Origins of Himyar state - Islamic History

Last updated: September 26th, 2025 at 3:00 pm · Est. Reading Time: 3 minutes

Ḥimyar (Arabic: حِمْيَر), also rendered as Himyār, was a prominent South Arabian kingdom and tribal polity that emerged in the highlands of present-day Yemen. Its origins are both tribal and territorial, rooted in the ancient Semitic populations of southern Arabia and deeply connected with the broader history of the Arabian Peninsula.

Genealogical and Tribal Origins

The Himyarites are traditionally regarded as part of the Qaḥṭānite Arabs, often referred to in Arab genealogical sources as al-ʿArab al-ʿĀriba (“the pure Arabs”). According to early Islamic historiographical tradition, the progenitor of the Himyarites was Himyar ibn Saba’, a son of the eponymous Saba’ (Sheba), the legendary ancestor of various South Arabian tribes ¹.

Earliest Historical and Epigraphic Evidence

The Himyarite kingdom first appears in inscriptions from the late 2nd century BCE, written in the Musnad script of pre-Islamic South Arabia. ² These sources place Himyar in the southern highlands of Yemen, around Ẓafār (near modern Yarīm), which later became its capital. ³ Early rulers called themselves “kings of Ḥimyar” and competed with neighboring states like Saba’, Qatabān, and Ḥaḍramawt, gradually expanding their power through conflict and alliances.

Rise to Power and Unification of Yemen

By the mid-3rd century CE, Himyar expanded its autonomy, reaching a peak under Shammar Yuharʿish (c. 270 CE), who unified much of South Arabia. The kingdom absorbed Saba’, Qatabān, and Ḥaḍramawt, creating the “unified kingdom of Ḥimyar”. ⁴ From then on, its rulers styled themselves “Kings of Saba’, dhu-Raydān, Ḥaḍramawt, and Yamnat,” reflecting supremacy over the region.⁵ This unification transformed Himyar from a tribal power into a centralized monarchy that dominated Arabian politics and controlled trade between the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean.

Language, Culture, and Religion

The Himyarites spoke a South Arabian Semitic language related to Sabaic and wrote in the Musnad script. By the 4th–6th centuries CE, inscriptions show growing Arabization, blending Arabic with older forms. ⁶ This period also witnessed major cultural and religious changes. Culturally, they moved from polytheism to monotheism, with the royal court adopting Judaism by the 4th century CE. ⁷

Modern Scholarship

Modern understanding of Himyar’s origins is based on a synthesis of epigraphic, archaeological, and historical sources. Himyarite identity, once rooted in tribal affiliations, evolved into that of a dynastic kingdom with a complex social and religious order, marking one of the final great pre-Islamic civilizations of Arabia ⁸.

Foot Notes

For genealogical traditions linking Ḥimyar to Qaḥṭān and Saba’, see: Ibn al-Kalbī, Jamharat al-Nasab; al-Hamdānī, al-Iklīl, vol. 1. These genealogies, though legendary, reflect how early Arab historians conceptualized tribal identities and origins.
For an overview of the earliest references to Himyar in South Arabian inscriptions, see: A.F.L. Beeston et al., Sabaic Dictionary (Leuven: Peeters, 1982), and DASI: Digital Archive for the Study of Pre-Islamic Arabian Inscriptions (http://dasi.humnet.unipi.it/).
The ruins of the Himyarite capital Ẓafār have been excavated and documented by Paul Yule. See: Paul Alan Yule, Late Antique Arabia: Ẓafār, Capital of Ḥimyar (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 2007).
For the rise of Himyar and the reign of Shammar Yuharʿish, who unified southern Arabia, see: Walter W. Müller, “Ḥimyar,” in Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition, ed. P. Bearman et al. (Leiden: Brill, 2012), and Christian Robin, “Ḥimyar et Israël,” Arabian Archaeology and Epigraphy 3 (1992): 101–126.
On the evolution of the royal title “King of Sabaʾ, dhu-Raydān, Ḥaḍramawt and Yamnat,” see: Andrey Korotayev, Ancient Yemen: Some General Trends of Evolution of the Sabaic Language and Society (Moscow: Russian Academy of Sciences, 1995), esp. pp. 76–83.
On Himyarite language and Arabization, see: Peter Stein, “The Development of the Ancient South Arabian Languages,” in Languages of Pre-Islamic Arabia, ed. Michael C.A. Macdonald (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010), pp. 145–157.
On the adoption of Judaism and monotheism in later Himyar, see: Christian Julien Robin, “Judaism in Southern Arabia,” in The Cambridge History of Judaism, vol. 4, ed. Steven T. Katz (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006), pp. 872–904.
For a synthesis of archaeological, epigraphic, and historical approaches to early Himyar, see: Alesandro de Maigret, Arabia Felix: An Exploration of the Archaeological History of Yemen, trans. Rebecca Thompson (London: Stacey International, 2002), esp. chapters 6–8.