Geography The

United Arab Emirates occupies a territory in the northeastern part of the Arabian Peninsula, washed by the Persian Gulf. On land, the United Arab Emirates borders Saudi Arabia in the south and west, and Oman in the east. The north coast is opposite Iran across the Persian Gulf, while Qatar is only 50 km to the north-west. Together, these emirates occupy a territory of approximately the same size as Portugal. The emirate of Abu Dhabi accounts for 85% of the area of ​​the entire United Arab Emirates; and the smallest of the emirates, Ajman, is only 250 km².

Climate

The country's climate is very hot and dry (tropical desert). Often there are sandstorms. The average maximum in the shade in the summer months is approximately 40-45 ° C, but often reaches 50 ° C. Temperature in winter: 20–23 ° C during the day, colder at night, but frosts are extremely rare. Precipitation is irregular, mainly from November to May, the annual rate is about 100 mm.
Despite the desert climate unfavorable to the flora, Dubai has the world's largest flower park.

Population

Distribution of population and area by UAE Emirates 1998
The population of the United Arab Emirates is approximately 9.3 million [1], of whom ethnic Arabs make up only a third, and indigenous people make up 11%. The rest come from Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal and other countries in South Asia and the Philippines, who immigrated to the UAE as temporary workers. 85% of residents in the country are not citizens of the UAE. Arab immigrants are represented mainly by Arabs from other Arab countries with a low standard of living (Yemen, Iraq, Egypt, Sudan). There are people from Eastern and Central Africa, mainly from Somalia, Ethiopia, Tanzania and Eritrea.

88% of the population of the Emirates is concentrated in cities. The largest and fastest growing city is Dubai, with a population of over 2.5 million. Other major cities are Abu Dhabi (the capital), Sharjah, Al Ain and Fujairah.

Religion

Almost all citizens of the United Arab Emirates are Muslims, 85% of whom are Sunni, and 15% are Shiites. According to the Emirates migration services, about 55% of immigrants are also Muslim, 25% are Hindu, 10% are Christian, and 5% are Buddhist. The other 5% are Sikh and Bahá’í minorities. According to a study by the Ministry of Planning, out of a total of 4.1 million people living in the UAE, including foreigners, three-quarters are Muslims.

Dubai is the only emirate where there is a gurdwara and a mandir. Churches are in every emirate. In 2011, the first Orthodox church complex in the history of Christianity was built on the territory of the United Arab Emirates.

Languages

Arabic is the official language of the United Arab Emirates. The country also uses English, Hindi, Urdu, Farsi and Tagalog.
Due to the large influx of Russian-speaking tourists in Dubai, a huge number of signs and announcements appeared in Russian, and many people speak Russian in tourist centers, hotels and shops [