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Shabwa

شبوة

An old Himyarite city between Bayhan and Hadramawt with a salt mountain whose second ridge belonged to Ma'rib. Al-Hamdani reports: when Himyar and Madhhij warred, the people of Shabwa abandoned it for Hadramawt, and from them Shibam took its name — 'the original was Shabah, the mim replacing the ha' 1.

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Era
Pre-Islamic Arabia
Region
Arabia
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Overview

Shabwa is an ancient city of Himyar, between Bayhan and Hadramawt. In it is the Mountain of Salt, and its second mountain is shared with the people of Ma'rib, according to al-Hamdani. 2

Al-Hamdani relates that when Himyar and Madhhij fought each other, the people of Shabwa left it and settled in Hadramawt, and by them Shibam was named. He says that the original form was "shabah", and the mim was substituted for the ha'. 2

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Shibam

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Shibam

Sources

  1. Sifat Jazirat al-Arab of al-Hamdani (Müller ed.) , p. 70
  2. Sifat Jazirat al-Arab of al-Hamdani (Müller ed.) , p.70
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “Shabwa”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/place/shabwa/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-10-16.

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Place

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Shibam

A city in the Hadramawt land, with another town about one stage away. Both lie along the route inland from Aden. Al-Hamdani derives its very name from the refugees of Shabwa who settled Hadramawt when Himyar and Madhhij warred — 'the original was Shabah, the mim replacing the ha'.