Archives Body to Log Kingdom’s Cultural History

RIYADH, 21 March 2006 — The board of the King Abdul Aziz Foundation for Research and Archives (KAFRA) agreed yesterday to propose to Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah a historical project that would focus on the region’s social life in the 12th to 14th Hijri centuries.

The focus of the proposal by the Kingdom’s official archival institution would be to cull all aspects of Saudi social life in this period of history, including religious life, jurisprudence, leisure activities, the economy of the region and family structure. The project would also log for future generations the costumes and cuisines of this period.

Riyadh Governor and Chairman of KAFRA Prince Salman presided over the meeting of its board members yesterday.

KAFRA Secretary-General Fahd Al-Sammari said the board agreed to pitch to the king the implementation of the project titled “Documentation of the Social and Cultural Life in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Between the 12th and 14th Centuries (Hijri).”

KAFRA also agreed to begin collecting royal speeches into one historical collection. “The board reviewed the project, which would document speeches of former kings of Saudi Arabia,” said Al-Sammari.

He said another project was currently under way to gather all the speeches of King Abdullah and publish them. He added that KAFRA is in the process of sending several teams to the Najran area, south of the Kingdom, to conduct research about this region. The project is due to start in August. A similar project will start in the Makkah region in October.