History
Saudi Arabia through time
Each entry is labelled by evidence type — archaeological, historical record, religious tradition or government information — and linked to its source.
c. 85,000 years ago
Early Homo sapiens at Al-Wusta
A fossil finger bone found at Al-Wusta in the Nefud desert is among the oldest directly dated Homo sapiens fossils outside Africa and the Levant, from a time when the region held freshwater lakes.
Neolithic onward
Rock art of Jubbah and Shuwaymis
Thousands of petroglyphs depicting humans and animals record millennia of life in the Hail region. Inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2015.
6th c. BCE
Nabonidus at Tayma
Babylonian sources record that King Nabonidus spent around a decade at the oasis of Tayma, a major station on the incense routes.
1st c. BCE – 1st c. CE
Nabataean Hegra
The southernmost major Nabataean city, with over a hundred monumental rock-cut tombs. Saudi Arabia's first UNESCO World Heritage Site (2008).
622 CE
The Hijra to Madinah
The migration of the Prophet Muhammad from Makkah to Yathrib (Madinah) marks the beginning of the Islamic Hijri calendar.
1517
Ottoman suzerainty over the Hijaz
Following the Ottoman conquest of Mamluk Egypt, the Sharifs of Makkah recognised Ottoman authority over the Hijaz.
1727
Imam Muhammad bin Saud in Diriyah
Imam Muhammad bin Saud assumed rule in Diriyah, the date now commemorated as Founding Day (22 February), marking the start of the First Saudi State.
1818
Siege and fall of Diriyah
Ottoman-Egyptian forces under Ibrahim Pasha besieged and destroyed Diriyah, ending the First Saudi State.
1824
Imam Turki bin Abdullah takes Riyadh
Imam Turki bin Abdullah re-established Saudi rule with Riyadh as the new capital — the Second Saudi State.
1891
End of the Second Saudi State
After internal conflict and the rise of the Al Rashid of Hail, the Second Saudi State came to an end.
1902
Recapture of Riyadh
Abdulaziz bin Abdulrahman Al Saud took Riyadh, with Masmak Fortress at the centre of events — the beginning of three decades of unification.
1925
Hijaz joins the Saudi realm
With the surrender of Jeddah in December 1925, the Hijaz came under the rule of Abdulaziz.
23 September 1932
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia proclaimed
The unified territories were named the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, a date marked annually as National Day.
1938
Oil at Dammam Well No. 7
Commercial quantities of oil were found at Dammam No. 7, transforming the Eastern Province and the national economy.
2010
At-Turaif inscribed by UNESCO
The mud-brick heart of the First Saudi State was inscribed on the World Heritage List.
2018
Al-Ahsa Oasis inscribed
One of the world's largest oases, with gardens, canals, springs and historic buildings, joined the World Heritage List.