People's Democratic Republic of Yemen | ||||||||||||||
جمهورية اليمن الديمقراطية الشعبية Jumhūrīyat al-Yaman ad-Dīmuqrāṭīyah ash-Sha‘bīyah |
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Satellite state of the Soviet Union (1970–1990) | ||||||||||||||
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The People's Democratic Republic of Yemen in 1990.
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Capital | Aden | |||||||||||||
Languages |
Arabic English Mehri Soqotri Hobi Shehri South Arabian |
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Government | Unitary Marxist–Leninist one-party state | |||||||||||||
General Secretary | ||||||||||||||
• | 1978–1980 | Abdul Fattah Ismail | ||||||||||||
• | 1980–1986 | Ali Nasir Muhammad | ||||||||||||
• | 1986–1990 | Ali Salim al-Beidh | ||||||||||||
President | ||||||||||||||
• | 1967–1969 (first) | Qahtan al-Shaabi | ||||||||||||
• | 1986–1990 (last) | Haidar al-Attas | ||||||||||||
Prime Minister | ||||||||||||||
• | 1969 | Faysal al-Shaabi | ||||||||||||
• | 1969–1971 | Muhammad Ali Haitham | ||||||||||||
• | 1971–1985 | Ali Nasir Muhammad | ||||||||||||
• | 1985–1986 | Haidar al-Attas | ||||||||||||
• | 1986–1990 | Yasin Said Numan | ||||||||||||
Legislature | Supreme People's Council | |||||||||||||
Historical era | Cold War | |||||||||||||
• | Independence declared | 30 November 1967 | ||||||||||||
• | UN membership | 14 December 1967 | ||||||||||||
• | Constitution adopted | 31 October 1978 | ||||||||||||
• | Unification | 22 May 1990 | ||||||||||||
Area | ||||||||||||||
• | 1990 | 360,133 km² (139,048 sq mi) | ||||||||||||
Population | ||||||||||||||
• | 1990 est. | 2,585,484 | ||||||||||||
Density | 7.2 /km² (18.6 /sq mi) | |||||||||||||
Currency | South Yemeni dinar | |||||||||||||
Calling code | +969 | |||||||||||||
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ISO 3166-1 = YD ISO 3166-3 = YDYE |
North Yemen-South Yemen Border Conflict of 1972 | |||||||
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North & South Yemen |
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Belligerents | |||||||
North Yemen Supported by: |
South Yemen |
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Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Ali Abdullah Saleh | Abdel Fattah Ismail | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
24,000 |
The People's Democratic Republic of Yemen (Arabic: جمهورية اليمن الديمقراطية الشعبية Jumhūrīyat al-Yaman ad-Dīmuqrāṭīyah ash-Sha‘bīyah), also referred to as South Yemen, Democratic Yemen or Yemen (Aden) a.k.a. South Arabian Federation, was a socialist state in the southern and eastern provinces of the present-day Republic of Yemen, including the island of Socotra. It united with the Yemen Arab Republic (commonly known as "North Yemen") on 22 May 1990, to form the present-day Yemen. After four years, however, South Yemen declared its secession from the north, which resulted in the north occupying south Yemen and the 1994 civil war.
In 1838, Sultan Muhsin bin Fadl of the nearby state of Lahej ceded 194 km² (75 sq. miles) including Aden to the British. On 19 January 1839, the British East India Company landed Royal Marines at Aden to occupy the territory and stop attacks by pirates against British shipping to India. It then became an important trading hub between British India and the Red Sea, and following the opening of the Suez canal in 1869, it became a coaling station for ships en route to India. Aden was ruled as part of British India until 1937, when the city of Aden became the Colony of Aden. The Aden hinterland and Hadhramaut to the east formed the remainder of what would become South Yemen and was not administered directly by Aden but were tied to Britain by treaties of protection with local rulers of traditional polities that, together, became known as the Aden Protectorate. Economic development was largely centered in Aden, and while the city flourished, the states of the Aden Protectorate stagnated.