Jabal Haraz

Jabal Haraz (Arabic: جَبَل حَرَاز‎, romanized: Jabal Ḥarāz) is a mountainous region of Yemen, between Sanaa and Al-Hudaydah, which is considered to be within the Sarat range.[1] In the 11th century, it was the stronghold of the Sulaihid dynasty, many of whose buildings still survive today.[2] It includes Jabal An-Nabi Shu'ayb, the highest mountain in Yemen and the Arabian Peninsula.[3]

Jabal Haraz
A building with terraces overlooks the side of one of the Haraz mountains
Highest point
Elevation3,000 m (9,800 ft)
Coordinates 
Naming
Native nameجَبَل حَرَاز  (Arabic)
Geography
Jabal Haraz
Jabal Haraz
Jabal Haraz
Country Yemen
RegionAsia

History and location

Because of its location between the Tihamah coastal plain and Sanaa, this mountainous area has always been strategically important. A caravan stopping point during the Himyarite Kingdom, the Haraz was later the stronghold of the Sulayhid dynasty, which was established in Yemen in 1037. Then and subsequently the population have been Ism'aili Shi'ite Muslims.

Haraz is as famous for its fortified villages which cling to nearly inaccessible rocky peaks. Their imposing architecture meets two needs: defending the villagers, while leaving plenty of space for crops. Each town is built like a castle; the houses, themselves, form the wall, equipped with one or two easily defensible doors. Constructed from sandstone and basalt, the buildings are integrated into the landscape and it is difficult to tell where the rock and the village begins or ends. The mountain is divided into terraces of a few acres or more, separated by walls sometimes several meters high. On these terraced fields grow alfalfa for livestock, millet, lentils, large areas for coffee and qat.

Within a day's journey are Bani Murrah and other villages located on the ridge overlooking Manakhah. Manakhah is the heart of mountain range, a large town whose market attracts villagers from the entire neighbourhood. Al Hajjara, to the west of Manakhah, is a walled village whose citadel was founded in the 12th century by the Sulayhids. From there, other villages are accessible, such as Bayt al-Qamus and Bayt Shimran. The village of Hutaib is built on a platform of red sandstone, facing a view of terraced hills which host a score of villages. Here also is the mausoleum of the third Yemeni Da'i al-Mutlaq Hatim ibn Ibrahim. Bohras from India, Sri Lanka, Madagascar and other countries gather here.

World Heritage Status

This area was added to the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List on July 8, 2002, in the mixed (cultural and natural) category, as a site that has "outstanding universal value".[2]

See also

References
  1. Cook, John; Farmer, G. Thomas (2013-01-12). "VI: Land and Its Climates". Climate Change Science: A Modern Synthesis. 1 – The Physical Climate. Springer Science & Business Media. p. 334. ISBN 978-9-4007-5757-8.
  2. "Jabal Haraz". UNESCO World Heritage Centre. 2002-07-08. Retrieved 2009-03-24.
  3. McLaughlin, Daniel (2008). "1: Background". Yemen. Bradt Travel Guides. p. 3. ISBN 978-1-8416-2212-5.

| group3 =  United Arab Emirates | list3 =

Western Hajar[lower-alpha 10]
Ru'us al-Jibal[lower-alpha 11]
Shumayliyyah range[lower-alpha 14]
Outliers, outcrops or anticlines

| group4 =  Yemen | list4 =

Hadhramaut range
  • Jabal Ar-Rays?
  • Jabal Husn Ghuraf
  • Jebel Shaqb?
Sarat range[lower-alpha 16]
Haraz range

}} | below = Note: Mountains are sorted in alphabetical order, unless where it concerns ranges. The highest confirmed mountains in each country are indicated with 'HP', and those with the highest peak are indicated with 'HP', bearing in mind that in the UAE, the highest mountain and the mountain with the highest peak are different. Outcrops are indicated with 'OC', and outliers with 'OL', and anticlines with 'AC'. Volcanoes are indicated with 'V', volcanic craters with 'VC', lava fields with 'LF', and volcanic fields with 'VF'.

Other notes:

  1. Shared with the UAE
  2. Also regarded as being of the Western Hajar
  3. Also regarded as being of the Western Hajar
  4. Shared with the UAE
  5. Shared with the UAE
  6. Sensu lato, shared with Yemen
  7. Shared with Yemen
  8. Sensu lato
  9. Sensu lato
  10. Shared with Oman
  11. Shared with Oman
  12. Highest mountain in the UAE, but the peak is in Oman
  13. Due to the peak of Jebel Jais being in Oman, this mountain has the highest confirmed peak in the UAE
  14. Shared with Oman
  15. Shared with Oman
  16. Shared with Saudi Arabia
  17. Highest confirmed peak in the Arabian Peninsula

}}

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