ʿAbdali sultanate

ʿAbdali sultanate, former semi-independent state in the southern Arabian Peninsula, in what is now Yemen. Located just north of Aden city, it was one of the most important tribal areas of the Aden Protectorate, which was the forerunner of independent Yemen (Aden); its capital was Laḥij. The sultanate was earlier tributary to western Yemen (i.e., Yemen [Sanaa]) but gained its independence in 1728. The ʿAbdali tribal people then seized Aden and remained independent until 1839, when they signed the first of several treaties with the British that led to the formation of the Aden Protectorate. The sultanate was held by the Turks during World War I. The Ṣubayḥī (Subeihi) tribal area to the west came under ʿAbdali jurisdiction in 1948, and the sultanate became part of Yemen (Aden) in 1967 and of the unified Yemen in 1990. The lands comprise a fertile area that has a settled population and produces fruit, grain, and other crops.