Turkish folklore Tears of Azru Shaheen
the ottomans occupied yemen twice — the first was from 1539 to 1834, and the second was from 1872 to 1911. the target of our article today will be on the second occupation.
the interest of the ottomans in yemen was due to its distinguished geographic location along the red sea and the relative closeness to egypt that was also ruled by them. the occupation during the two periods was limited to important cities and coastal areas, while the higher areas especially in the north were not part of the ottoman domination.
the return of the ottomans in yemen in mid17th century exposed them to huge human losses before they eventually managed to impose their domination even temporarily. ottomans tried to develop yemen by bringing in printing machines and constructing schools. they also tried to put an end to the tribal systems and weaken the power of zaidi imams. the ottomans gave the jews many of their rights and prevented anyone from harming them.
the ottoman ruler of yemen ahmet ezzat pasha was very smart. he avoided involving his army in battles held on mountains. he encouraged the yemenis to enroll in public, security and army jobs. however, due to corruption, his aim was not accomplished. the resistance of the yemenis against the ottoman occupation had increased along with opposition towards development.
the number of soldiers of the ottomans who died had increased during the period 1904 to 1911 had reached 10,000. also, financial loss estimated at half million sterling pounds per year had incurred during the aforementioned period.
in 1911, the ottomans surrendered themselves to imam yahya despite the support of most of the urban citizens towards the ottomans. at that time, the british dominated aden until they withdrew in 1967.
due to the major losses incurred by the ottomans during that period, an anonymous poet wrote a sad poem “oh yemen” which later became part of turkish folklore. it was sung by a number of turkish singers including azru sahin (or called shaheen).
the song is about a mother mourning over her son who went to war in yemen but never returned.
“o’ you whose desert is nothing but sand, what did you want from my son? i do not know your place and i cannot follow your trails. i am yearning for my son.
o’ you, who is in the desert of yemen where no nightingale sings and no roses to grow, will my son ever be back? i have three orphans, what can i do?
tough-hearted pasha promised that sana’a will be our everlasting capital city but there is a flying eagle in yemen.
o’ yemen, i am yearning for my son. o’ yemen, your desert knows no nightingales and your roses are always stiff. my son’s bride is sick and i have three orphans. what can i do?”
reading the words of the poem will not have as much effect as listening to the song sung by the singer azru sahin. the song is available on this link: - https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=socuygclzc4
