Social Customs in the United Arab Emirates: A Primer for Expats

If you are moving abroad to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to live and work in Dubai or another part of the UAE then you are likely in for a bit of a culture shock depending upon where you are coming from. The Arab customs that you will encounter are very different from what you may be used to in the west and you should prepare your self so that you know what you are and are not expected to do and how you should act.

While you are not likely to offend anyone if you make a social faux pas while in Dubai, you should know the unwritten rules that you need to observe so that you do not offend anyone during your stay in the UAE. It is important to remember that you are the foreigner so it is your job to get an understanding of the culture and not the other way around.

When you are in the UAE you will quickly notice that there are two distinct forms of dress for women in the area. There is the way that local women dress and the way that expat women dress. When you see Arab women outside the home they will typically be dressed according to religious custom which dictates that they must cover almost their entire body from head to toe. The black ankle length covering has long sleeves and a high neckline and is called a abaya. Some Arab women even cover their face and hands, typically these are Saudis who are a bit stricter. In fact, in Saudi Arabia even foreign women have to wear the abaya. Women that dress provacatively are perceived to be easy or to be prostitutes. Showing the shoulders, arms and legs is frowned upon for foreign women.

You can expect for Arab men to waer a thobe, which is a long, loose robe. The thobe is worn for all occasion but sometimes an outer cloak, called a bisht, is worn for formal occassions. Arab men also waer a traditional head covering called the guthra which is a red and white or simply white cloth that is held in place by a black rope. Foreign men are never expected to dress in Arab garments. Suits are rarely worn in the UAE and men are discouraged from waering sleeveless shirts or shorts.

It is important to Arabs to greet each other in the proper manner. It is important to use someone's full name for formal occassions or in correspondence. The general accepted forms for greetings are 'sayyed' for a man or 'sayeeda' for a woman followed by the person's full name. These translate roughly to the equivalent of sir and ma'am. You can also address Arab women as 'madame.' You should address rulers as 'your highness' and senior members of any ruling families are called 'your excellency' with 'sheikh' added to the end of their name.

The greeting you will hear most often in the UAE is 'salam alaykum' which means may peace be upon you. The appropriate response is 'and upon you be peace' which is 'wa alaykum as-salam.' It is customary to shake hands with Arab men when greeting or leaving. Most Arab women do not shake hands with non Arab men so you should follow their lead as some women will shake foreign men's hands. Note that if the handshake you get when leaving is longer than when you greeted the person that means that you have left a favorable impression. Remember that you should not approach Arab women in any manner unless you have been introduced. If you talk business right away without exchaning pleasantries you are perceived as being impatient and uninterested.

Whenever eating and drinking be sure to use only your right hand as the left is considered unclean as it is to be used for toilet purposes. Also do not show the bottoms of your shoes or feet because that means that you think that the other person is dirt. This is highly offensive to Arab people.

If you are invited into an Arab home you should always remove your shoes unless told otherwise. Typically you will be invited to share a meal, which is perceived to positively affect a relationship. Once in an Arab home be careful not to admire any of the possession aloud as tradition is that the host must then offer you the item and you are expected to offer a greater item in return.