Gendered space in the leisure landscapes of a modernising Islamic State

Abstract

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is the birthplace of Islam and has a religious role and obligation in the Islamic world. Since the discovery of oil in 1936, Saudi Arabia has undergone rapid modernisation. The rise in oil prices in 2004 has made the country enjoy unprecedented revenue, which has led to increasing governmental spending and an increase in per capita income. This has encouraged the public and private sectors to create leisure spaces for domestic tourists. However, the development of new leisure spaces has faced strong opposition and criticism from the religious establishment, which views the new modern leisure spaces as a threat to the local culture that could encourage non-Islamic forms of social activities, and undermine the traditions of segregation between the two genders that currently shape the traditional Saudi society. This research is focused upon a better understanding of how globalisation and modernisation have shaped leisure spaces in a country where gender segregation is fundamental to the culture. It aims to understand how gender relationships are expressed in the new modern leisure spaces in Saudi Arabia. Determining the different characteristics of gender segregation in leisure spaces and landscapes will contribute to the development of more culturally sensitive and sustainable leisure strategies, and will enhance and improve the management of leisure landscapes. The study uses a qualitative research approach in different settings within two case study regions in Saudi Arabia. It identifies the different types and characteristics of gender segregation in leisure landscapes. The findings revealed that the domestic sphere of gendered relationships is being reinvented and re-expressed as family-based, quasi-public leisure landscapes. The study also indicates that the new leisure spaces are liminal enclaves that are re-embedding new practices from the global society into a conservative society.