Most of Dubai’s history is known only to the desert and the sea. There’s little information about pre-Islamic activity in this corner of the Arabian Peninsula. After the spread of Islam in the 7th century, the Umayyad Caliph invaded southeast Arabia and drove out the Sassanians, one of the great powers of the time. Several artifacts from the Umayyad period have been discovered in modern-day Jumeirah as a result of excavations carried out by the Dubai Museum.

Few written records were kept before the 19th century, and much of the knowledge of Dubai’s past was passed on orally between generations. Documented records of a Dubai village exist only after 1799. Those who first settled here did so around the creek. Traditional economic activity focused on fishing, pearling, herding sheep and goats, and cultivating dates and other small-scale agriculture. For centuries, this region was embroiled in dynastic disputes. It became known as the Pirate Coast because raiders from the modern-day emirates often attacked foreign ships and each other.

Around 1830, a branch of the Bani Yas tribe ancestors of the Bedouins who inhabited the harsh deserts around Abu Dhabi left Abu Dhabi and settled a small fishing village at the mouth of the Dubai Creek. Dubai, under the Al Maktoum dynasty of the Bani Yas tribe that rules the emirate today, became one of seven sheikhdoms under British protection. It used British maritime protection to thwart attacks by the Ottoman Empire and competing sheikhdoms and to advance trade relations with neighboring states.

The advent of the pearling industry drove Dubai’s growth, and by the 1870s, the emirate had become the main trading port along the Gulf coast. Dubai has always taken a laissez-faire attitude toward trade, and this liberal money-making posture attracted merchants from Iran, India, and elsewhere in the Arabian Peninsula. By the early 1900s, Dubai boasted the region’s biggest trade markets. The dhow was the sailing craft that made trade possible, and the souk was the destination. You will see dhows continuing to operate along the creek today, as well as souks in Deira that still bustle with activity. By the 1950s,

Dubai had become a small but successful regional trading and fishing post, although its population was still not much more than 5,000 people. The pearling industry had died out in the 1930s, a result of World War I, the Great Depression, and the cultivation of cultured pearls elsewhere. The discovery of oil in 1967 and its production soon after generated a period of rapid development that forever altered Dubai. An influx of foreign workers, primarily from South Asia, led to exponential population growth.

In 1968, the U.K. announced, as a result of cutbacks in its foreign operations, that it would end its treaty relationships with the seven emirates, then called the “Trucial States” because of the truces that had been negotiated, as well as with Bahrain and Qatar. The nine entities tried unsuccessfully to establish an independent country, and Bahrain and Qatar went their own way. In 1971, Dubai joined Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quiwain, Fujeirah, and a year later Ras Al Khaimah to create the United Arab Emirates. This decision was especially important in ending a long history of border disputes between Abu Dhabi and Dubai, which had even led to war between the two in 1947. Dubai’s rulers sought to put Dubai on the map through a remarkable plan for development. The late Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed al Maktoum is credited with much of Dubai’s rapid growth, focusing Dubai’s energies on trade, diversifying the economy away from the shrinking oil supply, and building commercial infrastructure to attract investment. Rather than spending the oil money on palaces and weapons, as happened in some oil-rich states, he wisely channeled much of the revenue into new investments.

Oil and trade remained the big industries, but in 1979 Dubai opened the Jebel Ali free zone to attract companies from around the world to do business here. This expansionary vision has been continued by his son, Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid al Maktoum, UAE Vice President, Prime Minister, and Ruler of Dubai. Sheikh Mohammad has pushed effectively to transform Dubai into the main trade, financial, and entertainment center of the region. He has encouraged competition among developers who come up with the most innovative projects.

