Yemen

Yemen (al-yaman), officially known as the Republic of Yemen, is located on the Arabian Peninsula south of Saudi Arabia and west of Oman, and its coastline borders the Arabian Sea and the Red Sea. It has a population of 22,858,238 (estimate as of July 2010), almost entirely Muslim. The capital of Yemen is Sana'a. Arabic is the primary language spoken in this country. Prior to Yemen's unification in 1990, it was divided into two states. In 1918, Northern Yemen became independent from the Ottoman Empire and was eventually known as the Yemen Arab Republic (YAR). Southern Yemen was colonized by the British from 1839 to 1967. After the British withdrew, southern Yemen declared its capital to be Aden, and this state became known as the Socialist People's Democratic Republic of Yemen. Currently, Yemen's political system is republican; both men and women are in theory allowed to vote and run for office. Yemen is known for its tribal society. While almost all citizens of Yemen are Muslim, religious diversity is present within that category.

Religious statistics for Yemen are not generally reliable; however, according to one report, approximately 30%–35% of the population are Zaydi Shi'i (traditionally from the north of Yemen) and 60%–65%, Shafi'i Sunnī. Sufism also has a long history in this country, especially in the governor-ates of Ta'izz and the Hadramawt, where many shrines of Sufi saints can be found. The city of Tarim in the Hadramawt region houses a prominent institute for the study of Sufism, known as Dar al-Mustafa. Other religious minorities include Ismailis and a dwindling number of Jews.

Tensions among religious groups include Shafi'i-Zaydi strife. Perhaps of greater concern is the friction between the Salafis, on the one hand, influenced by extremist revival movements stemming from nearby Saudi Arabia, and the Sufis, moderates, and secularists, on the other. The government suffers from instability and is battling secession movements in the south and the Zaydi Huthis in the north. The European Union and the United States offer aid to Yemen in the attempt to curb the influence of Islamic extremism and the al Qaeda, which is active in Yemen.

[Page 1394]Yemen is the poorest Arab country and one of the poorest countries in the world. The literacy rates for men and women are approximately 70% and 30%, respectively, and are even lower in rural areas. The reasons behind Yemen's poverty are many and include inadequate natural resource management and a dwindling groundwater supply. Additional factors involve agricultural policy, political instability, widespread corruption, and the legacy of the previous ruler Imam Yahya (1904–1948), who kept much of Yemen in relative isolation for decades. Yemen's poverty and low rate of literacy shape the ways in which Islam is practiced by many in Yemen who have little access to textual sources of religious orthodoxy and who thus practice “popular” forms of Islam.