Yemen

Tribal loyalties and geographic divisions run deep in Yemen, enough so that it often seems that modern concepts of a nation-state are only tenuously applicable. The first book below provides a deep and narrow and richly textured view of life in a particular part of Yemen, while the second offers a broader overview of the past, present, and possible futures of the Arab world’s poorest country.

Steven C. Caton, Yemen Chronicle: An Anthropology of War and Mediation (2005). Caton arrived in Yemen in 1979 as a graduate student interested in studying tribal poetry, which in Yemen has great political as well as cultural significance. Ali Abdullah Saleh had become president of the Yemen Arab Republic (North Yemen) the year before, South Yemen had recently invaded North Yemen, Iranian students had just taken the American embassy hostage, and the political environment for American scholars was touchy. Caton ended up in a village that was a hijra, or “sanctuary,” inhabited by descendents of Muhammad. Turmoil erupted when it appeared that a young man from the sanctuary had kidnapped two girls from a nearby village, and Caton was given a close-up view of conflict resolution in tribal Yemen – which included plenty of poetry, but also bullets coming through his home. Yemen Chronicle reflects on these experiences years later, as well as the whole project of anthropology, memory, and human relationship. The result is fascinating if you are curious about Yemen’s tribal cultures and politics on the ground, though of course some things have changed in the last three decades.

Victoria Clark, Yemen: Dancing on the Head of Snakes (2010). Born in Aden when it was still a British colony, Clark drew on her personal experiences, extensive historical research, and multiple visits and interviews to create a very interesting book. The first half offers an accessible history of how Yemen came to be the place it is today. The second half explores the implications of diminishing oil production, water shortages, tribal political systems, repeated civil wars, al Qaeda and other militants, and a quickly growing population with few economic resources.