什麼是葉門

正式名稱葉門共和國（Republic of Yemen）

阿拉伯半島西南部國家，國土還包括印度洋的索科特拉（Socotra）島和紅海的卡馬蘭（Kamaran）島。面積531,869平方公里。人口約18,078,000（2001）。首都︰沙那。居民以阿拉伯人為主。語言︰阿拉伯語（官方語）。宗教︰伊斯蘭教，其餘的宗教是基督教、印度教和猶太教。貨幣︰葉門里亞爾（YRls）。從亞丁灣和紅海有一條狹窄的海岸平原，再逐漸向內陸隆起為高地，這些高地佔有大部分的國土面積。北部地區是魯卜哈利沙漠的南部和西南部部分。礦物資源有鐵礦、岩鹽、石油和天然氣，以上全部皆已開發。農業十分重要，工業包括食品加工和製鹽業。政府形式為共和國，一院制。國家元首是總統，政府首腦為總理。

是邁因、賽伯伊（《聖經》上作希巴）和希木葉爾王國的故土。西元1世紀羅馬人侵佔此地。6世紀以後分別被衣索比亞和波斯人征服。7世紀中葉皈依伊斯蘭教，至少在名義上是服從哈里發。1173～1229年埃及的阿尤布王朝統治整個葉門，後為拉蘇勒王朝統治。1517～1918年鄂圖曼帝國維持著不同程度的控制情況，特別是在西北地區。土耳其控制的西北區（後稱阿拉伯葉門共和國，即北葉門），以及英國所控制的東南區（後稱葉門民主共和國，即南葉門）之間的邊界協定，到1934年才最終解決。兩個葉門的關係始終緊張，在1970年代和1980年代時有衝突。兩國於1990年正式合而為一，成為葉門共和國。1993年的選舉，是阿拉伯半島上有史以來舉行的第一次自由多黨普選，也是第一次有婦女參與的選舉。1994年曆經兩個月的內戰後，通過了新的憲法。

Yemen

Country, southwestern Arabian Peninsula. It also includes Socotra Island in the Indian Ocean and the Kamaran group in the Red Sea. Area: 203,849 sq mi (527,969 sq km). Population (1997 est.): 16,500,000. Capital: Sanaa. The population is mainly Arab. Language: Arabic (official). Religions: Islam (official); remnants, Christianity, Hinduism, Judaism. Currency: Yemeni rial. From the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea, a narrow coastal plain leads to highlands that cover most of the country. The northern region covers the southern and southwestern parts of the Rub al-Khali. Mineral resources include iron ore, salt, oil, and natural gas, all of which are exploited. Agriculture is important; industries include food processing and salt production. It is a republic with one legislative house; its head of state is the president, and the head of government is the prime minister. Yemen was the home of ancient Minaean, Sabaean, and Himyarite kingdoms. The Romans invaded the region in the 1st century AD. In the 6th century it was conquered by Ethiopians and Persians. Following conversion to Islam in the 7th century, it was ruled nominally under a caliphate. The Egyptian Ayyubid dynasty ruled there from 1173 to 1229, after which the region passed to the Rasulids. From 1517 through 1918, the Ottoman empire maintained varying degrees of control, especially in the northwestern section. A boundary agreement was reached in 1934 between the northwestern imam-controlled territory, which subsequently became the Yemen Arab Republic (North Yemen), and the southeastern British-controlled territory, which subsequently became the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen (South Yemen). Relations between the two Yemens remained tense and were marked by conflict throughout the 1970s and 1980s. Reaching an accord, the two officially united as the Republic of Yemen in 1990. Its 1993 elections were the first free, multiparty general elections held in the Arabian Peninsula, and they were the first in which women participated. In 1994, after a two-month civil war, a new constitution was approved.