AmericanBadu
Blog about the natural & cultural heritage of Saudi Arabia
about
I’m Joshua Van Alstine — an American writer and researcher living and working in Saudi Arabia. I document the natural and cultural heritage of the Arabian Peninsula, from Bedouin traditions to desert ecology, camel racing, falconry, and ancient history.
Category: Natural Heritage
Discover the natural heritage of Saudi Arabia — its deserts, mountains, wildlife, native plants, and the ecosystems that have shaped life on the Arabian Peninsula for thousands of years.
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A Decree that Changed History On 17 Jumādā al-Ūlā 1351H (19 September 1932), King Abdulaziz Al Saud issued Royal Decree No. 2716, uniting the Kingdom of Hejaz and Najd with their dependencies into the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (al-Mamlaka al-ʿArabiyya al-Saʿūdiyya – المملكة العربية السعودية).The decree took effect on 23 September 1932 (21 Jumādā al-Ūlā…
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“اجتمعنا مع بعض العرب تحت الحماطـه .. حن قلبي على دار الدواء وانا لحالي” “We gathered, we Arabs, beneath the fig tree’s shade…My heart aches for that home of warmth, now that I sit alone.” Under the branches of a Ficus carica, the fig tree (hamaatah), a poet once found both companionship and silence. In…
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Tribulus terrestris is an annual plant in the caltrop family (Zygophyllaceae) widely distributed around the world. It is adapted to thrive in dry climate locations in which few other plants can survive. It is native to warm temperate and tropical regions in southern Eurasia and Africa. It has been unintentionally introduced to North America and…
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Saudi Arabia Shines at Crown Prince Camel Festival: Heritage, Victories, and Record-Breaking Markets
The Crown Prince Camel Festival 2025 in Taif has entered its final stretch, with Saudi Arabia celebrating both sporting victories and economic milestones in one of the Kingdom’s most significant heritage events. Saudi Victories in the Thunaya Races The Saudi-owned camel “Ijtiaz”, belonging to Saer Mohammed Al-Otaibi, stormed to victory in the Thunaya (four-year-old females,…
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Saudi Arabia’s largest milkweed species Calotropis procera (العشار)is a a real pleasure to look at. It has the largest leaves of any native plant species I have ever seen within the Kingdom. Although it is a milkweed species it grows taller than do many trees. The morphology and structure of this plant seem to be…
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The Arabic القرع (al-qaraʿ) or الْيَقْطِينِ commonly translated into English as “pumpkin” or “squash.” But here’s the problem: the bright orange, sweet, ribbed pumpkin we know today—Cucurbita pepo—is native to the Americas and wasn’t known in Arabia at the time of the Prophet ﷺ Regardless of its precise species, the Prophet’s love for qaraʿ tells us…