The Ancient City of Sana'a is The Oldest City Throughout History

 Historical Naming

The city is known by several names including the city of “Sam ”. It is also said that the city was built by Shem, the son of Noah, following the flood. It is also called “Azal ” but the most common name is “Sana’a”, which is mentioned in a number of ancient Yemeni inscriptions and means “the protected”.

www.almotamar.net/en/74.htm

Sana’a Capital: Town of history

Monday, 07-November-2005

Almotamar Net - Sana’a is one of Yemen’s governates; it is situated at the center  of the Yemeni plateau between two mountains in the Sana’a Basin. These  mountains are the Nuqum and Ayban Mountains, and are on a height 2200 meters above sea level. Sana’a has a bright sun throughout the year except for a few weeks in the summer and spring, which are often cloudy. Generally, it    is wonderfully fresh and moderate in summer and cold in winter. All districts and sd outskirts of Sana’a are mountainous. Sana’a is considered one of the Islamic historical towns because it has the Old City of Sana’a that is a real miracle of old architecture. The old city of Sana’a is one of the most beautiful cities in Arabia and the Islamic World. The city is known by several names including the city of “Sam”. It is also said that the city was built by Shem, the son of Noah, following the flood. It is also called “Azal” but the most common name is “Sana’a”, which is mentioned in a number of ancient Yemeni inscriptions and means “the protected”. In Sana’a there are more than 50 mosques, five with domes and many with minarets, the most important of which is the Great Mosque, built during the life of Prophet Mohammed and ordered by him in the Eighth Hegira year 630 AD. There are many other mosques, which are not less beautiful or wonderful with respect to the style of minarets, domes and artistic embellishments. Sana’a has the highest mountain in Arabia; the mountain of the Prophet Shueib, which is 3766 meters above sea level. It has also the most beautiful village Al-Hajara and the best quality of Yemeni coffee and grapes. Tourist Area In Sana’a: • Old Sana’a: http://www.flickr.com/photos/twiga_swala/2286034219/ With its unique and marvelous architecture, Old Sana’a is in itself a living museum. The beauty of the city has inspired many writers, architects, poets, and even tourists. One cannot but imagine the talent and taste of the original architects of such a magnificent city. The market is considered to be one of the significant components of the Arabic Islamic cities and the markets of old Sana’a are regarded as a living and rare example of this. There are ten such markets, each specializing in a certain craft or merchandise such as the Cloth market, Grain market, Silk market, Raisins market, Cattle market, Thread market, Coffee Husk market, Caps market, Carpet market, Salt market, Brassware market, Silverware market, Firewood market, all of which are perfumed with the scents of the East. There are about 15 steam baths in old Sana’a, which are a fundamental feature of the city, as baths are associated with cleanliness. It is said that the Persians introduced the baths. Since 1984, the UNESCO has listed Old Sana’a among the international heritage cities as “World Heritage of Mankind”.

         Old Sana'a Market

Sanaa (Arabic: صَنْعَاء, Ṣanʿāʾ [sˤɑnʕaːʔ], Yemeni Arabic: [ˈsˤɑnʕɑ]; Old South Arabian: 𐩮𐩬𐩲𐩥 Ṣnʿw), also spelled Sanaʽa and Sana, is the capital and largest city in Yemen and the centre of Sanaa Governorate. The city is not part of the Governorate, but forms the separate administrative district of ʾAmānat al-ʿĀṣimah (أَمَانَة ٱلْعَاصِمَة). According to the Yemeni constitution, Sanaa is the capital of the country,^[2] although the seat of the Yemeni government moved to Aden, the former capital of South Yemen in the aftermath of the Houthi occupation. Aden was declared as the temporary capital by President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi in March 2015.^[3]

At an elevation of 2,300 metres (7,500 ft),^[4] Sanaa is one of the highest capital cities in the world and is next to the Sarawat Mountains of Jabal An-Nabi Shu'ayb and Jabal Tiyal, considered to be the highest mountains in the country and amongst the highest in the region. Sanaa has a population of approximately 3,937,500 (2012), making it Yemen's largest city. As of 2020, the greater Sanaa urban area makes up about 10% of Yemen's total population.^[5]

The Old City of Sanaa, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, has a distinctive architectural character, most notably expressed in its multi-storey buildings decorated with geometric patterns. In the conflict that raged in 2015, bombs hit UNESCO sites in the old city.^[6][7] The Al Saleh Mosque, the largest in Sanaa, is located in the southern outskirts of the city.

