Yemen Geography - 2024

Location

Middle East, bordering the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Aden, and Red Sea, between Oman and Saudi Arabia

Geographic coordinates

15 00 N, 48 00 E

Map references

Middle East

Area

total: 527,968 sq km

land: 527,968 sq km

water: 0 sq km

note: includes Perim, Socotra, the former Yemen Arab Republic (YAR or North Yemen), and the former People's Democratic Republic of Yemen (PDRY or South Yemen)

Area - comparative

almost four times the size of Alabama; slightly larger than twice the size of Wyoming

Area comparison map:

Land boundaries

total: 1,601 km

border countries (2): Oman 294 km; Saudi Arabia 1,307 km

Coastline

1,906 km

Maritime claims

territorial sea: 12 nm

contiguous zone: 24 nm

exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin

Climate

mostly desert; hot and humid along west coast; temperate in western mountains affected by seasonal monsoon; extraordinarily hot, dry, harsh desert in east

Terrain

narrow coastal plain backed by flat-topped hills and rugged mountains; dissected upland desert plains in center slope into the desert interior of the Arabian Peninsula

Elevation

highest point: Jabal an Nabi Shu'ayb 3,666 m

lowest point: Arabian Sea 0 m

mean elevation: 999 m

Natural resources

petroleum, fish, rock salt, marble; small deposits of coal, gold, lead, nickel, and copper; fertile soil in west

Land use

agricultural land: 44.5% (2018 est.)

arable land: 2.2% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 0.6% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 41.7% (2018 est.)

forest: 1% (2018 est.)

other: 54.5% (2018 est.)

Irrigated land

6,800 sq km (2012)

Population distribution

the vast majority of the population is found in the Asir Mountains (part of the larger Sarawat Mountain system), located in the far western region of the country

Natural hazards

sandstorms and dust storms in summer

volcanism: limited volcanic activity; Jebel at Tair (Jabal al-Tair, Jebel Teir, Jabal al-Tayr, Jazirat at-Tair) (244 m), which forms an island in the Red Sea, erupted in 2007 after awakening from dormancy; other historically active volcanoes include Harra of Arhab, Harras of Dhamar, Harra es-Sawad, and Jebel Zubair, although many of these have not erupted in over a century

Geography - note

strategic location on Bab el Mandeb, the strait linking the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, one of world's most active shipping lanes