Tucked away in the southwestern corner of the Arabian Peninsula, Yemen has a long and storied history. For centuries, it was one of the world’s major trading hubs, and its strategic location made it a prized possession of the superpowers of the day. Today, Yemen is best known as a hotbed of terrorist activity, but there is much more to this country than that. Here is a brief overview of Yemen’s history.
The Origins of Yemen
Yemen’s earliest settlers are thought to have been fishermen and herders who migrated from Africa between 10,000 and 7,000 BCE. These early inhabitants were eventually replaced by Semitic-speaking peoples who came from what is now known as Syria and Lebanon. Around 1200 BCE, the Sabaeans—a powerful Semitic tribe—conquered the region and established their capital at Marib. For the following millennium, the Sabaeans ruled over Yemen, prospering thanks to their control of the frankincense trade.
Yemen’s Strategic Location
Yemen is located on the Arabian Peninsula and shares land borders with Saudi Arabia and Oman. The Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden border Yemen to the west, while the Arabian Sea lies to the south. This strategic location has made Yemen an important trade route throughout history. In fact, the city of Aden was once one of the busiest ports in the world.
Yemen’s location has been described as “most advantageous” and “of great importance”. It is located on the southernmost point of the Arabian Peninsula, with the Hadhramaut to the southeast, the Red Sea to the west, Oman to the east, and bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north. The Strait of Bab-el-Mandeb, which links the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden, is only 19 miles (30 kilometers) wide at its narrowest point, making it a vital waterway for international shipping. About 30% of global maritime trade passes through this strait annually, including crude oil and liquefied natural gas from the Persian Gulf heading to Europe, the United States, and Asia. Yemen also controls Perim Island in the strait, which provides a strategic vantage point. In addition to its strategic location, Yemen’s long coastline—1,200 miles (1,900 kilometers)—and many ports make it an important transit point for maritime trade. The country’s port of Aden serves as a hub for ships traveling between East Africa and Southeast Asia. Oil tankers bound for Europe often stop here to refuel. And because of its location along key shipping routes, Yemen plays an important role in global trade. Every year, Yemeni ports handle millions of tons of cargo and hundreds of thousands of passengers.
The Rise and Fall of the Himyarites
In 325 CE, an Ethiopian king named Aezana conquered Yemen and ushered in a period of Ethiopian rule. This lasted until 525 CE when an Arab tribe called the Himyarites drove the Ethiopians out and took control of the country. The Himyarites established themselves as one of Arabia’s most powerful kingdoms. However, their reign ended in 525 CE when they were conquered.
For centuries, the Himyarites were one of the most powerful empires in the world. With their capital in present-day Yemen, the Himyarites controlled trade routes across the Arabian Peninsula and exerted considerable influence over the surrounding region. The Himyarites were known for their wealth, military might, and mastery of architecture and engineering. However, the Himyarite Empire ended abruptly in the late 5th century AD when an invading force from Ethiopia conquered it. Historians still debate the reasons for the fall of the Himyarites, but they may have been weakened by internal strife and external pressures. Whatever the cause, the collapse of the Himyarite Empire was a major turning point in world history by an army sent by the Persian Emperor Justinian I.
Islam Comes to Yemen
In 630 CE, Muhammad—the founder of Islam—sent an army to conquer Yemen and bring its people into the Islamic faith. At first, things went well for the Arabs; they quickly routed the Persians who were ruling at that time. However, shortly after that, they faced stiff resistance from Christian tribes in northern Yemen. It took several decades for the Arabs to gain control over all of Yemen finally.
The Recent History of Yemen
The region that is now known as Yemen has been inhabited for over 2,000 years. In fact, some of the oldest civilizations in the world were located in what is now Yemen. For example, the Sabaeans were an ancient civilization that left behind many impressive ruins, such as the city of Marib. The Sabaeans were also responsible for introducing Christianity and Judaism to Ethiopia and Eritrea.
In recent history, Yemen was part of the Ottoman Empire from 1517 until 1918. The Ottomans governed Yemen as a province known as the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen. After World War I ended, Britain took control of Yemeni territory south of Taiz while Imam Yahya Muhammad Hamidaddin ruled over northern Yemen. In 1962, North and South Yemen unified to form the Republic of Yemen.
Yemen Today
Since then, Yemen has experienced its share of turmoil. In 1962, a civil war broke out, resulting in North Yemen becoming a communist state while South Yemen remained under British rule. In 1990, North and South Yemen unified to form present-day Yemen, but tensions between northerners and southerners have persisted ever since. In 2015, another civil war erupted, resulting in widespread destruction and suffering throughout the country. And so today, we find a nation that is deeply divided both politically and geographically; a nation that is struggling to find its way forward in a very uncertain future.
Conclusion:
Yemen is a country with a long and complex history. Yemen has always been molded by external forces outside its control, from its earliest days as a remote fishing town to its current situation as a war-torn nation on the verge of collapse. Today, it finds itself at a crossroads; will it succumb to further violence, or will it find some way to rebuild itself? Only time will tell what fate awaits this beleaguered nation.