Full Name : State of Qatar

Capital City : Doha

Time Zone : GMT/UTC +3

Languages : Arabic is the official language, but English is also widely acknowledged. Urdu is also spoken.

History

The history of Qatar is inextricably bound to that of the surrounding region, as the nomadic lifestyle of much of the population of the Arabian Peninsula has resulted in the same family names reappearing around the Gulf.

The State of Qatar country is very ‘new’ and its history brief. But archaeological discoveries have uncovered isolated evidence of habitation dating back to the 6th millennium BC with speculation that man’s presence on the peninsula could pre-date that by tens of thousands of years to prehistoric times. Certainly tools, pottery and other artifacts show the existence of permanent or semi-permanent populations on the Qatari peninsula from the 5th millennium BC.

Geography

Located halfway along the western coast of the Gulf, the 11,437 sq km State of Qatar benefits from its central location, halfway between Europe and Asia.

With more than 80 destinations, Qatar Airways, the national airline, easily connects Qatar to the rest of the world.
A bridge between East and West, Qatar is at the cross roads of the economic, cultural and natural heritage of the Middle East, Europe and North Africa .

Qatar is easily accessible, from some of the world's major cities

• 4.5 hours from Delhi
• 5 hours from Moscow
• 6.5 from London
• 8 hours from Kuala Lumpur
• 12.5 hours from New York

Political Structure

Qatar is officially a hereditary ‘Constitutional Monarchy’ with its ruler taking the title ‘Emir’. Succession is within the Al Thani family; if there is no Al Thani son in the immediate line to serve as Heir Apparent, power can be transferred to another member of the Al Thani family, chosen by the Emir. The country’s first (provisional) constitution was written in 1970 and amended in 1972. A 150-article permanent constitution became effective on 9 June 2005.