In the final part of our interview series, we talked about the ‘two legs’ the Institute of Oriental Studies stands on, as well as the mysterious, unexplored and beloved Socotra of Vitaly Naumkin.

– Mr Naumkin, I know that you are the only scientist specialising in Socotra in the world, an expert in the study of the Yemeni Socotra Island in the north-western Indian Ocean. What exactly attracted you to study life on an island known mainly for the rarest natural beauty on Earth?

– I always loved doing things that nobody else has done, broadening my horizons. This can be seen in my PhD thesis and my work on Islamic heritage. I am also an Islamic scholar, among other things. It so happened that I was simultaneously engaged in several specialties, from political science and international relations to linguistics and ethnology. This is not surprising for an orientalist. Maybe it would have been better to do just one thing, like some of my colleagues. For example, if you are an archaeologist, you go to excavations and focus on that. For me, it is different.

When I was sent to work in Yemen, I had some faint idea of it. None of my colleagues, with whom we trained top personnel for the Yemeni Socialist Party, knew about Socotra at that time. The thought of visiting this island haunted me.

– But the island was absolutely closed to all foreigners!

– Yes, the locals were real radicals, battle-hardened revolutionaries who fought the British for four years in their meagre jungles, about which I wrote my doctoral dissertation and a book (more than one) on the history of the national liberation armed anti-colonial struggle.

I longed to discover the secrets of this isolated island. By the way, there were no matches on Socotra, they made fire with two sticks, I have some in my desk now. I have been trying to master this process, though without much success.

I do not wish to exaggerate the Socotrians’ fatigue. Every society, even one that is very archaic, has its advantages and its own characteristics that must be respected. I always struggle with the condescending colonial attitude towards such societies and believe that such people, due to the circumstances of their life, should be respected and loved. Then you get a lot in return. I have learned patience and kindness from Socotrians.........

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