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GIFT GIVING IN YEMEN*
BUSINESS GIFT GIVING /
PERSONAL GIFT GIVING
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Gifts should only
be given to the most intimate of friends. To receive a present from a lesser
acquaintance is so embarrassing as to be offensive. Even worse is expressing
admiration for something belonging to another because it makes him feel
obliged to make a gift of it.
-
If one is confident
enough and determined to give a gift, it must be the best affordable. A
carpet must, for example, be handmade. Never, however, buy gold jewellery or
silk garments for men, as both are deemed effeminate in Islam. Platinum is
acceptable but, as it can be confused with white gold, silver is safer.
Extravagant gifts, such as motorcars, are construed as bribes. Bribery is
more common in the Yemen than elsewhere in Arabia.
-
Owing to the
extremely personal nature of giving gifts other than as bribes, traditional
perfume is usually the most appreciated. Just as in Europe a man displays
his status by his tailoring, so in Arabia he does so by his scent. The most
generally preferred male scent [perfume should be given to women only by
other women or close relatives] is oud, which is a distillation of aloes
wood, but be careful. The best quality costs well over £1,000 an ounce and
the naïve buyer can easily be deceived by synthetics which cheat him of his
money and cause him to forfeit the esteem of the one to whom the scent is
given. The same is true of incense, costing per kilogram roughly the same as
an ounce of its extract. Before giving any scent, use it first and consider
giving it only to those who express admiration for your taste.
-
As Aden is the
traditional centre of Arab perfumery and incense, a visitor to the Yemen is
well placed to acquire the finest available anywhere. Conveniently for the
westerner, the British influence in Aden makes it the one place in the Yemen
where English is widely spoken enough not to require a knowledge of Arabic
for day-to-day purposes [English speakers elsewhere in the Yemen are almost
always of Adeni origin]. Much of the Adeni merchant class consists of ethnic
Indians. South Yemen [albeit the Hadhramaut instead of Aden itself] also
produces the world's best of two other commodities; raw tobacco [for smoking
in a sheesha] and honey. A word of caution to true lovers of honey, however;
Hadramaut honey is expensive [up to £100 per kg] but, once tasted, it will
spoil you for any of lesser quality.
*Parker, Nicholas Fitzraymond. Yemen Business
Etiquette - Gift Giving. Executive Planet. 16 Aug. 2004
<http://www.executiveplanet.com/business-culture-in/145739975640.html>. |
Above: The flag of Yemen
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