1946 Census


Forum Gallery

Affiliate websites:
Aden Airways
RAF Schleswigland
Perim Island
Aden Dinner Club

THE 1946 CENSUS

Due to WW2 the census carried out in Aden in October 1946 was the first since 1931. There had been a considerable influx from 1937 onwards, especially from the Yemen, when more labourers were needed for construction work connected with the rearmament programme. The cumulative effect of this was that at the time of the census there were at least 13,500 unaccompanied adult males from the Yemen in ‘fortress’ Aden alone, excluding those in Sheikh Othman. Or in other words about 25% of the total civilian population in the peninsula. This imbalance was noted as being a potential problem in the event of civil unrest – and proved to be a correct assessment when the Yemeni Arabs were responsible for most of the worst incidents in the serious anti-Jewish riots [see 1947 Riots]. (Here it is worth mentioning that Yemenis could not be recruited into either the APL or the Police.)

The second statistic that stands out is the increase in the number of Jews in Aden at the time of the census. A large number of Jews had been induced to leave the Yemen in the hope of seeking admission to Palestine. When they reached Aden they found there was no prospect of obtaining immigration certificates to enter their promised land. Over 1,100 of these Yemeni Jews were being housed in a temporary camp outside Sheikh Othman. They had no work and were living on the charity of the Jewish Agency. What is perhaps surprising is that although about 1,600 Jews had arrived in the previous two years (1945-46), as many as 1,700 had come from the Yemen in the two years before that (1943-44), the latter group presumably as a result of their persecution in the Yemen as opposed to the prospect of reaching Palestine.

The third interesting statistic is the decrease in the number of Somalis as a percentage of the total population. It was now down to 5.4% of the total population (from 8.4% in 1931). More to the point only one in seven of those living in ‘Somalipurra’ (Maalla) was now a Somali.

Altogether there were 5,000 homeless persons on census day. They were counted by rounding them up into collection points in each census division. It was also decided not to count those on board ships or country craft not normally based on Aden. Military personnel were counted but it was later decided not to publish the figures for security reasons. Civilians working in the Military Area were however included in the published figures.

Children of all ages were included in the total of just over 80,000 civilians. Over 15,000 of this total were under 10. Looking at the ethnic groups what stands out is the difference between the Somalis and the Jews, both with more or less the same proportion of males to females. Whereas about a little over 12% of the Somalis were children under the age of 10, no less than 26% of the Jews were that young. Less than 5% of the total population were aged over 60.

The following three Tables give the detailed numbers for each element of the population.

Table 1 – Arabs

	Aden-born Arabs		Arabs from the Protectorate		Yemeni Arabs (and other Arabs)
Census Division	Males	Females	Males	Females	Males	Females
Crater	4896	5410	2232	584	7730	1171
Tawahi & S Point	1551	1393	348	48	5557	420
Maalla & Khormaksar	1153	1210	465	98	2750	396
Total fortress Aden	7602	8013	3040	730	16037	1987
Sheikh Othman town	4801	4940	1432	884	4079	1737
Outlying villages	1068	1173	186	138	543	65
Total civilians	13471	14126	4658	1752	20659	3789

Approximate numbers in the largest ‘outlying villages’ (excluding those in the Jewish camp) were:

Bureika 1000 Hiswa 700 Fukum 275 Imad 155

Table 2 – Indians

	Indian Muslims		Indian Hindus		Parsees
Census Division	Males	Females	Males	Females	Males	Females
Crater	2730	2624	1029	695	66	35
Tawahi & S Point	575	498	111	50	146	66
Maalla & Khormaksar	277	257	33	16	0	0
Total fortress Aden	3582	3379	1173	761	212	101
Sheikh Othman town	113	86	8	5	1	0
Outlying villages	13	8	9	0	1	0
Total civilians	3708	3473	1190	766	214	101

In addition to the details listed above, there was another small category ‘Others’, which included Christian Indians, Chinese etc. Listed under ‘others’ were 375 males and 270 females (including 100 children under 10)

Table 3 – Jews, Somalis and Europeans

	Jews		Somalis		Europeans
Census Division	Males	Females	Males	Females	Males	Females
Crater	2711	2458	651	852	63	51
Tawahi & S Point	31	24	849	371	127	86
Maalla & Khormaksar	0	1	617	547	17	4
Total fortress Aden	2742	2463	2139	1892	207	141
Sheikh Othman town	444	465	142	145	8	4
Outlying villages	630	509	2	5	4	2
Total civilians	3816	3457	2283	2042	219	147

The Jews listed as being in ‘outlying villages’ were those in the temporary camp. The figures for Europeans include 22 boys and 22 girls under the age of 10.

This page last updated Saturday, 02 August 2008

Please help support the site as a VIP Member

Aden books, photos & cards : Privacy Notice : Copyright Notice : Contact Me