Britannica Student Encyclopedia - 2010

In 1985 Mikhail Gorbachev became the

leader of the Soviet Union. Gorbachev

made Yeltsin the leader of Moscow, the

capital city. Yeltsin lost this job in 1987

because he pushed too hard for change.

In 1989 other Russians who wanted

change elected Yeltsin to a seat in a new

Soviet legislature. In 1990 he was elected

president of the Russian republic. At the

time, Russia was one of the 15 republics

that made up the Soviet Union. Soon

after that, Yeltsin left the Communist

Party.

In August 1991 Yeltsin helped to stop a

group of Communists from taking

power away from Gorbachev. By this

time, however, many of the Soviet

republics wanted complete independence.

In December 1991 Gorbachev

resigned and the Soviet Union ceased to

exist. The republics each became independent

countries.

Yeltsin remained president of Russia. He

tried to introduce changes in the

economy, but some members of the

legislature disagreed with him. Yeltsin

won reelection in 1996. But by 1999 he

had angered many legislators. They tried

to remove him from office but did not

succeed. Yeltsin retired on December 31,

1999. He died on April 23, 2007, in

Moscow.

..More to explore

Communism • Russia • Union of Soviet

Socialist Republics

Boris Yeltsin led Russia during its

last year as a part of the Soviet

Union.

BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Yeltsin, Boris 89

 

Yemen

Yemen is a country in the Middle East.

From 1962 to 1990 Yemen was divided

into two separate countries: North

Yemen and South Yemen. Yemen’s capital

is Sanaa.

Geography

Yemen is on the southern tip of the Arabian

Peninsula, a triangle of land in

southwestern Asia. Yemen shares borders

with Saudi Arabia and Oman. The Red

Sea lies to the west, and the Gulf of

Aden is to the south. The Gulf of Aden

links the Red Sea with the Arabian Sea.

The Arabian Sea lies to the southeast of

Yemen. Several nearby islands belong to

Yemen.

A narrow, sandy plain runs along

Yemen’s coasts. Mountains and other

highlands rise in central Yemen. North

of the highlands is a large, sandy desert.

The desert and the coasts are hot and

dry. The highlands have cooler temperatures

and enough rainfall for farming.

Plants and Animals

Eucalyptus, sycamore, and fig trees grow

in the highlands. Thorny shrubs grow in

the dry areas. Date palm trees grow near

the coasts.

Yemen’s wildlife includes baboons,

hyenas, foxes, and rabbits. Hawks, vultures,

ravens, and other birds also live in

the country.

People

Most of the people in Yemen are Arabs.

Small groups of Somalis, other Africans,

and South Asians also live in Yemen.

Most people speak the Arabic language.

Some people, especially in the cities,

speak English as well. Nearly all the

A wall surrounds the oldest part of Sanaa,

Yemen. The Liberty Gate is the most famous

of the wall’s many gates.

90 Yemen BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA

 

people follow the religion of Islam.

However, there are small groups of Hindus,

Christians, and Jews.

The largest city is the capital, Sanaa.

Sanaa is known for its ancient architecture,

markets, and mosques (Muslim

houses of worship). The country’s

second-largest city is Aden, the former

capital of South Yemen. Aden has long

been an important seaport. Although

these cities are large, most Yemenis live

in villages and small towns. A small part

of the population is nomadic. This

means that they travel from place to

place.

Economy

Yemen’s economy depends on the production

of petroleum (oil). However,

Yemen does not have as much oil as

other countries in the Middle East.

Yemen also produces metal products,

cloth, and cement.

About half of Yemen’s workers are farmers

or herders. The main food crops are

sorghum, tomatoes, potatoes, grapes,

oranges, and wheat. Other crops include

coffee and qat. Many Yemenis chew the

leaves of the qat plant. Herders raise

sheep, goats, and cattle. Fishing is

another source of food.

History

In ancient times wealthy kingdoms

ruled what is now Yemen. The kingdoms

grew rich from trading frankincense

and myrrh, which came from trees

grown in the region. Many ancient

peoples used frankincense and myrrh to

make perfumes and medicines.

In the 600s the people of Yemen

accepted Islam. Muslim leaders called

imams then ruled Yemen. In the 1500s

the Ottoman Empire took control of

parts of Yemen. The Yemenis drove out

the Ottoman Turks in the 1600s. The

Turks returned in the mid-1800s and

took over northern Yemen. Meanwhile

the British began taking control of

southern Yemen.

Two Yemens

The Ottoman Empire collapsed in

1918. Imams then ruled northern

Yemen until 1962, when the last imam

lost power. Northern Yemen became a

new country called the Yemen Arab

Republic, or North Yemen.

In 1967 the British left southern Yemen,

and a socialist group took control of the

area. (In socialism the government controls

all businesses and property.)

Another socialist government that took

power in 1969 renamed the country the

People’s Democratic Republic of Yemen,

or South Yemen.

Unification

In 1990 the two Yemens joined together

as the Republic of Yemen. In 1994

southern rebels began a civil war against

the government. Less than two months

later the government defeated the rebels.