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Yemeni Mobility: Utilizing a Longue Durée and Oral History

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Yemeni Mobility: Utilizing a Longue Durée and Oral History YEMENI MOBILITY: UTILIZING A LONGUE DURÉE AND ORAL HISTORY APPROACH TO UNDERSTAND YEMENI-AMERICAN MIGRATION A THESIS IN History Presented to the Faculty of the University of Missouri-Kansas City in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree MASTER OF ARTS By Kipp Cozad B.A. University of Missouri-Kansas City, 1987 Kansas City, Missouri 2015 YEMENI MOBILITY: UTILIZING A LONGUE DURÉE AND ORAL HISTORY APPROACH TO UNDERSTAND YEMENI-AMERICAN MIGRATION Kipp Cozad, Candidate for the Master of Arts Degree University of Missouri-Kansas City, 2015 ABSTRACT Social historians tend to study Yemen migration through the lens of western capitalism. In so doing, they focus on modern events that shaped the movement of Yemenis out of south Arabia and dismiss the elements of mobility that have defined Yemen for millennia. This work aims to piece together the très longue durée of Yemen history and detail two structural aspects: mobility/stasis and cultural formation, in order to better understand how Yemenis constructed their society at home and abroad. Using over ten hours of interviews conducted in the summer of 2012, I utilize the language of five Yemeni-Americans to highlight their role as migrants and how they perceive the Yemeni community in Dearborn/Detroit, Michigan. I assert that as the Yemeni- American community grew to include women and children, and thus represented a more complete diaspora, Yemenis more assertively reproduced their traditional culture in the United States. I argue that the Yemeni-American tendency to remain insular, many of their cultural constructions, and their tradition of mobility, as well as their attachment to home, are not modern entities, but have roots in antiquity. iii APPROVAL PAGE The faculty listed below, appointed by the Dean of College of Arts and Sciences, have examined a thesis titled “Yemen Mobility: Utilizing a Longue Durée and Oral History Approach to Understand Yemeni-American Migration,” presented by Kipp Cozad, candidate for the Master of Arts in History, and certify that in their opinion it is worthy of acceptance. Supervisory Committee Carla Klausner, Ph.D. Department of History Andrew S. Bergerson, Ph.D. Department of History Nacer Khelouz, Ph.D. Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures iv TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT .................................................................................................. iii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS ......................................................................... vii GLOSSARY .................................................................................................. viii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ............................................................................. xii INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................... 1 Literature Review .............................................................................. 1 Theoretical Framework ...................................................................... 8 Research Methods and Strategies ...................................................... 13 Thesis Structure ................................................................................. 17 1. ANCIENT TRAILS, SECLUDED VILLAGES, AND A LITTORAL IDENTITY ......................................................... 20 Origins .............................................................................................. 22 Antiquity ........................................................................................... 25 Medieval Age .................................................................................... 41 Modern Yemen ................................................................................. 48 2. ECHOES OF THE IMAM ....................................................................... 60 Defining a Modern Diaspora ............................................................ 61 A Policy of Seclusion ....................................................................... 63 Weakening of the Hadhrami Diaspora ............................................. 68 British Colonial Maritime Labor Recruitment in Asia ..................... 70 The Yemeni-British Diaspora ........................................................... 81 v Birth of a Migrant State .................................................................... 93 3. FROM DEAUAN TO LIVING ROOM .................................................. 113 The Yemeni-American Diaspora ....................................................... 114 Perceptions of Home and Village ...................................................... 