IZKI: Al Yeman, noted for its natural beauty and heritage neighbourhoods, is one of the oldest villages in the Wilayat of Izki, located in the Governorate of Al Dakhiliyah.
The village, named after the Yemeni Arabs who lived there, lies at the centre of the wilayat along with Nazar village.
Al Yeman boasts archaeological neighbourhoods, the most important among them being Old Al Yeman, which is a model of military architecture. It is surrounded by a large wall with three observation towers and four main gates. It also includes a mosque and five sabla or ‘Majlis’ Sablat Al Aali, Sablat Al Gharabiya, Sablat Al Sharqiya, Sablat Al Junubiya and Sablat Al Sabah, along with hundreds of houses decorated with beautiful colours and ancient writings.
Al Yeman is characterised by military entrenchments with a large protective wall around, which provides the village and its residents safety and security.
The length of the fence is about 600 metres and its maximum height is 5 metres, which is built of stones and mud. It has an upper passageway to facilitate the movement of soldiers for observation and defence. The fence is connected to three defensive towers: the North-East Tower, the North-West Tower and the largest South-East Tower. Also, there are four gates.
Tawi Al Burj, Me’wa, Al Burj, and Al Jami are among the wells that provide water for the neighbourhood. It also has shops and a road network that extends from the main gate, named Bab Al Sabah in the eastern side, to the west. Making travel easy, there are roads originating from the main ones in all directions.
There are a number of mosques inside the neighbourhood, most notably the old Izki Mosque, which is located inside the Old Al Yeman neighbourhood. In Al Yeman village, the two water sources are groundwater wells and the aflaj system, the most important among them being Al Malki Falaj — which is shared by Nazar village — Falaj Al Mahdooth, Falaj Al Alam and Falaj Mesafia.
Ancient poets have celebrated the beauty of Al Yeman village in many of their poems. Many scholars, intellectuals and poets, who lived in the second, third and fourth centuries of Hijra, hailed from this village.
Izki, like most of the other wilayats of the Sultanate, is steeped in history with various heritage features such as old neighbourhoods, fortresses, towers, castles and aflaj and monuments built by Omanis through the centuries. — ONA
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