The Dubai government established new economic clusters based on its success with the Jebel Ali free zone, such as Media City, Internet City, Healthcare City, and the Dubai International Financial Center. In the past 5 years, it has focused increasingly on growth in the tourism and real estate sectors, as well. Now that Dubai’s oil industry is all but exhausted, the emirate’s economy is successfully diversified and booming. Dubai’s political system has been less dynamic, operating under the framework of a constitutional monarchy. The political relationship between the seven emirates developed as a loose federation rather than a centralized system. Each emirate has its own hereditary ruler and enjoys substantial autonomy.

Dubai is the second-most powerful emirate after Abu Dhabi, and the other five emirates are substantially less wealthy and influential. Under the government structure, the president of the UAE is the ruler of Abu Dhabi and the vice president is the ruler of Dubai. There’s no universal suffrage or political parties in the UAE, where leaders are chosen by their dynastic positions. Democracy is slowly making an appearance into the political system, however. At the end of 2006, the UAE held its first-ever limited elections to select half the members of the Federal National Council (FNC), a 40-member consultative body with 20 members appointed by emirate rulers and 20 elected. One woman won election to the FNC and seven more women were appointed as council members.

Shisha is thought to have originated in India and Persia, gained in popularity during the years of the Ottoman Empire, and then spread across the Arab world. The earliest shisha was smoked in a coconut shell. The modern shisha water pipe works by water filtration and indirect heat, and is used for smoking flavored tobaccos.

The tobacco comes in a variety of flavors such as apple, grape, and strawberry, and is meant to be shared with everyone at the table, usually over an afternoon coffee or following a nighttime meal. Politics, religion, and other social matters are often discussed over the calming influence of shisha. People may sit for hours chatting and smoking this aromatic pipe.

Muslims are forbidden from eating meat that has not been slaughtered in accordance with Islamic rituals (called halal), and they do not eat pork. An authentic Emirati dish is roasted lamb stuffed with rice spiced with cinnamon, almonds, and pistachios. Although they’re Lebanese in origin, shawarmas (lamb or chicken carved from a spit and served in a pita) are also tremendously popular. Seafood is a staple of the Emirati diet, and includes grilled hammour (a grouper fish), chanad (mackerel), and beyah (mullet).

Main dishes may be served with unleavened Arabic bread, freshly baked in clay ovens, followed by fresh fruit such as dates, figs, and lemon and lime, as well as Arabic sweets. Fruit juices are often drunk with the meal, and Arabic coffee is served after. During Ramadan, evening meals are usually enormous buffets. Unless you manage to swing an invitation to an Emirati’s home for dinner, a good area to find cheap, authentic Arabic food is in Bur Dubai or Deira.

The government is a constitutional monarchy with only limited democratic elements, while the economy is a vibrant capitalist system with staggering growth. Conservative communities live in harmony alongside liberal ones. Local culture is protected, even as widely divergent customs from abroad are welcomed. Although Arabic is the official language, English is widely spoken. These contrasts reflect a city whose international outlook is grounded in the customs of contemporary Islam, a land characterized by its Arabian heritage and willingness to embrace change.

Dubai is a truly multiethnic society. Roughly half of its population of about 1.5 million (there are just more than 4 million people in the entire UAE, making Dubai the most populous emirate) hails from South Asia, a quarter from other Arab countries and Iran, and about 10% from the West and elsewhere in Asia.
The Indian, Iranian, and Pakistani communities are the largest. Among the Western population, British expatriates are most prominent. The local population makes up less than 15% of the total, making Emiratis a minority in their own land. But what is remarkable is their success in protecting their culture in the midst of such sweeping change.

Dubai’s new emphasis on its historic areas and cultural centers, as well as its promotion of traditional pastimes such as camel racing, falconry, and dhow sailing, represent a concerted effort to safeguard the local culture. Religion (p. 16) and family life lie at the core of Emirati society. Relationships are strong not just within the immediate family but among the extended family, which often lives together. Respect for elders is a core value.