124 Husbands and Fathers Abroad ........................................................... 136 Perceptions of Migration ................................................................... 139 Departure, Mobility, and Arrival ....................................................... 142 Maintaining a Yemeni-American Diaspora ....................................... 151 CONCLUSION .............................................................................................. 178 BIBLIOGRAPHY .......................................................................................... 182 VITA .............................................................................................................. 188 vi ILLUSTRATIONS Figure Page 1. Yemeni Gentlemen in Doorway ............................................................. 13 2. South Arabian Frankincense Trade 800 BCE-600 CE ........................... 27 3. South Arabia: Fourth Century ................................................................ 39 4. Hadhrami Migration: 9th-16th Centuries ............................................... 46 5. Region of Greatest Yemeni Emigration to the West .............................. 79 6. Nineteenth and Twentieth Century Yemeni Diaspora in the UK ........... 83 7. Bute Town – Cardiff, Wales circa 1947 ................................................. 85 8. Yemeni-American Diaspora in the US ................................................... 119 9. Arab-American Communities in Detroit/Dearborn, MI ......................... 121 vii GLOSSARY al fosl: In Yemen, serves as a deed for a specific property of land. al-adel: In Yemen, similar to a mayor. al-aql: Mid-level government official. al-Arabi: Arabic. al-hakem: A judge. al-Montaqah al-Wustah: The Central Region of Yemen; source of the majority of migrants that traveled to the West. al-tafra: A regional term referring to the oil boom in the Persian Gulf. Arabia Felix: Was the Latin name previously used by geographers to describe Yemen, literally Happy Arabia. Aseed: Peasant food made with flour that has the consistency of mashed potatoes. Askeri: Soldiers. Bab al-Mandab Strait: Narrow strait between Africa and Yemen. “Boaters” (bahria): Derogatory term for Yemenis who are new to the American diaspora. Boswellia: A tree in the Hadramawt that produces Frankincense. Deauan: A room in a home used for social gatherings, typically located in the lower level of the home. Eid: Islamic festival or holiday. Endogamy: The practice of marrying within the community, clan, or tribe. Fanoos: Kerosene lantern. Ghada: Lunch. Ghat Sarang: Recruiter and dock head man for Asian workers. viii Hadith: Sayings of the Prophet Mohammed. Hadramawt: Large dry region in southeastern Yemen, home to the Hadhramis. Hajj: The annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca. Hajj is associated with Islam but the roots of pilgrimage extend back into Arabian antiquity. Hijab: A headscarf worn by females that covers the hair and neck. Imam: The spiritual and political leader of Yemen; deposed in the 1962 Revolution; generically refers to a leader of a mosque. Jumhuriyya: Arabic word for republic. Jumlukiyya: hybridization of the Arabic jumhuriyya or republic and malakiyya or monarchy. Janbiya: Traditional Yemeni dagger that accompanies an ornamental belt. Khobz: Arabic word for bread. Khokh: Arabic word for peach. Lascar: A sailor employed on European ships from the 16th century until the 20th century. Levant: Area of the Eastern Mediterranean that includes Syria, Palestine, Israel, Cyprus, Jordan, Lebanon, and part of southern Turkey. Mada’a: The Yemeni term for a tobacco water pipe. Maeeda: Small low-lying coffee table. Majlees: Arab sitting room. Malakiyya: Monarchy. Masjid: Mosque. Meshetda: Male headscarf. Mudhan: A place at the bottom of a house, where food and grain are kept. Mukarib: Ancient south Arabian kings, known as unifiers. Muqaddam: Yemeni labor recruiters. Niqab: Full veil. ix Pan-Arabism: Nationalist notion of cultural and political unity among Arab countries of the Middle East. Qabr Hud: a pre-Islamic prophet, revered by Shia Muslims. Qat: A mildly stimulant shrub whose leaves are chewed. Quranic: Anything associated with the Quran, the Holy Book of Islam. Qus: white layer painted over mud in Yemeni domicile architecture. Rub al-Khali: The Empty Quarter. Qasimi Imams: Zaydi Imams who expelled the Turks from Yemen. Salaam alaikum: Standard Arabic greeting, literally “Peace be upon you”. Sayhad: The desolate rocky arid high plains adjacent to the Empty Quarter. Sayyid: Yemeni elites who can trace their lineage back to the Prophet Mohammed. Seltah: The national dish of Yemen, originates with a Turkish stew. Shafi’i: Dominant sect of Sunni Islam within Yemen. Shia: Branch of Islam, includes the Zaydis of Yemen. Sojourner: A person who resides temporarily in a place. Souq: Market. Sublime Port: Central government of the Ottoman Empire Sunnis: Branch of Islam;
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