At its maximum extent, Qatabān's territory extended from the Bāb al-Mandab in the southwest to the Ṣayhad desert to the north, and the western limits of Ḥaḍramawt to the east.

[3][2] Later, several waves of Semitic-speaking immigrants from the Levant and Mesopotamia arrived into South Arabia, bringing several new cultural elements, including early pottery which similarly appear to have been derived from various sources.

[3][6] Qatabān regained its independence in the late 5th century BCE, after which it rejected the hegemony of Sabaʾ and became one of the dominant states of the South Arabian region along with Maʿīn and Ḥaḍramawt.

[3][6][2] Qatabān was able to conquer Maʿīn, and soon embarked on a successful expansionist policy against Sabaʾ and captured territories until the Bāb al-Mandab from the Sabaeans.

[3][8][2] The Greco-Roman author Pliny the Elder recorded that, at the time of the failed expedition of Aelius Gallus to South Arabia in 26 BCE, the Qatabānians were proficient warriors.

[3][10][2] While Sabaʾ and Ḥaḍramawt were mentioned in the Table of Nations of the Hebrew Bible, Qatabān's name was not recorded anywhere within it, probably because it was not an independent state at the time of the text's composition.

[3][2][4] The Qatabānians believed in the supremacy of the Moon over the Sun, as attested by a pair of Hellenistic sculptures each depicting a baby boy representing the Moon riding over a lion representing the Sun, with the boy holding a controlling chain attached to the lion's collar in one hand, and a small dart in the other hand.

[3][15][14] Trade in South Arabia was initially done by barter in goods against standards of gold or silver or bronze by weight, but in the 4th century BCE the kingdoms of the region started minting their own coinage, which were based on Athenian Greek ones.