Intercultural Communication in a Business Context. Latvia and Saudi Arabia

Cultural Profile of Latvia “Culture is man-made, confirmed by others, conventionalised and passed on for younger people or newcomers to learn. It provides people with a meaningful context in which to meet, to think about themselves and face the outer world (Trompenaar et al. 2002, p.24).” Latvia is one of three Baltic States. It is located in Northern Europe near the Baltic Sea. It has parliamentary Democracy. Official language is Latvian – 58.2%. Other largest language is Russian – 37.5%. Major religions are Lutheran, Roman Catholic and Russian Orthodox. Major ethnic groups – Latvian 57.7%, Russian 29.6%, and others. Latvian history is very complex and meaningful. Shortly it should be mentioned that Poland conquered the territory in 1562 and occupied it until Sweden took over the land in 1629, ruling until 1721. Then the land passed to Russia. From 1721 until 1918, the Latvians remained Russian subjects, although they preserved their language, customs, and folklore. The Russian Revolution of 1917 gave opportunity for freedom, and the Latvian republic was proclaimed on November 18, 1918. The republic lasted little more than 20 years. It was occupied by Russian troops in 1939 and incorporated into the Soviet Union in 1940. German armies occupied the nation from 1941 to 1944. In 1944, Russia again took control of Latvia (Infoplease, 2008). Country regains its independence again in 1991. During the first half of the 1990s, Latvia passed through a transition period from a totalitarian to a democratic society that brought forth crucial social, political, and economic changes. These changes resulted in the introduction of democratic processes, administrative reforms, liberalisation of the economy and introduction of a free market, stabilisation of the new political and economic institutions through privatisation of cultural enterprises, decentralisation of cultural processes and introduction of new legislation (Culturalpolicies, 2008). It is important to know country’s historic background to understand how the cultural values are developed.