saudi
perspective,
therefore,
those
who
seek
change,
do
not
seek
to
alter
the
traditional
society,
but
rather
to
rid
themselves
of
practices
they
find
onerous.
The
Decision-Making
Process:
The
traditional
method
for
reaching
and
legitimizing
group
decisions
in
Arabia
is
through
consultation
(shura)
among
those
within
the
group
whose
opinions
are
considered
important.
From
consultation
emerges
consensus
(ijma`),
and
is
binding
on
all
members
of
the
group.
Within
the
extended
family,
the
principal
consensus
makers
are
senior
members
or
elders.
This
ancient
Arabian
process
of
consultation
and
consensus
was
given
religious
sanction
in
Islam.
From
texts
in
the
Qur'an
and
the
Sunna
(Prophetic
traditions
of
the
Prophet
Muhammad),
comes
the
belief
that
God
would
never
permit
a
consensus
of
the
Islamic
community
to
be
in
error.
Consensual
decision-making
is
still
the
norm
in
Saudi
Arabia,
whether
in
family,
government,
or
business
decisions.
Senior
women
may
also
participate
in
family
consultations
and
consensus
making,
not
only
on
issues
involving
the
home
but
also
on
issues
involving
family
businesses
and
on
occasion
where
the
family
is
involved,
even
in
politics.
King
Abd
al-Aziz
(Ibn
Saud)
regularly
consulted
with
his
full
sister,
Nura,
who
was
one
of
his
closest
advisors
on
matters
of
state;
and
King
Faysal's
wife,
`Iffat,
who
was
also
active
in
public
affairs,
particularly
women's
education,
was
universally
called
"the
Queen"
out
of
respect
for
pioneering
efforts
even
though
the
title
technically
did
not
exist.
The
Impact
of
the
Extended
Family
on
Politics
Saudi
Arabia
has
often
been
characterized
in
the
West
as
an
absolute
monarchy
with
no
public
participation
in
the
political
process.
It
is
not
democratic
in
a
Western
sense
to
be
sure,
but
neither
is
it
absolute.
There
are
two
principal
constraints
on
the
ruler.
First,
the
constitutional
system
of
Saudi
Arabia
is
based
on
Islamic
law,
and
the
ruler
is
not
above
the
law.
Second
is
the
consultative
nature
of
decision-making.
John
Esposito
describes
the
political
process
in
seventh
century
Arabia,
at
the
dawn
of
Islam:
Tribes
were
led
by
a
chief
(shaykh)
who
was
selected
by
a
consensus
of
his
peers
--,
that
is
the
heads
of
leading
clans
or
families.
These
elders
formed
an
advisory
council
(majlis)
within
which
the
tribal
chief
exercised
his
leadership
and
authority….
Then
as
now
both
the
political
leader
was
as
much
consensus-maker
as
chief
executive.
Then
as
now,
the
consensus
makers
were
the
elders
of
the
extended
families
and
clans.
Saudi
Arabia
is
not
a
country
of
individuals
ruled
by
a
single,
absolute
monarch,
or
even
an
autocratic
royal
family
ruling
over
a
country
of
individuals.
It
is
a
system
whereby
the
patriarch
of
an
extended
royal
family
ruling
with
the
consensus
of
leading
members
of
a
nation
of
extended
families.
Moreover,
in
a
land
where
Islamic
law
forms
the
constitutions,
the
current
appointed
Saudi
Consultative
Assembly
(Majlis
al-Shura)
is
not
an
embryonic
secular
legislature.
It
is
a
modern
institutionalization
of
a
tradition
of
consensus
extending
back
to
the
seventh
century
and
beyond.
There
has
been
recent
talk
of
making
it
an
elective
body,
and
if
it
continues
to
evolve,
there
is
a
possibility
of
its
duties
being
expanded
to
include
formulation
of
enabling
decrees
for
government
operations.
But
however
it
evolves,
it
will
be
a
reflection
of
an
extended
family
structure
and
the
Islamic
values
of
Saudi
society.
