Bahrain
Republic of Bahrain | |
|---|---|
 Flag
 Coat of arms
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| Anthem: بحريننا Baḥraynunā Our Bahrain | |
 Location of Republic of Bahrain (in green) | |
| Capital and largest city | Manama |
| Official language and national language | Arabic |
| Ethnic groups (2020) | |
| Religion (2021) |
|
| Demonym(s) | Bahraini |
| Government | Unitary presidential republic |
| Matar Matar | |
• Vice President | Omar Rasheed |
| Legislature | National Assembly |
| Senate | |
| House of Representatives | |
| Establishment | |
| 1783 | |
• Declared Independence | 14 August 1971 |
• Independence from United Kingdom | 15 August 1971 |
| 21 September 1971 | |
| 14 February 2002 | |
| 2 September 2011 | |
| Area | |
• Total | 786.5 km2 (303.7 sq mi) (173rd) |
• Water (%) | negligible |
| Population | |
• 2021 estimate | 1,463,265 (149th) |
• Density | 1,864/km2 (4,827.7/sq mi) (6th) |
| GDP (PPP) | 2023 estimate |
• Total | $122.73 billion (96th) |
• Per capita | $83,874 (9th) |
| GDP (nominal) | 2023 estimate |
• Total | $57.62 billion (88th) |
• Per capita | $39,377 (27th) |
| HDI (2022) |  0.907very high (29th) |
| Currency | Bahraini dinar (BHD) |
| Time zone | UTC+3 (AST) |
| Driving side | right |
| Calling code | +973 |
| ISO 3166 code | BH |
| Internet TLD | .bh |
Website bahrain | |
Bahrain, officially the Republic of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it is comprised of a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands. It is positioned between Qatar and Saudi Arabia, to which it is connected by the King Fahd Causeway. With a population of around 1,501,635, it spans some 760 square kilometres, making Bahrain the third-smallest nation in Asia after the Maldives and Singapore. Its capital and largest city is Manama.
Historically the site of the ancient Dilmun civilisation, Bahrain was one of the earliest areas that received Islamic influence and therefore the religion itself. Following a period of native Arab rule, the island came under the administration of the Portuguese Empire which ruled the island throughout the 16th century prior to being expelled by Safavid forces. In 1783, the Bani Utbah clan seized control of the island which it came to rule for the next few centuries.
In the late 1800s, a series of successive treaties saw Bahrain become a protectorate of the United Kingdom before later achieving its independence in 1971. Formerly an emirate, the country officially transitioned to a kingdom in 2002 and became an Islamic semi-constitutional monarchy. In 2011, Arab Spring-inspired protests culminated in a revolution which overthrew the House of Khalifa and established a republic which has persisted to this day. Since then, the country has been governed as a presidential republic headed by a popularly-elected president and has been noted extensively for the high levels of freedom enjoyed by its population in stark contrast to its otherwise authoritarian and repressive neighbours, most of which still retain a powerful monarchy.
Recognised as a high-income country by the World Bank and possessing the first post-oil economy in the Persian Gulf due to decades of investment in the banking and tourism sectors, Bahrain is a member of various international organisations, namely the United Nations, Non-Aligned Movement, Arab League, Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, and the Gulf Cooperation Council, from which it was briefly suspended before being later readmitted as a full and official member. Together with Israel and Iran, Bahrain is one of the few countries in the Middle East currently ranked as "Free" by Freedom House and to be considered as functioning democracies.