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Most Important
Information About Yemen(1) |
Location
The Republic of Yemen lies in the
South of Arabia (The Arabian Peninsula), south-west of Asia, between
latitudes 12 and 20 degrees to the north of the equator, and between
longitudes 41and 54 degrees to the south of Greenwich, bordered on the
north by Saudi Arabia, on the south by the Arab Sea and the Gulf of
Aden, on the east by the Sultanate of Oman and on the west by the Red
Sea.
Area
The area of the Republic of Yemen exceeds 555,000
km. excluding the Empty Quarter.
Population
The population of the Republic of Yemen is
17,000,000
Language
Arabic is the official language of the country, with
English being the most widely used second language.
Religion
Islam is the official
religion and is the religion of the majority of the population except
for a Jewish minority.
Geographical Divisions
In view of its
topographical structure, the Republic of Yemen is divided into five
regions:
1.
Mountain
2.
Highland
3.
Coastal
4.
Empty Quarter
5.
The Yemen Islands
1.
Mountain region with heights ranging between 1000-3760m. high
The
western mountain range represents a large area of the country. It is the
range called Al-Surat mountains stretching longitudinally from the north
to the south and transversally from the west to the east which resembles
the letter "L". These heights go down in different directions. They
descend sharply westwards to the Red Sea, southwards to the Gulf of
Aden, and eastwards and northwards to the interior desert areas. In the
mountain heights, stretching from the north to the south, there are a
number of basins (beds), of considerable agricultural importance with
large populations, such as Sana'a basin, Yarim basin, Jahran flatland,
Sa'da flatland, Alboun flatland, Aqwat Hadhramout bed and Si'aith bed in
Mahara. The most prominent mountains in these heights are the mountains
of Attaq, Bayhan, Mukairas, Al-Dhalie', Yafie', Sabra, Hudhour Alsheikh,
Miswar and Prophet Shu'aib which at 3766m above sea level is the
highest mountain in Arabia
2. The Highland region
This
area lies to the east and north of the mountainous heights going in
parallel to the heights towards the Empty Quarter. The maximum height of
this area is 1000m gradually descending. Such area is represented by the
highlands in Sana'a, Al Jouf, Shabwa, Hadhramout and Mahara. The out-
skirts of this area in the north overlap with the Empty Quarter.
3. The
Coastal Area
This area
includes the coastal plains overlooking the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden and
Arabian Sea. They are connected to each other forming a coastal strip
that extends from the Oman border south- westward to Bab Al-Mandab. This
strip then changes its direction northward to the borders of Saudi
Arabia, thus making it more than 2400km. long. The width of the plains
range from 30 to 60 km.
4. The
Empty Quarter (Alrub AlKhali)
This is a
Yemeni desert area located to the north of Hadhramout highlands, and to
the south of the western heights. This area consists of desert plains
covered with gravel, sand and sandy dunes in Volving in some parts
desert plants and vast oases, that were formed due to the collection of
the seasonal water. It is inhabited by the wandering nomads because of
its pastoral land.
5. The
Yemeni Islands
This part
of the country consists of islands scattered along the coasts of Yemen.
There are 120 islands, most of which are located in the Red Sea. The
biggest islands are Kamaran, Greater Hunaish, Minor Hunaish, the rest of
Archipelago, Zaqar, Zubair, AL-Tayr and the strategic island of Meon at
the Bab Al-Mandeb. In addition there are islands located in the Gulf of
Aden and thc Arabian Sea, the largest of which is Soqatra.
Climate
Since
Yemen is endowed with a varied topography, the climate, in general, also
varies, although there are no major seasonal differences. We can say
there are two long seasons: summer and winter During summer, the
temperature and humidity are high in the coastal areas, while the
climate is moderate during winter. From time to time the rainfall, due
to the monsoon, moderates the temperature over the coastal areas in
summer. In the mountain areas, the weather is moderate in summer and
cold in winter during the night and in the early morning, but the bright
sun rays raise the temperature during the day making the weather very
moderate in these parts of the country.
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