Al-Bayḍā'

Al-Bayda lies in the highlands of central Yemen, below a fortress raised on a conspicuous white rock. Its name, meaning "the white one", is associated with this landmark. The fortress is enclosed by walls and watchtowers and was reused during the Islamic period. In the sixteenth century al-Bayda became a regional centre in the country earlier associated with Hasi, amid territories whose tribal names were already recorded in ancient South Arabian inscriptions.