SAT Test Centers and Dates in Yemen

More about Yemen

• ACEINLAND: Modern history of Yemen from World War I to today, covering all major events on politics, economy, society, and technology.

Population

Yemen is a land of very ancient populations: it was the seat of flourishing kingdoms, including the fabulous kingdom of Saba which had relations with the Egyptian world, and was the destination of passage for numerous powers that crossed its territory. The country remained partially extraneous to the Ottoman penetration, which was interested almost exclusively in the coastal strip on the Red Sea and subsequently in colonialism, which only in the former South Yemen created a strategic base of primary importance in Aden. The average density of the country is 42 residents / km²; the population is gathered mostly in the western highlands (the Serat), above 1700 m and in coastal areas, especially those on the Red Sea. The most inhabited provinces are therefore those of the former North Yemen where 80% of the population is concentrated in a territory that corresponds to just under a third of the national total. The population is composed of Arabs (93%), but large minorities of Somalis live in the North (3%) and, near Aden, groups of Asians (1%), mainly Indians and Indonesians of ancient immigration; the number of Europeans is small. The demographic dynamic is very active with an annual growth coefficient of 3.1% in the period 2000-2005, essentially due to the high birth rate accompanied by a low mortality rate, especially since the last decades of the twentieth century; however, the indicators relating to infant and maternal mortality are still high and living standards poor. This constitutes one of the most important challenges within the country’s socio-economic development programs. The villages, small and medium-sized, take on characteristic aspects on the plateau and the mountains above, with large and tall houses, often fortified, which each house a patriarchal family. Around the villages there are irrigated gardens, full of fruit trees, as is the tradition of much of the Arab or Persian world. The largest city is Sanʽā, an ancient and splendid capital, surrounded by walls, former seat of the sultan together with Ta’izz; today Sanʽā has become the center of the ongoing renewal in the country, with shops offering the first industrial products and the roads traveled by the first vehicles, but also with the first evictions that break the unity of a city that is now unique in the Islamic world for its urban character. Second city in the country is Aden, former capital of the former South Yemen, which despite its ancient origins today presents itself above all as a typically English creation and which, despite having partly maintained the commercial tradition, is also the largest industrial center of Yemen. Like the capital, almost all the centers of a certain importance are situated on the edge of the plateau; still inside is Ta’izz, a rich shopping center on the edge of a wide valley. On the Red Sea is Hodeida; Sa’dah is also known for being the cradle of Zaydism, a Muslim sect particularly widespread in Yemen, while Al-Mukhā it was once an active port and great coffee emporium. In the former South Yemen, the small towns located along the Ḥaḍramawt wadi, whose main center is Al-Mukallā, are important. Check a2zcamerablog to see Yemen Reunification.