Here is some general information on Yemen to give a better understanding of a place many know little about. If you want to delve into greater depth, check out Wikipedia or the YCMES web site:
Yemen is an ancient land with a history dating back over 3,000 years and is mentioned in both the Bible (as the land of the Queen of Sheba) as well as the Qur’an. Among the ancient civilizations that ruled in Yemen were the Sabaeans and the Himyarites. After the spread of Islam, the most important rulers in Yemen were the Zaydis and the Ottomans. The modern period of Yemeni history was characterized by political instability and disunity. The North was ruled by an Imamate until 1962, while the South was part of the British Empire until 1967. Throughout the 1970s and the 1980s Yemen remained split, but was unified as the Republic of Yemen in May 1990. Though Yemen was officially one country after 1990, the North and South engaged in a civil war until 1994, when peace was finally declared. Yemen seemingly became more stable after a border agreement was signed with Saudi Arabia in 2000 and more recently, with U.S. incentives, the Yemeni government pledged to rid its borders of Islamic extremism and terrorism. I use the word "seemingly" only because there is much conflict that still exists in Yemen, often originating from old tensions that have supposedly been mended.
The Yemen College of Middle Eastern Studies is located in the capital city of Sana’a, which dates back to the 6th Century BC. It has been ruled by numerous dynasties, including the Sabaeans, Himyarites, Ethiopians, and Persians, and became a Muslim city during the lifespan of the Prophet Muhammad. Various Muslim rulers oversaw the city from the time of the Ottoman Turks to the Zaydi Imamate, which ended with the 1962 revolution. Sana’a’s history of repeated inhabitations places it as a contender for the oldest and continuously inhabited city of the world at 2500 consecutive years.
Sana’a became the capital of North Yemen in 1962 with a population of less than 250,000. The newly founded capital quickly expanded without proper urban planning, accounting for some of the confusion and frustration experienced when navigating the city today. Currently the city’s population is rapidly expanding to over two million inhabitants, leading to water depletion and energy shortages.
Yemen’s topography is the most varied of any country on the Arabian Peninsula. Northern Yemen is known as the “Roof of Arabia” for its spectacular mountains. The capital of Sana’a sits at the center of the Sana’a basin at an altitude of 2250 meters/7,400 feet, with the rainy seasons extending from April to June and August to September. To the west toward the coast of the Red Sea, the mountains give way to the Tihama, a long strip of coastal plane which is hot and humid, especially during the summer months. The Hadhramout region extends to the south and east, bordering the southern portion of al-Rub al-Khali (the Empty Quarter). Yemen also controls numerous islands in the Red and Arabian Seas, including Socotra which boasts unique endemic species and some of Arabia’s greatest plant and animal diversity native nowhere else on earth; similar only to the Galapagos. Yemen is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, Oman to the east, the Arabian Sea to the south, and the Red Sea to the west.
The population of Yemen in 2007 is estimated at 22 million people, the majority under the age of 25. Growth rates are among the highest in the world at about 3.5%, with Yemeni women having, on average, 6.5 children each. The racial makeup of the population is predominantly Arab, with some immigration from Africa (mainly the Horn of Africa), South Asia, and Europe (mainly Russian). Yemen is one of the poorest countries in the Arab world and receives aid from many Western and Gulf countries. Yemen remains underdeveloped and remote, especially in the countryside where 80% of its population takes residence.
The architecture is quite varied from region to region and from city to city, but most of what I've seen has been unlike anything else I've come across in my travels. Sana’a, Shibam, and Zabid are listed by UNESCO as World Heritage Sites. Most Sana’ani houses feature a mafraj (sitting room) on the top floor. Yemenis socialize in the mafraj by talking, listening to music, smoking, and/or chewing qat.
Though Yemen is a developing and modernizing country, it is still a tribal-based, conservative Islamic society. However, given all these elements, it is probably the only such country to welcome foreigners as openly as it does.
Yemen is an ancient land with a history dating back over 3,000 years and is mentioned in both the Bible (as the land of the Queen of Sheba) as well as the Qur’an. Among the ancient civilizations that ruled in Yemen were the Sabaeans and the Himyarites. After the spread of Islam, the most important rulers in Yemen were the Zaydis and the Ottomans. The modern period of Yemeni history was characterized by political instability and disunity. The North was ruled by an Imamate until 1962, while the South was part of the British Empire until 1967. Throughout the 1970s and the 1980s Yemen remained split, but was unified as the Republic of Yemen in May 1990. Though Yemen was officially one country after 1990, the North and South engaged in a civil war until 1994, when peace was finally declared. Yemen seemingly became more stable after a border agreement was signed with Saudi Arabia in 2000 and more recently, with U.S. incentives, the Yemeni government pledged to rid its borders of Islamic extremism and terrorism. I use the word "seemingly" only because there is much conflict that still exists in Yemen, often originating from old tensions that have supposedly been mended.
The Yemen College of Middle Eastern Studies is located in the capital city of Sana’a, which dates back to the 6th Century BC. It has been ruled by numerous dynasties, including the Sabaeans, Himyarites, Ethiopians, and Persians, and became a Muslim city during the lifespan of the Prophet Muhammad. Various Muslim rulers oversaw the city from the time of the Ottoman Turks to the Zaydi Imamate, which ended with the 1962 revolution. Sana’a’s history of repeated inhabitations places it as a contender for the oldest and continuously inhabited city of the world at 2500 consecutive years.
Sana’a became the capital of North Yemen in 1962 with a population of less than 250,000. The newly founded capital quickly expanded without proper urban planning, accounting for some of the confusion and frustration experienced when navigating the city today. Currently the city’s population is rapidly expanding to over two million inhabitants, leading to water depletion and energy shortages.
Yemen’s topography is the most varied of any country on the Arabian Peninsula. Northern Yemen is known as the “Roof of Arabia” for its spectacular mountains. The capital of Sana’a sits at the center of the Sana’a basin at an altitude of 2250 meters/7,400 feet, with the rainy seasons extending from April to June and August to September. To the west toward the coast of the Red Sea, the mountains give way to the Tihama, a long strip of coastal plane which is hot and humid, especially during the summer months. The Hadhramout region extends to the south and east, bordering the southern portion of al-Rub al-Khali (the Empty Quarter). Yemen also controls numerous islands in the Red and Arabian Seas, including Socotra which boasts unique endemic species and some of Arabia’s greatest plant and animal diversity native nowhere else on earth; similar only to the Galapagos. Yemen is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, Oman to the east, the Arabian Sea to the south, and the Red Sea to the west.
The population of Yemen in 2007 is estimated at 22 million people, the majority under the age of 25. Growth rates are among the highest in the world at about 3.5%, with Yemeni women having, on average, 6.5 children each. The racial makeup of the population is predominantly Arab, with some immigration from Africa (mainly the Horn of Africa), South Asia, and Europe (mainly Russian). Yemen is one of the poorest countries in the Arab world and receives aid from many Western and Gulf countries. Yemen remains underdeveloped and remote, especially in the countryside where 80% of its population takes residence.
The architecture is quite varied from region to region and from city to city, but most of what I've seen has been unlike anything else I've come across in my travels. Sana’a, Shibam, and Zabid are listed by UNESCO as World Heritage Sites. Most Sana’ani houses feature a mafraj (sitting room) on the top floor. Yemenis socialize in the mafraj by talking, listening to music, smoking, and/or chewing qat.
Though Yemen is a developing and modernizing country, it is still a tribal-based, conservative Islamic society. However, given all these elements, it is probably the only such country to welcome foreigners as openly as it does.
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