Culture & Identity of Kuwait
Introduction
Oil has changed the way of life in Kuwait. In the past life was based on survival as many people lived in the desert, near an oasis, or along the coasts, but the people were spread apart and the population was very small. Today oil has given the people jobs, urbanized the population, and job growth has gone up so much that today there is a large temporary immigrant population to fill extra jobs.
Nearly everyone in the country today lives in the cities, particularly Kuwait City and the capital's urban sprawl. Unlike the past, the capital, and throughout the country, life runs on technology and life in the desert is only available due to this technology. Life in these cities appears similar to many other cities with public transportation taking many people to and from work or school. Most people have regularly scheduled jobs so have a standard work day and work week (the weekend is Friday-Saturday in Kuwait). Most people get food from the local shops, most of which is imported, as are most goods.
The oil industry is so large and growing that the small population can't occupy every jobs so there are many foreign workers in the country (although not in comparison to the Gulf Coast countries further south). For most of these people the daily schedule is the same as the cities dictate the pace of life and daily schedule.