The Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia is formally the Head of government

Head of government

Head of government is the chief officer of the executive branch of a government, often presiding over a cabinet. In a parliamentary system, the head of government is often styled prime minister, chief minister, premier, etc...

 under the Malik

Malik

Malik is an Arabic word meaning "king, chieftain".It has been adopted in various other, mainly Islamized or Arabized, Asian languages for their ruling princes and to render kings elsewhere. It is also sometimes used in derived meanings...

 (King), the rather absolute Head of State

Head of State

A head of state is the individual that serves as the chief public representative of a monarchy, republic, federation, commonwealth or other kind of state. His or her role generally includes legitimizing the state and exercising the political powers, functions, and duties granted to the head of...

 of the kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...

.

History

The office exists since 9 October 1953, when the second Monarch of the nation mounted the Saudi throne, and has remained in the ruling Saudi dynasty, either held by the Heir-apparent to the Throne or even vested in the reigning Sovereign (or Regent) himself. Under earlier dynasties in present Saudi Arabia (the result of the merger of Nedj and Hejaz

Hejaz

al-Hejaz, also Hijaz is a region in the west of present-day Saudi Arabia. Defined primarily by its western border on the Red Sea, it extends from Haql on the Gulf of Aqaba to Jizan. Its main city is Jeddah, but it is probably better known for the Islamic holy cities of Mecca and Medina...

), the closest equivalent office had a native style, such as Grand Vizier

Grand Vizier

Grand Vizier, in Turkish Vezir-i Azam or Sadr-ı Azam , deriving from the Arabic word vizier , was the greatest minister of the Sultan, with absolute power of attorney and, in principle, dismissable only by the Sultan himself...

.

Incumbents

• Saud
  Saud of Saudi Arabia
  Saud bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud was King of Saudi Arabia from 1953 to 1964. He was removed from power by Faisal because of Saud's mismanagement and waste. He was the eldest surviving son of Ibn Saud and became Crown Prince in 1933. He died in exile in Greece.-Early life:Saud was born in 1902 in Kuwait...
  
  : 9 October 1953 - 16 August 1954 (1st time)
• Faisal
  Faisal of Saudi Arabia
  Faisal bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud was King of Saudi Arabia from 1964 to 1975. As king, he is credited with rescuing the country's finances and implementing a policy of modernization and reform, while his main foreign policy themes were pan-Islamic Nationalism, anti-Communism, and pro-Palestinian...
  
  : 16 August 1954 - 21 December 1960 (1st time)
• Saud: 21 December 1960 - 31 October 1962 (2nd time)
• Faisal: 31 October 1962 - 25 March 1975 (2nd time)
• Khalid
  Khalid of Saudi Arabia
  Khalid bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud was King of Saudi Arabia from 1975 to 1982. He ruled during Saudi Arabia's oil boom years. In 1979, he had to deal with the Grand Mosque Seizure...
  
  : 29 March 1975 - 13 June 1982
• Fahd
  Fahd of Saudi Arabia
  Fahd bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, was King of Saudi Arabia from 1982 to 2005...
  
  : 13 June 1982 - 1 August 2005
• Abdullah
  Abdullah of Saudi Arabia
  Abdullah bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, is the King of Saudi Arabia. He succeeded to the throne on 1 August 2005 upon the death of his half-brother, King Fahd. When Crown Prince, he governed Saudi Arabia as regent from 1998 to 2005...
  
  : 1 August 2005 - present

Sources and references

• http://www.worldstatesmen.org/Saudi_Arabia.htm#Saudi WorldStatesman- Saudi Arabia