Cultural landscapes and landscape planning in Yemen.

Abstract

Globally, historic natural and cultural landscapes are facing challenges that threaten their survival. In many cases, efforts leading to the conservation of these landscapes could also contribute to economic and sustainable development programs. In North America, the national parks system was established to protect and enhance significant landscapes for environmental, educational, scientific, cultural and aesthetic reasons. In Yemen, the improvement and sustainability of development means safeguarding and enhancing both natural and human resources in the country. This paper describes physical and cultural features of historic landscapes in Yemen and discusses their significance and some of the stresses they currently face. The paper offers possible policies for conservation of these landscapes. The recommendations in the paper are strategic in the sense that they promote discussion and awareness of landscape assessment and planning, as well as promotion, management, and cultural security within the context of Yemen.

A l'echelle mondiale, les paysages naturels et culturels historiques font face a des difficultes qui menacent leur survie. Dans un tel contexte, les efforts en vue de la conservation des paysages historiques pourraient, dans bien des cas, egalement contribuer a des programmes economiques et de developpement durable. Par exemple, en Amerique du Nord, le systeme des parcs nationaux a ete mis sur pied pour proteger et mettre en valeur les paysages notables pour des motifs environnementaux, educatifs, scientifiques, culturels et esthetiques. Au Yemen, I'amelioration et al durabilite du developpement signifient preserver et mettre en valeur les ressources naturelles et humaines du pays. On decrit dans cet article les caracteristiques physiques et culturelles des paysages historiques du Yemen. On y analyse I'importance de ces paysages et les agressions auxquelles ils sont soumis. On recommande dans cet article des politiques qui pourraient contribuer a la conservation des ces paysages. Les recommandations que I'on trouve dans cet article sont strategiques en ce qu'elles favorisent le debat et la sensibilisation au sujet de I'evaluation et de la planification des paysages, de meme que la promotion, la gestion et la securite culturelle dans le contexte du Yemen.

Keywords

Cultural landscapes, historic sites, traditional architecture, heritage environments, landscape conservation, sustainable development

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Introduction

In many countries, increasing new development is putting stresses on the landscape. Appropriate education and training, technology and ecodevelopment are being carefully applied in some of these places, yet in others this is not the case. Many countries in Europe and North America are currently more concerned with their landscape resources due to human overexploitation. In order to plan, maintain and develop landscape resources, scholars and international organizations have undertaken specific studies to locate and identify significant landscape characteristics and values. In this context, Yemen is a very attractive place, not only because of its interesting geographical features and flora and fauna, but because the traditional lifestyle and cultural legacy of its people have remained relatively untouched by twentieth century modernization. This paper addresses landscape issues in Yemen and focuses more specifically on human interaction with landscapes. Currently, the lack of awareness of cultural and natural landscape heritage and the lack of commitment to protect it threatens many significant landscapes. This requires, as a high priority at this stage, making a strong case for heritage and for the need to preserve and manage heritage. In this context, the lack of a legal, policy, financial and management framework also motivates this paper.

Significance

Yemen's historical landscape is impressive and unique (Figure 1). It contains clues to the origins of civilization and humankind itself. The character and qualities of landscape in Yemen reflect the longstanding human interaction with nature that has been ongoing for about three thousand years (Mathews 1996, Organization of World Heritage Cities (OWHC) 2004, UNESCO 2001). A tradition of collective responsibility for managing natural and cultural resources has been essential to the maintenance of the landscape heritage in Yemen. Today, the abandoning of collective responsibility is threatening to change the landscape, yet the preservation of landscape is essential to the development of Yemen.

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Cultural landscape is the manifestation of historical, religious and socioeconomic activities interacting with nature. Today, Yemeni communities still exist in a harmonious and balanced relationship with the natural habitat. The beliefs and values of the Yemeni people have shaped cultural landscape in Yemen with a valuable legacy in the form of their architecture and historic monuments, religious and economic institutions and special aesthetic expression. The harmonious architectural landscape in Yemen has also suited the life of the Yemeni people.

The people of Yemen have long been famous for their skills as builders of many famous monuments and structures such as walled cities, houses, towers, dams and field terraces (Warburton 1993). These monuments were constructed of local building materials such as stone and mud or sun dried brick. These bricks were made of a mixture of clay soil, water and straw, and were formed in rectangular wooden moulds. After the brick dried in the sun, they were used for building walls and arches. Mud plaster bonded the layers of the bricks. Yemeni towns, filled with great monuments, are the best witnesses to that fact. Ancient dams and impressive terraces adorning mountainsides are additional evidence of their architectural and engineering skills. Inevitably, there are important historic sites and monuments in the country, which demand study, planning, conservation, and management.

The Yemeni landscape, with its unique architectural styles, reflects the influence of climate and different traditional solutions for different regions. Architectural techniques and materials distinguish the various regions of the country. Landscape has mostly remained unchanged by modern development. Towns and villages of central regions are located in the steep mountains with terraced fields (Figure 2). Buildings are beautifully decorated with arches and colored glass windows. Arched upper windows are made of plaster and decorated with geometric or floral patterns, which are filled with pieces of colored glass (Figure 3). These features add special value to the landscape. Yemen is considered to be one of the countries richest in beautiful and interesting heritage sites that attract visitors from all over the world. Heritage landscapes in Yemen have so many outstanding qualities that deserve international recognition and support. Planning, protection, and management of landscapes are very important, because of their socio-economic values as well as agricultural productivity, environmental, educational and cultural importance.

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Many scholars realize that the qualities of traditional architecture and heritage sites in Yemen are unique in the world (Aga Khan Award 1983, OWHC 2004). These sites developed in an outstanding way suited to conditions of climate and craftsmanship, using building materials that were available locally. Usually traditional buildings are influenced by geology and local climate. Yemen possesses good building materials such as stone and clays, which are suitable for making burnt bricks, as well as sun-dried blocks, which are used in the form of adobe structural elements. The clays are suitable as finishes for flat adobe roofs. Gypsum is also used for architectural details, as well as for strengthening the surfaces, and producing different decorative features. The skills of Yemeni craftsmen have contributed to a unique and unusual style for the cultural landscapes in Yemen. A professional presentation, "Traditional Architecture in Yemen", made for the United Nations Conference on Human Habitations at Vancouver, 1976, demonstrated that with a proper use of locally available resources, the cultural landscapes of the people, and also their economic possibilities, can be respected, throughout Yemen and other countries in the world.

Physical Landscape

Yemen is located in the Middle East at the southwestern corner of the Arabian Peninsula (Figure 4). The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia bounds it on the north and the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean on the south. To the east is the Sultanate of Oman, and to the west are the straits of Bab el Mandeb at the southern end of the Red Sea. Yemen occupies a strategic location on Bab el Mandeb, the strait linking the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden and one of world's most active shipping routes. Yemen, with a total area of 527,970 sq. km and a country of extreme physical contrasts, has much to offer natural enthusiasts. On the basis of topographical and geographical characteristics, the country may be classified into four large regions:

1. A 1,906 km coastline, which includes coastal plains on the Arabian Sea and the Red Sea. Yemen is largely a country of coastline and most of its territory runs along the seashore. Many coastal sites are attractive and interesting to local people and visitors alike with their blue sea and sky, fine beaches and fishing ports.

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