ABSTRACT
Hadramawt, the homeland of the Hadrami, consists of the stretch of land situated between Oman and the Yemen proper. From 1937 to 1967 it was controlled by the British through the so-called ‘Ingrams’ peace’, as the latest British colonial adoption, and from 1968 to 1990 it was part of the People’s Republic of South Yemen. Hadramawt is now the name of the largest province of present-day united Yemen. It can be divided roughly into three parts. First is the coastal region, with important port towns including al-Mukalla¯, al-Shihr, Sayhut, al-Qishn and Mirbat, forming the gateway to the Indian Ocean. The coastal line shares with the interior a challenging climate with sparse and irregular rainfall, and days of extreme heat.