Traditional song, dance, and poetry remain integral to the Emirati experience. Families still arrange marriages, which the bride and groom must agree to, and weddings are a significant cultural event that can last up to 2 weeks. They have become increasingly expensive, and the government has established a Marriage Fund to assist locals with affording the enormous wedding costs and dowries and encourage them to marry Emiratis rather than non-nationals.

The bride typically moves in with the husband’s family after marriage, but she does not take her husband’s last name. Emirati women may seem sheltered by some Western standards, but their role in the local society is changing. Unlike in some more traditional Islamic countries, women in Dubai drive and move around the city unescorted.

They have equal educational opportunities and increasingly work outside the home. In UAE universities, 65% of students are women. With increased education and exposure to Western cultures, their readiness to commit to traditional roles as housewives is less certain. As in so many places, the younger generation is much more openminded than the older one.

Emiratis are easy to recognize because of their national clothes. Local men wear an ankle-length white garment known as a dishdasha and a white or red-checkered headdress called a gruta. It is secured on the head with a black cord, the agal. Local women typically wear a full-length dress covered by a black abaya, and conceal their hair with a headscarf called a sheyla. Some women, particularly in the older generation, also cover their face with a veil.

Both men and women are increasingly accessorizing their traditional dress to achieve greater individuality. Dubai is the UAE’s commercial center and the second-largest and wealthiest emirate in the federation, after the capital Abu Dhabi. There’s a widespread misconception that Dubai’s wealth comes from oil money. Unlike Abu Dhabi, which holds a staggering 10% of the world’s proven oil reserves, Dubai’s oil is quickly running out. Two decades ago, oil revenue made up half of Dubai’s GDP; today it accounts for less than 5%. Dubai’s engines of growth are fueled instead by the diversified economy, revolving around trade, manufacturing, and financial services. The strategic location explains its success as a business hub. It sits at a crossroads between the Far East, Asia, Africa, and Europe.

More than 6,000 companies from more than 120 countries operate in Jebel Ali, Dubai’s deepwater port and enormous free-trade zone for manufacturing and distribution. Dubai’s growth is phenomenal. Cranes and construction sites dominate the city, and the joke is that the crane is the national bird. Foreign labor is responsible for most economic activity. Job sectors tend to be stratified among nationalities, and few Emiratis work in the private sector, preferring instead lucrative public sector jobs.

All Emiratis receive excellent government benefits, including education, healthcare, and access to financial resources. The foreign population does not have access to these same benefits, and living and working conditions for unskilled foreign workers can be onerous. Tourism is an increasingly important source of revenue for Dubai.

The number of visitors here more than doubled from 3 million in 2000 to 6.4 million in 2006, and tourism officials are aiming ambitiously for 15 million by 2010. The superlative hotels and entertainment options being established are meant to quiet any potential rivals. Dubai is an immensely easy city to travel in as long as you’re not outside in the heat of summer, and services are excellent. Although Arabic is the official language, you can get by with English just about everywhere.

Dubai’s principal attractions are its white-sand beaches, glitzy malls, thrilling activities, and swanky nightlife. Indeed, Dubai is becoming a tourist magnet for people from all over the world. And it’s not just tourism.

The emirate has established itself as the region’s major commercial center promising political and economic stability, no corporate or income tax, and minimal red tape for those who invest here. I imagine its economic dynamism to be something like Manhattan a century ago, only Dubai has a lot more sunshine and a stunning coastline, too.

But for me what makes Dubai most interesting is not its proliferation of five-star beach resorts, high-end shopping centers, or fabulous nightlife, but rather the way in which ethnic and national groups from around the globe have congregated here to be part of a great urban experiment.

With more than 150 nationalities living peacefully together, Dubai is by far the most open, tolerant place in the region. Its leaders have welcomed people of all backgrounds to participate in the emirate’s growth, and demonstrated the vision and resources to embark on projects few cities could even dream of. In Dubai, grand ideas, shocking wealth, and the hard work of foreign labor are making this one of the most extraordinary urban cities of the 21st century.