Yemen
Updated: Sep 9, 2022
Country Name
Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen.
Location
Yemen is a country at the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, the Gulf of Aden and Guardafui Channel to the south, and Oman to the east.
Capital
Sana'a. (By-law)
Aden (Temporary capital).
Reason for Naming the country
One etymology derives Yemen from ymnt, meaning "South", and significantly plays on the notion of the land to the right.
Other sources claim that Yemen is related to yamn or yumn, meaning "felicity" or "blessed", as much of the country is fertile.
The Romans called it Arabia Felix ("fertile Arabia"), as opposed to Arabia Deserta ("deserted Arabia"). Latin and Greek writers referred to ancient Yemen as "India", which arose from the Persians calling the Abyssinians whom they came into contact with in South Arabia by the name of the dark-skinned people who lived next to them, viz. the Indians.
Flag
The Flag of Yemen was adopted on May 22, 1990.
The flag is composed of three horizontal stripes of red, white & black colors.
The red represents the bloodshed of the martyrs and the unity between its people, the white represents the nation’s bright future, and the black is symbolic of the dark past of the nation.
*Flag Facts:
- Variations of the red-white-black flag have been used in various Arab flags
with Syria, Egypt, Sudan, Libya*, and Iraq.
*The flag is identical to the flag of Libya from 1969–1972.
Language
The official language of Yemen is Modern Standard Arabic.
In addition to the Modern Standard variety, at least 5 other spoken dialects of Arabic are also used throughout the country. These include Sanaani, Ta’Izzi-Adeni, Hadrami, Gulf, and Judeo-Yemeni.
The non-Arabic languages of Yemen include Razihi, Soqotri, Mehri, Bathari, and Hobyot.
English is essential for many business transactions and negotiations. Additionally, English is the most common foreign language currently taught in educational institutions.
Aside from English, the second most common foreign language is Russian.
Religion
Islam is the official religion in Yemen. Islam the state religion of Yemen. Religion in Yemen consists primarily of two principal Islamic religious groups: About 55% of the Muslim population is Sunni and 45% is Shia, according to the International Religious Freedom Report.
Sunnis are primarily Shafi'i but also include significant groups of Malikis and Hanbalis. Shias are primarily Zaydi and also have significant minorities of Ismaili and Twelver Shias.
Minority religions in Yemen are Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, and Baha'i Faith.
Currency
Yemeni rial (YER).
Time Zone
+03:00 GMT.
Government Regime
Unitary presidential constitutional republic (de jure),
Unitary provisional government (de facto).
Climate
In Yemen, the climate is a tropical desert on the coasts and in the lowlands, while it is mild and moderately rainy on the western plateau. During summer, from June to September, the southwest monsoon brings some rainfall to the western highlands, while in the rest of the country, it brings widespread cloudiness but practically no rain.
The best months to visit Yemen as a whole, the island of Socotra inclusive, are January and February. Along the coasts and at low altitudes, it's a warm and sunny period, while in the desert, it's pleasant during the day, while it may become a bit cold at night, but at least, you avoid the blistering heat of the long summer months. In December, the weather is usually good, but tropical cyclones are still possible, especially in the first half of the month.