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Kingdom of Sheba (brown) in the 3rd century CE.

"Bronze man" foud in Al Bayda',Yemen (ancient Nashqum, Sheba kingdom). 6th-5th century BCE. Louvre Museum.

Sheba (from the English transcription of the Hebrew name שבא sh'va and Saba, Arabic: سبأ, also Saba, Amharic: ሳባ, Tigrinya: ሳባ) was a southern kingdom mentioned in the Jewish scriptures (Old Testament) and the Qur'an. The actual location of the historical kingdom is disputed between southern Arabia and eastern Africa; the kingdom may have been situated in either present-day Ethiopia or present-day Yemen.

The nation makes its first appearance in world literature with the mention of the Queen of Sheba (named Makeda in Ethiopian tradition and Bilqis in Islamic tradition), who travels to Jerusalem to behold the fame of King Solomon (1 Kings 10). The location of Sheba has thus become closely linked with national prestige, as various royal houses have claimed descent from the Queen of Sheba and Solomon. Sheba is also mentioned in other biblical texts. For instance, in the Old Testament genealogy of the nations Genesis 10:7, Sheba, along with Dedan, is listed as one of the descendants of Noah's son Ham (as son of Raamah, son of Cush, son of Ham). In Genesis 25:3, Sheba and Dedan are listed as sons of Jokshan. Another Sheba is listed in the genealogy appearing in Genesis 10:28 as a descendant of Noah's son Shem: that is, as a Semite (this genealogy lists Sheba as a son of Joktan, son of Eber, son of Shelah, son of Arphaxad, son of Shem.) It is unclear which Sheba, if either, is the ancestor of this civilization.

Long the most vigorous claimant has been Ethiopia and Eritrea, where Sheba was traditionally linked with the ancient Axumite Kingdom. As Ethiopia has remained a Christian state, the connection to Sheba has been an important one, especially to the former ruling family, the Solomonic dynasty.

The Qur'anic Queen of Sheba, Bilqis, was a ruler who visited Solomon after receiving a letter from him inviting her to submit to God. The letter read, "In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, and Most Merciful: be you not exalted against me, but come to me as Muslims (true believers who submit with full submission)" (27:30-31 Quran). After visiting with King Solomon the Queen of Sheba said, "My Lord! Verily, I have wronged myself, and I submit (in Islam), together with Sulayman, to Allah, the Lord of the Alamin (mankind, jinns, and all that exists)" (27:20-44 Quran).

Evidence is mounting of a region in northern Tigray and Eritrea which called itself Saba. As yet, most scholars would call it Ethiopian Saba, and indicate that it supports the assumption that Sabean culture existed both in Ethiopia and Yemen, without one colonizing the other.

Most scholars today believe that, at most, the kingdom of Sheba controlled some coastal regions of Ethiopia and Eritrea but was centered on the southwestern tip of the Arabian peninsula, modern Yemen. Linguistic evidence also points to a close historical relationship between the two sides of the Red Sea, as South Semitic languages are found only in two places: southern Arabia (modern Yemen and Oman), and the Horn of Africa (modern Eritrea and Ethiopia). Additionally, the modern Ge'ez alphabet developed from the old South Arabian alphabet.

Modern scholars tend to think a link to the Sabaeans of southern Arabia, who inhabited the same region, is the most probable. However, Ethiopisant Donald Levine argued in Wax and Gold in favor of one Ethiopian tradition that "Sheba is Shewa!"

Ruins in many other countries, including Ethiopia, Somalia, Yemen, Sudan, Egypt, Eritrea, and Iran, have been credited as being Sheba, but with only minimal evidence. There has even been a suggestion of a link between the name "Sheba" and that of Zanzibar.

According to Marco Polo, Saba is the location of the tombs of the three Magi.

• First Kings
• Genesis
• Eritrea
• Ethiopia
• Islamic view of the Queen of Sheba
• King Solomon
• Queen of Sheba
• Rulers of Sheba
• Rulers of Saba and Himyar - a reconstruction of the lineage of the rulers of Saba and Himyar based on extant inscriptions. Based on the work of Dr. Javad Ali.
• Second Chronicles
• Yemen
• Sheba - Canadian Singer

• "Queen of Sheba mystifies at the Bowers" - UC Irvine news article on Queen of Sheba exhibit at the Bowers Museum
• "A Dam at Marib" from the 'Saudi Aramco World' online - March/April 1978
• Queen of Sheba Temple restored (2000, BBC)