The city of Aden – Yemen

Type :

Presentation

Pages :

13 pages

Format :

.doc

Published date :

12/04/2008

Category :

Arts & media

Sub category :

Journalism

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Summary :

Introduction.
1. Population estimates as of 2005.
Location.
History, politics and economy.
1. The prehistory of the site.
2. The coast of the Gulf of Aden.
3. The late ninth and early tenth centuries.
4. Business letters concerning Aden and its trading relations with India and Cairo.
Conclusion.

Abstract

The Yemeni port of aden has long been one of the major entrepôts of the Middle East. With its starkly beautiful natural harbor nestled within an extinct volcano and its access to the highlands of yemen and its products, the city called the "Eye to yemen" would already have been signiﬁcant. But given its location at the entrance to the Red Sea and its easy connections to the ports of East Africa, aden has, for more than 3,000 years, attracted imperial attention. Whether it was the Sabaeans, Romans, Aksumites, Ayyubids, Ottomans, or British, this gateway to and from Arabia has always been open. aden (Arabic, Adan) is located on the northern littoral of the Gulf of aden near the southern entrance to the Red Sea. Close to the southwest tip of the Arabian Peninsula, the city lies on the narrow, fertile coastal strip backed by high mountains. Access to the highlands of yemen is via Wadi Tuban and Taiz, and to the Hadramawt along the coast to the east. Sanaa is some 260 miles to the north. By sea, aden is an ideal starting point for overseas journeys to India, given the west-east monsoon winds, or to East Africa, with the Somalia coast and Zanzibar easily accessible. Through the Bab al-Mandab awaits Egypt, Palestine, and the Mediterranean via the Suez Canal: the port authority likes to make the point that aden lies an equal distance between Europe and the Far East. The city is located within a large crescent-shaped bay created by the crater of an extinct volcano. The arms of the crescent that enclose Bandar at-Tawahi (aden Harbor or Crater Bay) are large hilly volcanic promontories, essentially islands, each with its own small harbors and bays but connected to the mainland by a narrow, sandy isthmus.