Officially name: State of Qatar
Capital: Doha
Largest city: Doha
Official language: Arabic
Government: Absolute monarchy
Weddings in any culture are a cause for expensive fanfare and hectic preparations. In the Arabian Gulf, however, weddings are conducted in a unique manner, observant of the gender segregation maintained between nationals in other facets of their private lives.
Qatar is a peninsula in the east of Arabia, bordering the Persian Gulf and Saudi Arabia, in a strategic location near major petroleum deposits. Qatar occupies 11,437 km2 (4,416 sq mi) on a peninsula that extends approximately 160 km (99 mi) north into the Persian Gulf from the Arabian Peninsula.