Yemen
/ˈjɛmən/noun
A country at the southwestern tip of the Arabian Peninsula.
Did you know?The Arabic root y-m-n connects Yemen with ideas of the right side, good fortune, and auspiciousness, while the region was also known in Greek as Arabia Felix, “Happy Arabia.”
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Semitic
Proto-Semitic
*yaman-
“Reconstructed root associated with the right hand or right-hand side, and possibly prosperity or good fortune”
Biblical Hebrew
Hebrew
yāmīn
“Right hand or right side; also associated with the south when facing east”
Classical Arabic
Arabic
al-Yaman
“The Yemen; traditionally interpreted as the land to the right or the fortunate land”
Ancient Greek
Greek
Eudaimon Arabia
““Fortunate” or “happy Arabia,” a name for the prosperous southern Arabian region”
Medieval Latin
Latin
Iemen
“Yemen, the southern Arabian country”
Middle English
English
Yemen
“The name of the Arabian land, appearing in medieval English geographic writing”
Modern English
English
Yemen
“The modern name of the country in southwestern Arabia”