RIYADH: Saudis are being urged to take part in a host of activities and events being lined up to mark World Heritage Day on April 18.
Celebrations will take place throughout the Kingdom with the Saudi Heritage Commission having announced events including craft markets, sound and light shows at historic buildings, traditional dance performances, Al-Qatt Al-Asiri painting, and Arabic calligraphy.
In Riyadh, the King Abdulaziz Historical Center will host events between April 18 and 23, from 9 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. during Ramadan, and from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. during Eid, and other activities will be staged in Al-Ahsa, Hail, and Jeddah’s historic Al-Balad district.
World Heritage Day is celebrated annually with festivals, performances, and social gatherings aimed at raising awareness about significant cultural sites and monuments and how to protect them.
Saudi Arabia has a rich history of civilizations — including the Nabataens and Thamud — and diversity due to its geographic location as a bridge between Asia and Africa.
Individuals came to the Arabian Peninsula as a part of their migration from Africa into Eurasia, and Stone Age settlers used tools made from stone, bone, and wood for hunting, fishing, and collecting plants.
Many such items discovered in the region are now exhibited at The National Museum in Riyadh.
Ali Ibrahim Alhammad, a tourist guide consultant at The National Museum, said: “Five or six Arab kingdoms survived in Saudi Arabia around 4,000 B.C.”
He noted the kingdoms of Dilmun in the east, Tayma, and Lihyanite in the northwest, and pointed out that the Arabian Peninsula had been home to a variety of religions before the rise of Islam.
Alhammad, who gained a master’s degree in archaeology and has spent 23 years working at The National Museum, also highlighted the Bedouin nomadic Arab tribes that had left their cultural imprint, and the importance of landmarks such as the At-Turaif UNESCO World Heritage Site.
