Yemen Local Customs

  Wheelbarrow of Mud, Hadramaut
by janiebaxter
 
  • Wheelbarrow of Mud, Hadramaut
      Wheelbarrow of Mud, Hadramaut
    by janiebaxter
  • Rhino horn Jambiya
      Rhino horn Jambiya
    by janiebaxter
  • Wheelbarrow of Bananas, Ta'iz
      Wheelbarrow of Bananas, Ta'iz
    by janiebaxter
  •   Local Customs
    by Denis_Romanov
  •   Local Customs
    by erikute3534
 
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Frankincense

by janiebaxter

In pre-christian times Frankincense was 12 times more expensive than gold and was used in all the ancient ceremonies and rituals – burials, marriages, and births as well as in the home for freshening the air, and aiding sleep. In Roman times the cost of one pound in weight of Frankincense was more than 2 weeks salary and added to that was the cost of transportation.The Frankincense route was the oldest and richest trade route in the ancient world. It is the sap of the olibanum tree which is dried and harvesting was done by an elite class of families who were bound to follow strict rules and traditions. They were not allowed to come into contact with any pollution such as having sex or contact with the dead during the harvesting time to keep the purity of the harvest. Different qualities and grades of Frankincense came from different types of tree and different areas. The boswelia sacra...

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Alcohol

by janiebaxter

Alcohol is very difficult to obtain as a tourist in Yemen, however you can legally bring it into the country with you. But you must drink it in private and never in a public place. Some of the hotels claimed to have beer, but it was non-alcoholic.The only place I found that serves alcohol is the Movenpick hotel in Sana’a which has a bar stocked with most types of spirits – well at least a reasonable selection. Certainly they can make a decent G & T. It is open until 11pm and they are strict about you leaving on time. You are also not allowed to take your drink outside of the bar to the foyer seating area. The restaurant also serves alcohol with meals.

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The Jambiya (Dagger)

by janiebaxter

The Jambiya is a curved dagger worn by all men in Yemen. Historically The Jambiya’a has been a tradition in Yemen for over 1400 years and symbolises honour, fashion, tradition, family and wealth. When a boy reaches the age of around 14 his father will either pass his Jambiya on to his son if he is the eldest or buy him one. But the Jambiya is the property of the whole family if it has been passed down through the generations and the son has to get permission from all the family if he wants to sell it. The Jambiya is kept in a curved holder and worn on an elaborate embroidered belt around the waist. The blade itself is only slightly curved (picture 2).Costs vary from $10 to $1million! One was sold last year for $1 million, but this was a very rare one. Obviously the rhino horn handle ones are more valuable. The best quality ones come from the family makers of Saifani, Assadis and Zalat...

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The Kalashnikov - an Essential Accessory

by janiebaxter

Most men in Yemen own a kalashnikov rifle, as well as a Jambiya, and it is quite normal to see men strolling around with their kalashnikov slung over their shoulder like a fashion accessory. The man in the picture was walking through the main square in Sana'a.At first it is a little worrying, as we are so unused to this in England and if we saw somebody carrying a gun we would assume they were planning an armed robbery. However in Yemen it is not the case and is just a sign of manhood, along with the Jambiya.I suppose you could say the kalashnikov and Jambiya are the Yemeni man's essential fashion accessories - like designer shoes and handbags.

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Taking photographs of women

by janiebaxter

Women in Yemen do not like tourists taking photographs of them. The men are generally OK at being photographed, but they are very protective of the women and if they see you photographing women they think that you are invading their privacy andyou will get a good telling off, a finger waved at you or even abuse shouted at you. This varies from area to area. We found the Tihama area and the rural areas much more relaxed about it - the women here are not veiled. The worst areas were the highlands and the Hadramaut.If you have a zoom lense you can pretend to be taking a street scene and just happen to include the women in the picture when they are not looking but pointing your camera at close range is just asking for trouble.

