Al Luḩayyah

Al Luḩayyah (also known as Luhayyah, Loheia, Luhaiyah, or Loheiya) is a town on the Tihamah coastal plain, Yemen. It is located at around 15°42′14″N 42°41′31″E. The port lies 4 miles (6 km) southwest of Al Luḩayyah, partially protected by the offshore island of Al-Urmak.

Al Luḩayyah
Al Luḩayyah
Location in Yemen
Coordinates: 15°23′0″N 42°33′37″E
Country Yemen
GovernorateAl Hudaydah
 2,656
Time zoneUTC+3 (Yemen Standard Time)

History

According to local tradition the town was founded at the dawn of the 15th century by a holy man, Sheikh Ali az-Zayla'i, a member of the Zayla'i family from the famed town of Zeila in Somalia.[1] The interest in the local saint (who is buried in the local mosque) quickly attracted new settlers, and within a century, the unassuming town developed from around the mid-15th century into a bustling town, and a substantial center of the export trade in coffee.[2] By the end of the 18th century, the az-Zayla'i family was still regarded as a holy family[3] and Al Luhayyah was a walled and well-fortified town. It was under the direction of the Emir Farhan when an expedition from Denmark visited the city and described their reception.[4]

From about 1800 onwards Al Luḩayyah was a part of the Ottoman Empire, and in 1912 suffered damage during the Italo-Turkish War.[5] It was captured in 1918 in a joint attack by the British Navy and forces loyal to the Idrisi rulers of Asir,[6] under whose control it remained until 1925 when it again came under Yemeni authority. It was seized in spring 1934 by the Saudis, who returned it however in the same year under the Treaty of Al-Ta'if.[7]

The town was formerly a trading centre of significance but has declined in the last two centuries, especially as seaborne traffic has moved to more modern facilities at Ahmadi, the port of Al Hudaydah. The population is estimated at under 3,000.[8]

'Town of Loheia', sketched by Thomas Elwon between 1829 and 1834.

Notes
  1. Gori, Alessandro (1998). "Una Famiglia Santa Tra Africa Orientale e Yemen: Gli Zaylaʿī Nelle "Ṭabaqāt" di Aḥmad B. Aḥmad B. ʿAbd Al-Laṭīf Al-Šarǧī". Rivista degli studi orientali. 72 (1/4): 41–60. JSTOR 41881017. According to the Yemeni author al-Šarǧï, whose Arabic text is fully translated and analyzed in this article, the al-Zaylaʿī of Yemen originally came from (Zayla) Africa.
  2. McLaughlin, Daniel (2008). Yemen. Bradt Travel Guides. p. 162. ISBN 9781841622125.
  3. Naval (2013-10-28). Western Arabia & The Red Sea. Routledge. p. 546. ISBN 9781136209956.
  4. Travels through Arabia and other countries in the East: performed by M. Niebuhr...translated into English by Robert Heron (Edinburgh, 1792)
  5. The Times, Wednesday, Jan 17, 1912; pg. 5; Issue 39797; col C :‘The Italian Naval Victory:..the Italian cruisers Puglia and Calabria razed the fortifications at Kunfuda, Loheia, and Midy,...’ According to the New York Times though ‘...the Italians...on January 5 poured a hail of shells into the military camp. The Turks, however, suffered very few casualties, and no damage was done to the houses in the town.’ New York Times, 16 January 1912.
  6. The Times, Tuesday, Oct 24, 1922; pg. 18; Issue 43170; col E
  7. The Times, Thursday, Jun 14, 1934; pg. 15; Issue 46780; col F: 'Arabian Peace: Treaty signed by Wahabi King'
  8. Luhayyah, Al-." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online Library Edition. Encyclopædia Britannica, 2010. Web. 24 Oct. 2010
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