Saudi Arabia and Yemen (Middle East: Region in Transition)

177 Pages·2011·9.19 MB·English

by  Laura S. Etheredge (editor)

Published in 2011 by Britannica Educational Publishing
(a trademark of Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.)
in association with Rosen Educational Services, LLC
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First Edition
Britannica Educational Publishing
Michael I. Levy: Executive Editor
J.E. Luebering: Senior Manager
Marilyn L. Barton: Senior Coordinator, Production Control
Steven Bosco: Director, Editorial Technologies
Lisa S. Braucher: Senior Producer and Data Editor
Yvette Charboneau: Senior Copy Editor
Kathy Nakamura: Manager, Media Acquisition
Laura S. Etheredge: Associate Editor, Middle East Geography
Rosen Educational Services
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Nelson Sá: Art Director
Cindy Reiman: Photography Manager
Matthew Cauli: Designer, Cover Design
Introduction by Laura Loria
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Saudi Arabia and Yemen / edited by Laura S. Etheredge.
p. cm. — (Middle East : region in transition)
“In association with Britannica Educational Publishing, Rosen Educational Services.”
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN (cid:47)(cid:45)(cid:46)(cid:35)(cid:39)(cid:35)(cid:44)(cid:39)(cid:43)(cid:41)(cid:38)(cid:35)(cid:42)(cid:39)(cid:40)(cid:35)(cid:45)(cid:1)(cid:30)(cid:91)(cid:56)(cid:101)(cid:101)(cid:97)(cid:31)
1. Saudi Arabia. 2. Saudi Arabia—History. 3. Saudi Arabia—Politics and government. 4.
Saudi Arabia—Social conditions. 5. Social change—Saudi Arabia—History. 6. Yemen
(Republic) 7. Yemen (Republic)—History. 8. Yemen (Republic—Politics and government.
9. Yemen (Republic)—Social conditions. 10. Social change—Yemen (Republic)—History.
I. Etheredge, Laura.
DS204.S3123 2011
953.8—dc22
2010026863
On the cover: Clockwise from upper left: The spire of the modern Kingdom Centre tower
and an ancient minaret, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; a view of the city of Sanaa showing traditional
Yemeni architecture; coffee seller in the Old Town section of Sanaa, Yemen; Al-Dir‘iyyah,
the former capital of Saudi Arabia. Ian Cumming/Axiom Photographic Agency/Getty Images;
Shutterstock.com; Bruno Morandi/The Image Bank/Getty Images; Shutterstock.com
On pages 1, 14, 26, 36, 44, 74, 86, 100, 108, 117, 144, 146, 152: Stone and brick houses line
a street and seem to flank a distant minaret, in the Yemeni city of Sanaa. Thomas J.
Abercrombie/National Geographic Image Collection/Getty Images
CONTENTS
Introduction x
Chapter 1: Saudi Arabia: The Land
and its People 1
Relief 2
Drainage and Soils 4
Climate 5
Plant and Animal Life 6
Ethnic Groups 7
Languages 8 6
Religion 9
Settlement Patterns 10
Demographic Trends 12
Jiddah 13
Chapter 2: The Saudi Arabian
Economy 14
Agriculture 14
Petroleum 15
Trans-Arabian Pipeline 17
Other Resources 18
Manufacturing 19
Finance 19 16
Trade 21
Services 21
Labour and Taxation 22
ā
Zak t 23
Transportation
and Telecommunications 23
Chapter 3: Saudi Arabian
Government and Society 26
Local Government 26
Justice 28
ī
Hanbal School of Law 28
.
27
Political Process 29
Security 30
Health and Welfare 31
Housing 33
Education 33
Chapter 4: Saudi Arabian
Cultural Life 36
Daily Life and Social Customs 36
The Arts 39
ī
Qa.sdah 41
Cultural Institutions 42
34 Sports and Recreation 42
Media and Publishing 43
Chapter 5: Saudi Arabia:
Past and Present 44
ā ī
The Wahh b Movement 44
Second Sa‘u-dī State 47
Death of Fays.al 49
ī ī
The Rash d s 49
Ibn Sa‘u-d and the Third Sa‘u-dī State 50
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia 56
Foreign Relations, 1932–53 56
Internal Affairs, 1932–53 57
43
Saudi Aramco 58
Reigns of Sa‘ud ibn ‘Abd al-‘Aziz
and Fays.al (1953–75) 59
OPEC 61
-
Reign of Khalid (1975–82) 62
Saudi Arabia under Fahd and
Crown Prince ‘Abd Allāh
(1982–2005) 64
Reign of King ‘Abd Allāh
from 2005 73
Chapter 6: Yemen: The Land
63 and its People 74
Relief and Drainage 75
Climate 77
Plant and Animal Life 78
Ethnic Groups 80
Languages 81
Religion 82
Zaydiyyah 82
Settlement Patterns 83
Demographic Trends 84
Chapter 7: The Yemeni Economy 86
79
Agriculture, Forestry, and Fishing 87
Mocha 88
Resources and Power 90
Manufacturing 92
Finance 93
Trade 94
Services 95
Labour and Taxation 95
Transportation
and Telecommunications 96
Al-H. udaydah 99
Chapter 8: Yemeni Government
101
and Society 100
Constitutional Framework 100
Local Government 102
Justice 103
105
Political Process 103
Security 103
Health and Welfare 104
Housing 105
Education 106
Chapter 9: Yemeni Cultural Life 108
Daily Life and Social Customs 108
The Arts 112
ā ī
Al-Hamd n 114
Cultural Institutions 114
Sports and Recreation 114
Media and Publishing 115
Chapter 10: Yemen:
Past and Present 117
The Age of Imperialism 119
ā
Ya.hy 123
Two Yemeni States 124
Unification of Yemen 129
118 Civil War and Political Unrest 132
Territorial Disputes 133
ī
H .an sh Islands 135
Economic Challenges 136
Yemen and the “War on Terror” 137
USS Cole Attack 139
Mounting Challenge to
ā
the S. lih. Regime 140
Conclusion 142
Glossary 144
Bibliography 146
Index 152
139