Diriyah women’s oral history project to be expanded

JEDDAH: A women’s oral history project, the first of its kind in Saudi Arabia, has gathered together a rich library of stories and testimonies documenting Diriyah’s past.

The initiative, launched last year by the Diriyah Gate Development Authority, involved interviews with local women on topics including education, hospitality, handicrafts, social relations, popular foods, and traditional costumes.

And the project has generated valuable firsthand accounts about important aspects of the history and heritage of Diriyah, known as the “gem of Saudi Arabia.”

DGDA officials said that documenting the social life of women in Diriyah and highlighting their contribution to the local community through videos, audios, and written transcriptions had been one of the authority’s most important achievements.

Members of its research and historical studies team recorded hundreds of hours of video interviews with Diriyah women, particularly the elderly, to unearth stories never before documented in the region’s history books.

DGDA experts working on the project used scientific methods to guarantee the chronology of events and narratives, and due to its success, the authority aims to expand the oral history program over the rest of the year.

Diriyah is known as the land of kings and was the capital of the first Saudi state.