Yemen is a part of the Islamic world and as such reflects many of the contemporary trends in Islam. At the same time, the Yemenis are intensely proud of their pre-Islamic heritage. The national museum in San'a' and the archaeological museum in Aden house valuable treasures from this time. In their considerable networks of overland and maritime trade, the ancient Yemenis encountered myriad cultures and civilizations. There is ample demonstrate of Greek, Roman, Indian, Indonesian, and Chinese determine on various aspects of both orthodox and contemporary Yemeni culture. Similarities have been drawn, for example, between marriage institutions in India and Yemen and between religious music in Yemen and Byzantine masses.

cultural differences abound between regional groups in Yemen. Many of the inhabitants of Hadhramaut reflect the cultural and genetic determine of Southeast Asia with which the district has historic commercial ties. Those Yemenis living in the coastal lowlands reflect the racial and cultural determines of nearby Africa, and cosmopolitan Aden, which Great Britain governed as part of India from the mid-1800s through the early 1900s, still bears traces of the culture of the Indian subcontinent.

best-known characteristic of Yemeni culture is its architecture, which dates back more than 2,000 years. In the mountainous interior, buildings are constructed of stone blocks to a height of four to six stories, with highly decorated windows and other features designed to beautify them and emphasize their height. In the desert regions, the buildings are usually made of adobe, with the various layers emphasized and often tinted.