18 December: Qatar National Day

Today is another national day - that of Qatar.

1. Qatar's National Day is on 18 December, and is in remembrance of Jassim bin Mohammed Al Thani's succession to the throne. He was responsible for the unification of the country's various tribes and is therefore seen as the founder of the nation. They also celebrate Qatar National Sport Day on the second Tuesday of February.
2. Qatar is an absolute monarchy and political parties are outlawed. The Al Thani dynasty has been ruling Qatar since 1825. The current Emir is Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, whose father Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani abdicated and handed power to him on 25 June 2013. He's not, however, the eldest son. He's the fourth son. One of his older brothers renounced his claim to the throne and the others were passed over. According to The Economist, "One played too much, the other prayed too much."
3. The capital and largest city is Doha, which means 'roundness'.
4. It's probably the richest country in the world, thanks to its oil and gas reserves. It has the highest per capita income in the world, and has the second highest standard of living in the Middle East.
5. Qatar's Flag is the only national flag whose width more than twice its height. It is maroon with a broad white serrated band (nine white points) on the hoist side. The maroon represents the historical importance of purple dye to the nation, and is maroon rather than purple because of the tendency of the purple dye to darken in the sun. The white portion of the flag represents peace from signing anti-piracy treaties with the British; the nine points signify Qatar's inclusion as the 9th member of the 'reconciled Emirates' of the Persian Gulf at the conclusion of the Qatari-British treaty in 1916.
6. Qatar cultivates less than 1% of its land, as most of the country consists of a low, barren plain, covered with sand. It imports 90% of its food, and has only 2 days worth of Water reserves.
7. The highest point in Qatar is Qurayn Abu al Bawl at 103 metres (338 ft).
8. It has the highest proportion of immigrant workers to native nationals in the world. Immigrant workers – mostly from south Asia and the Philippines – outnumber native Qataris by about eight to one - there are only around 300,000 native Qatari citizens in a population of over 2.3 million.
9. In 2022, Qatar is to host the FIFA World Cup - the first Arab country and the smallest country ever to do so.
10. Aware that oil prices could fall and it wouldn't do to be too dependent on oil, Qatar set up the Qatar Investment Authority in 2005 to buy things abroad, including lots of stuff in London. Qatar owns Harrods, The Shard, the Chelsea Barracks site, and the Olympic village site, to name but a few. It is also the largest shareholder in Sainsbury's, with just over a quarter of the business. It also co-owns Miramax Films after buying it from Disney with a group of other investors.