Vfrdtyky

Bab-el-Mandeb
Bab-el-Mandeb area with description.
Coordinates	12°35′N 43°20′E / 12.583°N 43.333°E / 12.583; 43.333Coordinates: 12°35′N 43°20′E / 12.583°N 43.333°E / 12.583; 43.333
Basin countries	Djibouti, Eritrea and Yemen
Max. length	31 mi (50 km)
Max. width	12 mi (19 km)
Average depth	−609 ft (−186 m)
Islands	Seven Brothers, Doumeira, Perim

The Bab-el-Mandeb (Arabic: باب المندب, lit. "Gate of Tears")^[1] is a strait located between Yemen on the Arabian Peninsula, and Djibouti and Eritrea in the Horn of Africa. It connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden.

Name

Bathymetric map of the Red Sea with the Bab-el-Mandeb at the bottom right

The strait derives its name from the dangers attending its navigation, or, according to an Arab legend, from the numbers who were drowned by the earthquake which separated Arabia from the Horn of Africa.^[1]

Geography

The Bab-el-Mandeb acts as a strategic link between the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea via the Red Sea and the Suez Canal. In 2006, an estimated 3.3 million barrels (520,000 m³) of oil passed through the strait per day, out of a world total of about 43 million barrels per day (6,800,000 m³/d) moved by tankers.^[2]

The distance across is about 20 miles (30 km) from Ras Menheli in Yemen to Ras Siyyan in Djibouti. The island of Perim divides the strait into two channels, of which the eastern, known as the Bab Iskender (Alexander's Strait), is 2 miles (3 km) wide and 16 fathoms (30 m) deep, while the western, or Dact-el-Mayun, has a width of about 16 miles (25 km) and a depth of 170 fathoms (310 m). Near the coast of Djibouti lies a group of smaller islands known as the "Seven Brothers". There is a surface current inwards in the eastern channel, but a strong undercurrent outwards in the western channel.^[1]

History

Paleo-environmental and tectonic events in the Miocene epoch created the Danakil Isthmus, a land bridge forming a broad connection between Yemen and Ethiopia.^[3] During the last 100,000 years eustatic sea level fluctuations have led to alternate opening and closing of the straits.^[4] According to the recent single origin hypothesis, the straits of Bab-el-Mandeb were probably witness to the earliest migrations of modern humans. It is presumed that at this time, the oceans were much lower and the straits were much shallower or dry, allowing a series of emigrations along the southern coast of Asia.

According to Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church tradition, the straits of Bab-el-Mandeb were witness to the earliest migrations of Semitic Ge'ez speakers into Africa, occurring c. 1900 BC, roughly around the same time as the Hebrew patriarch Jacob.^[5] The Kingdom of Aksum was a major regional power in the Horn of Africa. It extended its rule across the strait with the conquest of the Himyarite Kingdom shortly before the rise of Islam.

The United Kingdom unilaterally seized the island of Perim in 1799 on behalf of its Indian empire. Britain reasserted its ownership in 1857 and erected a lighthouse there in 1861, using it to command the Red Sea and the trade routes through the Suez Canal.^[1]

On February 22, 2008, a company owned by Tarek bin Laden unveiled plans to build a bridge named Bridge of the Horns across the strait, linking Yemen with Djibouti.^[6] Middle East Development LLC has issued a notice to construct a bridge passing across the Red Sea that would be the longest suspended passing in the world.^[7] The project has been assigned to engineering company COWI in collaboration with architect studio Dissing+Weitling, both from Denmark. It was announced in 2010 that Phase 1 had been delayed and as of mid-2016 nothing more has been heard about the project.

Sub-region

The Bab-el-Mandeb is also a sub-region in the Arab League, which includes Djibouti, Yemen, and Eritrea.

Demographics

Bab-el-Mandeb:[8]
Country	Area (km²)	Population (2016 est.)	Population density (per km²)	Capital	GDP (PPP) $M USD	GDP per capita (PPP) $ USD
Djibouti	23,200	846,687	37.2	Djibouti City	$3.327	$3,351
Eritrea	117,600	6,380,803	51.8	Asmara	$9.121	$1,314
Yemen	527,829	27,392,779	44.7	Sana'a	$58,202	$2,249
Total	668,629	34,620,269	29.3 / km²	Various	$70,650	$1841

Population centers

The most significant towns and cities along both the Djiboutian and Yemeni sides of the Bab-el-Mandeb

Djibouti

• Khôr ‘Angar


• Moulhoule


• Fagal

Yemen

• At Turbah


• Cheikh Saïd

See also

Strait:

• Red Sea Dam

Region:

• Arab League


• Maghreb


• Mashriq

Notes

References

External links

• 
   "Bab-el-Mandeb" , Encyclopædia Britannica, 3 (11th ed.), 1911, p. 91
  


• Notice-to-Proceed Launches Ambitious Red Sea Crossing


• Sea crossing