什么是叶门

正式名称叶门共和国（Republic of Yemen）

阿拉伯半岛西南部国家，国土还包括印度洋的索科特拉（Socotra）岛和红海的卡马兰（Kamaran）岛。面积531,869平方公里。人口约18,078,000（2001）。首都︰沙那。居民以阿拉伯人为主。语言︰阿拉伯语（官方语）。宗教︰伊斯兰教，其余的宗教是基督教、印度教和犹太教。货币︰叶门里亚尔（YRls）。从亚丁湾和红海有一条狭窄的海岸平原，再逐渐向内陆隆起为高地，这些高地占有大部分的国土面积。北部地区是鲁卜哈利沙漠的南部和西南部部分。矿物资源有铁矿、岩盐、石油和天然气，以上全部皆已开发。农业十分重要，工业包括食品加工和制盐业。政府形式为共和国，一院制。国家元首是总统，政府首脑为总理。

是迈因、赛伯伊（《圣经》上作希巴）和希木叶尔王国的故土。西元1世纪罗马人侵占此地。6世纪以後分别被衣索比亚和波斯人征服。7世纪中叶皈依伊斯兰教，至少在名义上是服从哈里发。1173～1229年埃及的阿尤布王朝统治整个叶门，後为拉苏勒王朝统治。1517～1918年鄂图曼帝国维持着不同程度的控制情况，特别是在西北地区。土耳其控制的西北区（後称阿拉伯叶门共和国，即北叶门），以及英国所控制的东南区（後称叶门民主共和国，即南叶门）之间的边界协定，到1934年才最终解决。两个叶门的关系始终紧张，在1970年代和1980年代时有冲突。两国於1990年正式合而为一，成为叶门共和国。1993年的选举，是阿拉伯半岛上有史以来举行的第一次自由多党普选，也是第一次有妇女参与的选举。1994年历经两个月的内战後，通过了新的宪法。

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.