Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
author of
The Hostage,
Za'ïd Mutee' Dammaj, one of the very few writers who has been
translated into English.
Music
Yemen's music varies greatly from region to region and reflects the different influences of
the areas. Tihama music, with its frenetic beat, for example, resembles East African mu-
sic. The best known Yemeni singer is Abu Baker Salem Balfaqih.
Among the most popular instruments are the
oud
(or lute), played by virtuosos such as
Ayoub Taresh, the
semsemiya
(a kind of five-stringed lyre) and the
mizmar
(reed or pan
pipes). Look out also for the
doshan,
a kind of minstrel, paid today to entertain at celebra-
tions such as weddings. Yemeni pop music hasn't exactly conquered the world but one in-
teresting name to watch out for is Hagag AJ; a Yemeni-American rapper who fuses Eng-
lish and Arabic lyrics.
For a time (under the Imam Yahya in the 1940s), music was banned in Yemen.
Dance
Like music, dance forms an important part of Yemeni social traditions. The best known is
the
jambiya '
dance', in which men perform a series of steps and hops in small groups
brandishing their
jambiya
(dagger). Technically, this isn't actually a dance but a bond
between tribal members, and each region has its own variation. Women and men always
dance separately in public.
Architecture
Like Yemen's music, its architecture varies from region to region. Building design de-
pends on available materials (such as mud, reeds or stone), the local climate (seen by thick
and high walls to counter the heat or cold) and the region's historical links with other re-
gions or powers (such as Africa, Southeast Asia or the Ottomans).
As Yemen endured a war on average every seven years throughout the 20th century and
a similar rate of violence for centuries prior to that, many rural homes are perched on the
highest hilltop, sometimes surrounded by walls and towers for added defence.
Water has long played an important part in Yemen, and some of the country's oldest ar-
chitecture also represents extraordinary civil-engineering feats, such as the Great Ma'rib
Dam.