Sanaa has been facing a severe water crisis,^[8] with water being drawn from its aquifer three times faster than it is replenished. The city is predicted to run completely out of water by around 2030, making it the first national capital in the world to do so. Access to drinking water is very limited in Sanaa, and there are problems with water quality.^[9]

History[edit]

See also: Timeline of Sanaa

Ancient period[edit]

According to popular Abrahamic religions, Sanaa was founded at the base of the mountains of Jabal Nuqum^[4] by Shem, the son of Noah,^[10][11][12] after the latter's death.

The name Sanaa is probably derived from the Sabaic root ṣnʿ, meaning "well-fortified".^[13][14][15] The name is attested in old Sabaean inscriptions, mostly from the 3rd century CE, as ṣnʿw.^[13] In the present day, a popular folk etymology says that the name Sanaa refers to "the excellence of its trades and crafts (perhaps the feminine form of the Arabic adjective aṣnaʿ)".^[13]

The 10th-century Arab historian al-Hamdani wrote that Sanaa's ancient name was Azāl, which is not recorded in any contemporary Sabaean inscriptions.^[13] The name "Azal" has been connected to Uzal, a son of Qahtan, a great-grandson of Shem, in the biblical accounts of the Book of Genesis.^[16]

Al-Hamdani wrote that Sanaa was walled by the Sabaeans under their ruler Sha'r Awtar, who also arguably built the Ghumdan Palace in the city. Because of its location, Sanaa has served as an urban hub for the surrounding tribes of the region and as a nucleus of regional trade in southern Arabia. It was positioned at the crossroad of two major ancient trade routes linking Ma'rib in the east to the Red Sea in the west.^[12]

Appropriately enough for a town whose name means "well-fortified", Sanaa appears to have been an important military center under the Sabaeans.^[13] They used it as a base for their expeditions against the kingdom of Himyar further south, and several inscriptions "announce a triumphant return to Sanaa from the wars".^[13] Sanaa is referred to in these inscriptions both as a town (hgr) and as a maḥram (mḥrm), which according to A. F. L. Beeston indicated "a place to which access is prohibited or restricted, no matter whether for religious or for other reasons".^[13] The Sabaean inscriptions also mention the Ghumdan Palace by name.^[13]

When King Yousef Athar (or Dhu Nuwas), the last of the Himyarite kings, was in power, Sanaʽa was also the capital of the Axumite viceroys.^{[citation needed]} Later tradition also holds that the Abyssinian conqueror Abrahah built a Christian church in Sanaa.^[13]

Islamic era[edit]

The Sanaʽa manuscript, found in Sanaʽa in 1972, is one of the oldest Quranic manuscripts in existence

From the era of Muhammad (ca. 622 CE) until the founding of independent sub-states in many parts of the Yemen Islamic Caliphate, Sanaa persisted as the governing seat. The Caliph's deputy ran the affairs of one of Yemen's three Makhalifs: Mikhlaf Sanaʽa, Mikhlaf al-Janad, and Mikhlaf Hadhramaut. The city of Sanaa regularly regained an important status, and all Yemenite States competed to control it.^{[citation needed]}

Imam Al-Shafi'i, the 8th-century Islamic jurist and founder of the Shafi'i school of jurisprudence, visited Sanaa several times. He praised the city, writing La budda min Ṣanʻāʼ, or "Sanaa must be seen." In the 9th–10th centuries, the Yem separate from each other, empty of ordure, without smell or evil smells, because of the hard concrete (adobe and cob, probably) and fine pastureland and clean places to walk." Later in the 10th-century, the Persian geographer Ibn Rustah wrote of Sanaa "It is the city of Yemen — there cannot be found ... a city greater, more populous or more prosperous, of nobler origin or with more delicious food than it."