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The Southern Arabian Language

by janiebaxter

The Southern Arabian language dates from Sabaean times (Queen of Sheba) and had 29 letters, all in upper case. Lower case letters did not appear until the 9th century when books began to be copied and faster writing was required. The Southern Arabian language was translated by two German scholars in the 1840's and was shown to be quite closely related to the phoenician language.Inscriptions were mostly carved into stone and used to describe administrative and commercial achievements, battle victories and building work. The oldest found so far is from the 9th century BC, the most recent from the 2nd century BC.You can see examples in the museum in Sana'a and at Marib.

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Some Facts about Yemen Today

by janiebaxter

After being split into North Yemen and South Yemen in the 1960's The country was re-unified by the current president in 1990, but political borders were not established until 1992 with Oman and 1994 with Saudi Arabia.Here are a few facts about Yemen today:The population is around 22 million.Literacy is 58% with English widely spoken, mostly in cities and larger towns. 53% of the country is agricultural with Qat being the main crop. Also grown are coffee, sourgum, fruit and vegetables.85% of men and 35% of women in Yemen chew qat.Natural Resources are Oil and GasOil was discovered in 1980 and there are currently 10 companies producing 320,000 barrels a day. Only 28% of reserves have been explored and reserves are estimated at 9718 billion barrels. The main production areas are Marib and Seiyun with exploration under way in the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden and Socotra areas. CostsAverage wage $8...

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The Qat Culture

by janiebaxter

Qat is an important part of Yemeni culture. As you walk around the suqs and towns you will notice many men with a large bulge in their cheek as they chew their qat and you can’t miss it being sold in the markets or growing on the terraces of the mountains. It is a stimulant similar to "speed" & opinion is divided as to whether it is harmful or not. In the Hadramaut area qat chewers are viewed with great disapproval but elsewhere it is accepted as part of daily life. It grows in most areas in Yemen, but grows better in the wetter highland areas and is sold in bundles, wrapped in leaves to keep it fresh, sometimes stored in a canvas bag. The smaller, younger leaves are favoured above the larger ones. After lunch is the time for qat chewing, when it is chewed for 2 to 3 hours with plenty of water to drink. Cost is between $1 and $15 for an afternoon chew depending on quality and it is...

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Tea not Coffee

by janiebaxter

The sweet tea, called shai, is available everywhere and is quite refreshing when you get used to it. Most places put sugar in when it is served but if you are fast enough you can ask them not to sugar it.Coffee is a different matter. I didn’t get a decent cup of coffee all the time I was there. And this is the country where the name Mocha originated! Mocha is now a fishing village with no sign of coffee or anything else much. You can see a bit of coffee being grown on the architectural terraces around the highland towns, but a lot. We found just one shop selling coffee in Taiz.The coffee served everywhere we visited is made from the coffee husk and is very weak. It is also truly horrible and smells awful.

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The Wheelbarrow

by janiebaxter

The wheel barrow is an essentail part of Yemeni life.It takes a while before you notice this, but soon you start to realise just how many uses the wheelbarrow has in everyday life. It is used to sell produce from at the markets and the roadside, to transport fruit, qat, fish, children, tourist souvenirs, mud for making bricks and numerous other items from one place to another. In Sana'a Souq we saw a line of 6 men lying in wheel barrows having an afternoon siesta. Unfortunately they didn't want to be photographed.The advantages of the wheel barrow are that it makes it easier to move goods around over bumpy ground, it can get to places cars cannot, it is cheaper than a donkey or a camel, doesn't eat anything and can be pushed at quite a speed when laden with tourist souvenirs!

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Local traditions and culture in Yemen

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Questions and Answers

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Q:  Hi, i want to travel to hodeidah and then to Mukalla.Can I get flight from hod to Mukalla and Mukalla to saana? 

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A: The only domestic carriers are Yemenia and Felix. There are no direct connections from Hodeidah to Mukhalla. You'd have to go via San'a. Of note, San'a airport has closed... 

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