The
Impact
of
the
Extended
Family
on
Economics
and
Commerce
Extended
families
dominate
most
of
the
largest
private
business
firms
in
the
Kingdom.
Prior
to
the
oil
era,
the
Hajj,
or
Great
Pilgrimage
to
Makkah
was
the
backbone
of
the
Saudi
economy.
Over
the
centuries,
great
merchant
families
had
arisen
in
the
Hijaz,
providing
goods
and
services
to
pilgrims
to
Makkah
and
al-Madinah.
About
2
million
Muslims
now
attend
the
Hajj
annually,
making
it
the
largest
commercial
retail
season
of
the
year,
roughly
corresponding
to
the
Christmas
season
in
the
United
States.
In
the
Eastern
Province,
a
similar
phenomenon
occurred
following
the
discovery
of
oil,
as
oil
workers
from
Saudi
Arabia
and
the
Gulf
shaykhdoms
founded
great
merchant
families,
initially
specializing
in
providing
services
for
Aramco.
With
oil
revenues,
the
public
sector
now
dominates
the
national
economy,
but
extended
families
still
dominate
the
private
sector.
Moreover,
the
government
made
an
effort
to
award
contracts
to
provide
goods
and
services
to
the
merchant
families
as
one
of
the
means
of
distributing
public
wealth
to
the
people.
In
recent
years,
a
new
class
of
venture
capitalists
has
appeared,
many
of
them
younger
members
of
the
old
families.
In
the
absence
of
income
taxes,
they
have
continued
to
create
private
wealth
even
as
government
contracts
have
declined.
It
should
also
be
noted
women
play
a
major
role
in
the
economy
of
the
country.
The
Qur'an
and
the
Sunna
(the
traditional
inspired
sayings
of
the
Prophet
Muhammad),
the
basic
sources
of
Islamic
law,
provided
for
women
to
inherit,
hold
and
bequeath
private
property.
In
the
seventh
century,
these
women's
property
rights
were
revolutionary,
and
were
not
adopted
in
the
West
for
many
centuries.
Saudi
women
now
own
in
their
own
right
a
considerable
amount
of
the
national
wealth
--
in
securities,
real
estate,
and
ownership
of
shops
and
other
businesses.
Restrictions
on
their
physical
mobility
have
not
impeded
them
from
prospering
in
Saudi
Arabia's
free
market
economy.
In
sum,
the
extended
family,
as
the
basic
structural
unit
of
Saudi
society,
continues
to
be
a
major
influence
on
all
aspects
of
Saudi
social,
political
and
economic
life
despite
the
centrifugal
forces
of
modernization
eroding
its
cohesion.
Given
the
furious
rate
of
social
change
that
is
occurring,
the
remarkable
thing
about
the
traditional
society
is
that
it
has
survived
intact
as
long
as
it
has.
Notes:
i
Raphael
Patai,
Society,
Culture
and
Change
in
the
Middle
East,
(Philadelphia
University
of
Pennsylvania
Press,
2nd
ed.,
1969),
p.
28. ii
Estimates
are
based
on
several
sources,
including
The
Saudi
Arabian
Information
Resource,
http://www.saudinf.com
;
and
CIA,
World
Factbook,
2000,
(Washington:
GPO,
2000).
iii
Ibid.
iv
Ibid.
v
S.
G.
Vesey-Fitzgerald,
"Nature
and
Sources
of
the
Shari`a,"
in
Majid
Khaduri
and
Herbert
J.
Liebesny,
eds.,
Law
in
the
Middle
East,
(Washington:
The
Middle
East
Institute,
1955),
p.
95.
vi
John
L.
Esposito,
Islam
The
Straight
Path
(New
York
and
Oxford:
Oxford
University
Press,
1988),
p.
5.
vii
The
greatest
opposition
to
a
secular
legislature
comes
from
the
religious
establishment
on
grounds
that
Islamic
law
is
divine
and
complete,
and
that
any
secular
changes
would
be
heresy.
viii
The
only
recognized
"law"
in
Saudi
Arabia
is
Islamic
law.
What
might
be
called
enabling
legislation
in
the
West
are
called
nizams,
or
decrees.
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