In 1062 Sanaa was taken over by the Sulayhid dynasty led by Ali al-Sulayhi and his wife, the popular Queen Asma. He made the city capital of his relatively small kingdom, which also included the Haraz Mountains. The Sulayhids were aligned with the Ismaili Muslim-leaning Fatimid Caliphate of Egypt, rather than the Baghdad-based Abbasid Caliphate that most of Arabia followed. Al-Sulayhi ruled for about 20 years but he was assassinated by his principal local rivals, the Zabid-based Najahids. Following his death, al-Sulayhi's daughter, Arwa al-Sulayhi, inherited the throne. She withdrew from Sanaa, transferring the Sulayhid capital to Jibla, where she ruled much of Yemen from 1067 to 1138. As a result of the Sulayhid departure, the Hamdanid dynasty took control of Sanaʽa.^[17] Like the Sulayhids, the Hamdanids were Isma'ilis.^[13]

In 1173 Saladin, the Ayyubid sultan of Egypt, sent his brother Turan-Shah on an expedition to conquer Yemen. The Ayyubids gained control of Sanaʽa in 1175 and united the various Yemeni tribal states, except for the northern mountains controlled by the Zaydi imams, into one entity.^[17] The Ayyubids switched the country's official religious allegiance to the Sunni Muslim Abbasids. During the reign of the Ayyubid emir Tughtekin ibn Ayyub, the city underwent significant improvements. These included the incorporation of the garden lands on the western bank of the Sa'ilah, known as Bustan al-Sultan, where the Ayyubids built one of their palaces.^[18] However, Ayyubid control of Sanaa was never very consistent, and they only occasionally exercised direct authority over the city.^[13] Instead, they chose Ta'izz as their capital while Aden was their principal income-producing city.

While the Rasulids controlled most of Yemen, followed by their successors the Tahirids, Sanaa largely remained in the political orbit of the Zaydi imams from 1323 to 1454 and outside the former two dynasties' rule.^[19] The Mamelukes arrived in Yemen in 1517.

Historical landmarks

Ghumdan Palace, also Qasir Ghumdan or Ghamdan Palace, is an ancient palace and fortress in Sana'a, Yemen. It is the earliest known castle in the world.^[1] All that remains of the ancient site (Ar. khadd) of Ghumdan is a field of tangled ruins opposite the first and second of the eastern doors of the Jami‘ Mosque (Great Mosque of Sana'a). This part of Sana'a forms an eminence which is known to contain the debris of ancient times. The place is located on the extreme southeastern end of Sana'a's old walled city, al-Qaṣr, just west of where the Great Mosque of Sana'a was later built,^[2][3] and is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Old City of Sana'a. It is sometimes referred to as Ghumdan Tower.

According to Arab geographer and historian, Al-Hamdani (c. 893-945), the foundation stones of Ghumdan Palace were laid by Shem, the son of Noah, and finished by the Sabaean monarch Ilī-Sharḥa Yaḥḍib (ca. 8th century BCE), the father of Bilqis.^[4] Others say that it was built by Sha'r Awtar who walled the city of Sana'a,^[5] while yet others suggest that it may date to pre-Islamic times, constructed by the Sabaeans during the reign of the last great Sabaean King El Sharih Yahdhib (ca. 60-20 BCE). Some historians date it to the beginning of the 2nd century or the 1st century.^[6][7] The palace was destroyed by Caliph Uthman, or even earlier, by the Abyssinian conqueror Abrahah Al-Hubashi. Restored several times, the palace history is represented in numerous legends and tales. It is mentioned in many pieces of Arabic poetry, the poets singing about its beauty.^[8] Ghumdan Palace tower, a 20-storey high-rise building, is believed by some to have been the world's earliest skyscraper.^[9]   

History[edit]

Though the former palace is now in ruins, its style, a towered, multi-floor structure, has provided the prototype for the tower-type houses built in Sana’a. It expressed the "exquisite architecture of the old city".^[7]

The palace was used by the last Himyarite kings, who had ruled Yemen from Ghumdan and was once the residence of Abhalah.^[10] It was reportedly destroyed by Caliph Uthman in the 7th century because he feared it could be used as a stronghold for a rebellion. Some of its materials were re-used to build the Great Mosque.^[2]

The palace was reconstructed some time later but deteriorated over time. The ruins of the palace tower are now in the form of a mound that extends from the east of the Great Mosque to the north of Bab Al-Yemen.

