Socotra Island
Socotra or Soqotra is the largest of the four islands in Socotra Archipelago. It is located between the Guardafui Channel and the Arabian Sea. In 2008 it was recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In 2013, the archipelago became its own governorate: SocotRA Governorate.
About Socotra Island in brief
Socotra or Soqotra is the largest of the four islands in Socotra Archipelago. It is located between the Guardafui Channel and the Arabian Sea. The island is very isolated, home to a high number of endemic species. It has been described as ‘the most alien-looking place on Earth.’ In 2008 it was recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In 2013, the archipelago became its own governorate: SocotRA Governorate. The islands passed under the control of the Mahra sultans in 1511 and its inhabitants were Islamized during their rule. A local tradition, based on the 3rd-century apocryphal Acts of Thomas, holds that the inhabitants were converted to Christianity by Thomas the Apostle in AD 52. In 880, an Ethiopian expeditionary force conquered the island, and an Oriental Orthodox bishop was consecrated. In 1507, a Portuguese fleet commanded by Tristão da Cunha with Afonso de Albuquerque landed at the then capital of Suq and captured the port after a stiff battle. The Portuguese abandoned the island four years later, as it was not advantageous as a base for moored ships. In 1737, Captain Garde la Garde de la Veiga, under the command of Manuel Pais da Veis da galleon, captured the island and built a fortress at Forte de Sotor de Socá. The fortress was later abandoned due to the lack of a proper harbour for wintering ships, leading to famine and sickness in the garrison.
The inhabitants were Oriental Orthodox but also practised ancient magic rituals despite the warnings of their archbishop. In the 10th century, the Arab geographer Abu Muhammad al-Hasan al-Hamdani stated that in his time most of the inhabitants of the island were Christians. A recent discovery of texts in several languages, including a wooden tablet in Palmyrene, indicate the diverse origins of those who used Socotras as a trading base in antiquity. Most of the texts are written in the Indian Brāhmī script, but there are also inscriptions in South Arabian, Ethiopic, Greek, Palmyrenic and Bactrian scripts and languages. In 2004, it became attached to the Hadhramaut Governorate, which is much closer to the island than Aden. It lies 380 kilometres south of the Arabian Peninsula. While politically a part of Yemen, Socotran geographically are part of Africa. It was not mentioned in The Travels of Marco Polo; Marco Polo did not pass anywhere near the island but recorded a report that \”the inhabitants are baptised Christians and have an ‘archbishop’ who, it is further explained, has nothing to do with the Pope in Rome, but is subject to an archbishop who lives at Baghdad. The island measures 132 kilometres in length and 49. 7 kilometres in width. In 2001 a group of Belgian speleologists investigated a cave on the island of SocOTra.
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This page is based on the article Socotra Island published in Wikipedia (as of Dec. 28, 2020) and was automatically summarized using artificial intelligence.
