Shortly I’ll be stationed in Bahrain, and would like to know more of the history of the region. Any recommendations that give a brief overview of the region from ancient to modern?
Sorry for the late reply,
I would start off looking at maps to get a sense of the area if you are completely new to the Middle East. This one has a nice overview of the religious composition in the Gulf as it makes Islamic religious divide more apparent than it seems from a foreigners perspective.
A primary reason why the U.S. has such a huge presence in the Gulf is because of oil. Here is a map of oil reserves (if you are interested in this). Here is another on oil pipelines.
Like in anywhere in the world with sensitive borders, these maps may not be what some countries represent their borders to be. Some countries may also be very sensitive to some maps that don't accurately display their "real borders".
Countries in the area:
The Persian Gulf
Gause, F. Gregory. The International Relations of the Persian Gulf. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010.
Herb, Michael, The Wages of Oil: Parliaments and Economic Development In Kuwait and the UAE. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 2014.
Zahlan, Rosemarie Said. The Making of the Modern Gulf States: Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, and Oman. Rev. and updated ed. Reading, Berkshire, U.K.: Ithaca Press, 1998.
Urkevich, Lisa, Music and Traditions of the Arabian Peninsula: Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Qatar. New York, NY: Routledge, 2015.
Saudi Arabia
Al-Rasheed, Madawi. A History of Saudi Arabia. 2nd ed. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2010.
Vasilʹev, A. M. The History of Saudi Arabia. London: Saqi Books, 1998.
UAE
Davidson, Christopher M. Abu Dhabi: Oil and Beyond. New York: Columbia University Press, 2009.
Davidson, Christopher M. Dubai: The Vulnerability of Success. London: Hurst and Company, 2008.
Bahrain
Khalīfah, ʻAbd Allāh ibn Khālid., and Michael Rice. Bahrain Through the Ages: The History. London: Kegan Paul International, 1993.
Larsen, Curtis E. Life and Land Use On the Bahrain Islands: The Geoarcheology of an Ancient Society. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1983.
AlShehabi, Omar H., Contested Modernity: Sectarianism, Nationalism, and Colonialism In Bahrain. London: Oneworld Academic, 2019.
One thing you will definitely be surprised about is the amount of non-Bahrainis in Bahrain or foreign workers in each Gulf country. Here are some books on migration:
Gardner, Andrew, City of Strangers: Gulf Migration and the Indian Community In Bahrain. Ithaca: ILR Press, 2010.
Chowdhury, Mehdi. ed., and S Irudaya Rajan ed. South Asian Migration In the Gulf: Causes and Consequences. 1st ed. 2018. Cham: Springer International Publishing, 2018.
Feel free to comment if you are interested in a particular area, since there are definitely more sources to consider that I have not listed (as you have a big request for sources :) ).
Thank you for the suggestions! Been here about 6 weeks now. The Sunni/Shia divide is real out here, and greater than half the population are expats as well.
I will check out the books about the Indian communities out here. It’s amazing how large the Pakistan/Indian population out here is, and how it shapes the culture. Diwali was a huge celebration, and there are more Indian restaurants than Arabic, at least where I’m staying.
Fascinating area, I’m curious about the future here. I know UAE is preparing for a post oil world. I wonder if this area can diversify fast enough, or will much of the area be a ghost town in my lifetime.