The palace tower or citadel was built at the top of a hill. Historians such as Al-Hamdani, Mohammed Al-Qazwani and Dr. Adnan Tarsis dispute the height of the original palace. Given its grandeur, its height was exaggerated in historic accounts. Most claims are between six and ten storeys.^[2] In the early 9th century, it was reported to have been "seven storeys tall with the highest room being of polychrome marble, and its roof a single slab of green marble." Al-Hamdani writing in the tenth-century in the eighth book of his celebrated geography of the antiquities of the Yemen, Al-Iklīl (الإكليل) provides this description:

...a huge edifice of twenties stories, each story ten cubits high.^{[n 1]} The four facades were built with stone of different colours, white, black, green, red. On the top story was a chamber which had windows of marble framed with ebony and planewood. Its roof was a slab of pellucid marble, so that when the lord of Ghumdán lay on his couch he saw the birds fly overhead, and could distinguish a raven from a kite. At each corner stood a brazen lion, and when the wind blew it entered the hollow interior of the effigies and made a sound like roaring lions.

— Reynold A. Nicholson, A Literary History of the Arabs, page 24

Built over a square layout, ^[6] the top floor of the tower contained the Bilqis Hall, also described by al-Hamdani (two volumes, preserved in the British Museum), featured a ceiling affixed with eight-piece transparent marble fanlights. Openings at the four corners of the hall provided a clear view of the moon, worshipped by kings in ancient Yemen.^[8] Bronze lion figures at each corner of the alabaster ceilings were said to make a roaring sound when the wind passed through them. However, the most extraordinary feature of the palace was said to have been the clepsydra, an ancient time-telling device, which was built therein.^[11] A gate, known as the “Qasr Al-Selah”, is said to be the last vestige of the palace tower.

• Samsarah (Caravansaries): In old Sana’a there were a number of inns (Khans), which were used to perform specific functions that were complementary to the business of the market, such as services of accommodation, storage, safekeeping of deposits and precious items. Such facilities had a specific architectural style characterized by arches and terraces in the interior. The ground floor was usually used for camels and horses, there are even now samples of such brokerage inns. One of them is Al-Nahas Caravansary at the entrance of Salt Market, Bab Al-Yemen (Yemen Gate). This is now used as a center for the training of craftsmen and for the displaying of their products. Near by is another example called Samsarat Al-Mansour, which is presently a center artists whose medium is paint. • Dhahr Valley: Wadi Dhahr is located 14 km to the northwest of Sana’a and is considered to be the most important recreation area for the city of Sana’a. Here all kinds of fruit are grown. In the center of the Wadi perches Dar Al-Hajar (Rock Palace), a palace built on top of an enormous rock dating back to 1786 AD, and ordered by Imam Mansour Ali Bin Mehdi Abbas. http://pinterest.com/pin/119626933825153805/ In addition, there are a number of ancient monuments scattered within the Wadi. Yemenis like to come with their families to this vantage point and gaze at the beautiful valley. On Fridays tourists can witness traditional wedding dances in the plateau, visit the Palace and have small walking trips through the village. • Al-Rawdha:             Alrawdha City It is situated 8 km to the north of the city center. There is an ancient mosque in Al-Rawadha with artistically decorated minarets dating back to the 17th century. This mosque is called Imam Gasim Mosque. It also has rural clay houses made in the Sana’a style in addition to numerous vineyards. Many people in Sana’a throughout history have gone to Al-Rawadha in order to relax, especially in the season of grape harvests. Another ancient landmark in this area is Al-Rawadha historical Palace, Which dates back to the early twentieth century and used to be one of the Palaces of Imam Yahya. It is now a hotel. • Bait Baws:                                  The Old village (Bait Baws) A typical old village, Bait Baws is located 7 km to the south of Sana’a. Existing inscriptions found in the west of village show that the area was an important center in the ancient history of Yemen. The village is naturally fortified with only on entrance to the south. • Haddah: Lying about 8 kilometers from the city center, this region is continuously green because of its long trees of peanuts and other seasonal fruits. There are some old windmills, built during the Ottoman Empire’s rule of Yemen, which were driven by the force of water currents. Reference URLs: Ghumdan Palace - Wikipedia Sanaa - Wikipedia