Al Hudaydah
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Al Hu·day·dah
or Ho·dei·da (hō-dā'də)A city of western Yemen on the Red Sea. It is a major port and industrial center. Population: 617,000.
Hodeida (hōdā'də) or Al Hudaydah (äl hūdā'dä), city (1994 pop. 298,452), W Yemen, on the Red Sea. An important port, it exports coffee, cotton, dates, and hides. It was developed as a seaport in the mid-19th cent. by the Turks. After a disastrous fire in Jan., 1961, destroyed much of the city, it was rebuilt, particularly the port facilities, with Soviet aid. A highway from Hodeida to Sana, the capital, was completed in 1961. Hodeida was the site of a Soviet naval base in the 1970s and 80s.
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The major Red Sea port of Yemen since about 1849.
In 1849, the Ottoman Empire, during its second occupation of Yemen, selected Hodeida (also Hudayda) as its major base and point of entry from the Red Sea. In fact, Hodeida is not a natural deep-water port, and years of ballast dumping have made it incapable of accepting anything but small local ships. The major port activity now takes place at Raʾs Khatib, a short distance north of Hodeida; this is a modern facility with wharves, unloading equipment, warehouses, and a transportation infrastructure that can accommodate modern freighters.
Raʾs Khatib was constructed by the Soviet Union as part of its foreign aid program during the 1960s. It remained the key access point to Yemen until 1990, when the Yemen Arab Republic merged with the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen. Then, Aden, one of the world's best natural harbors, became the primary port and economic capital of the new republic.
— MANFRED W. WENNER
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Al Hudaydah
| Al Hudaydah | |
|---|---|
 Al Hudaydah
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| Coordinates: 14°48′08″N 42°57′04″E / 14.80222°N 42.95111°E | |
| Country |  Yemen |
| Governorate | Al Hudaydah Governorate |
| Elevation | 56 ft (17 m) |
| Time zone | Yemen Standard Time (UTC+3) |
Al Hudaydah (also called Hudaida or Hodeidah) (Arabic: الحديدة) is the fourth largest city in Yemen with a population of 400,000 people, and the centre of Al Hudaydah Governorate.
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Overview
Situated on the Red Sea, it is an important port, exporting coffee, cotton, dates, and hides. It was developed as a seaport in the mid-19th century by the Ottoman Turks.
In 1914 during the First World War German troops led by Major Freiherr Othmar von Stotzingen established a wireless station at Al Hudaydah which was used during the Arab Revolt to relay communications from Constantinople to German East Africa as well as broadcast propaganda to the Sudan, Somaliland and Abyssinia.[1]
The city was briefly occupied by Saudi forces during the Saudi–Yemeni War of 1934.
After a disastrous fire in January 1961 destroyed much of the city, it was rebuilt, particularly the port facilities, with Soviet aid. A highway to Sana, the capital, was completed in 1961. Hudaydah was the site of a Soviet naval base in the 1970s and 1980s.
The city has a large number of historical places, particularly in Zabid, which is regarded as one of the most important Islamic towns in the world . The city is not large but it has more than 100 old mosques. Furthermore, the city used to have an old university which is as old as al-Azhar.
The Malay writer Abdullah bin Abdul Kadir visited Al Hudaydah on his pilgrimage to Mecca in 1854, and describes the city in his account of the journey, mentioning that the custom of chewing khat was prevalent in the city at this time.[2]
See also
Notes
- ^ Waugh, Sir Telford (1937). Royal Central Asian Journal Volume XXIV part II. p. 313.translating the German account given in the German journal, Orient Rundschau
- ^ Ché-Ross, Raimy. MUNSHI ABDULLAH'S VOGAGE TO MECCA: A PRELIMINARY INTRODUCTION AND ANNOTATED TRANSLATION. Indonesia & the Malay World; Jul2000, Vol. 28 Issue 81, p196
External links
Coordinates: 14°48′08″N 42°57′04″E / 14.80222°N 42.95111°E
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American Heritage Dictionary
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2012, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/.
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Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East and North Africa. Copyright © 2004 by The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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