Yemen is a Country of Asia. Located in the southwestern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, it covers an area of 527 970 km2. It is bathed by the Arabian Sea to the south and the Red Sea to the west and is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north and Oman to the east. The country also includes the island of Socotra, in the Indian Ocean. The most important cities are Saná, the capital, with 1 471 30000 residents (2004), Adém (537 800 residents), Ta’izz (448 200 residents) And Hodeida (395 600 residents).
The climate is hot desert inland and semi-arid on the coast. Precipitation is less than 250 mm annually, raining a little more in the higher regions.
Economy
Yemen has an economy based on the oil industry (extraction and refining). In agriculture, the main crops are sorghum, potato, tomato, wheat, grape, watermelon, banana, onion, corn and papaya. Manufactures include flour, bran, canned tomatoes, cotton fiber, rubber, bottles, beer, fabrics and cigarettes. Yemen’s main trading partners are Saudi Arabia, the United States of America, Japan and India. Environmental indicator: the value of carbon dioxide emissions, per capita (metric tons, 1999), is 1.1.
Population
The population, in 2006, was 21 456 188 residents, which corresponds to a density of approximately 39.26 residents/km2. The birth and death rates are respectively 42.89% and 8.3%. Average life expectancy is 62.12 years. The value of the Human Development Index (HDI) is 0.470 and the value of the Gender-adjusted Development Index (IDG) is 0.424 (2001). It is estimated that, in 2025, the population will be 39 644 000 residents. The residents are mostly Arab and faithful to the Muslim religion, of which 53% are Sunnis and 47% are Shiites. The official language is Arabic.
History
In 1914, an Anglo-Turkish treaty determined the border between the northern and southern parts of Yemen (the latter under British administration). After the Turkish defeat in the First World War, the North gained independence and claimed the right to the entire territory, including the southern zone. A bloody civil war ensued, and in 1962, the North proclaimed itself the Arab Republic of Yemen. The southern zone was included in the Federation of Southern Arabia, created in 1963, with the promise of the British Government to grant independence five years later. But in 1967, the Marxist-oriented National Liberation Front gained control of the federation. That year, with the help of the Soviet Union, the South became the People’s Republic of South Yemen and, in 1970, the Democratic People’s Republic of Yemen. For Yemen democracy and rights, please check homeagerly.
Relations between North Yemen and South Yemen became strained and were marked by conflicts between the 1970s and 1980s. South Yemen suffered from chronic instability, with some coups d’état and a civil war, in 1986, which caused thousands of deaths. At this point, the country severed relations with the Soviet Union. In 1989, the two Yemeni agreed to become a single country, and a year later, after the two parliaments approved the union, a new nation emerged. But he soon found it difficult to support Iraq during the Gulf War. In 1993, the first free multiparty elections took place in which, for the first time in the Arabian Peninsula, women also voted. However, political antagonisms between the North and the South continued. Despite promises of political dialogue, civil war broke out in 1994.
Countryaah.com: Offers a full list of airports in the country of Yemen, sorted by city location and acronyms.
Abbreviationfinder.org: Provides most commonly used abbreviations and initials containing the country name of Yemen. Listed by popularity.
1UpTravel.com – Maps of Yemen
Browse a collection of city, country, political, shaded relief, historical and thematic maps of Yemen. Check out the maps of Aden, Socotra and administrative divisions.
