Qatar: From Pearl Diving Village to Global Stage in Fifty Years
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Qatar in 1950 was a peninsula of pearl divers and Bedouin communities with a population of roughly 25,000 people and no paved roads. Oil revenues transformed it within a generation into one of the wealthiest countries per capita on earth. Natural gas revenues — from the North Field, the world's largest natural gas reservoir — transformed it further. Today Qatar has a GDP per capita that rivals Switzerland, a sovereign wealth fund worth nearly half a trillion dollars, and a skyline of Doha that would not have been imaginable to anyone alive in 1950.
Falconry is Qatar's most cherished traditional practice — a hunting tradition that the Bedouin developed over thousands of years in the Arabian desert and that has been recognised by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage. Falcons, particularly the saker and peregrine, are trained to hunt bustards and hares across the desert. In Qatar, a prized falcon can sell for tens of thousands of dollars. The Katara Falcon Souq in Doha is a dedicated market and cultural centre. The birds are treated with a reverence that reflects how central they were to Bedouin survival and identity.
The majlis — the sitting room where men receive guests, conduct business, and discuss community affairs — remains the social institution at the heart of Qatari culture. The majlis is both a physical space and a social practice: open, welcoming, and important for the maintenance of social ties and political discussion. Coffee with saffron and dates is always available. The practice that governed Bedouin hospitality in the desert now governs the social life of one of the world's most modern states.
