GAZETTEER

OF THE
PERSIAN GULF, 'OMAN,
AND
CENTRAL ARABIA

liB
GEOGRAPHICAL
AND
STATISTICAL
 'OMAN (TRUCIAL) 1425
'OMAN SULTANATE
1424
There are at Masqat 12 European British subjects, also 32 British
t . of
complete O'cncalogical table heing drawn up ; hut
suLjccts or protected persons belonging to. :,a,rious l~aces ; and ~ or
'f. :1
obseU1'e,- 0 1'01 ml " '0 ' _ . tl bc third volume of this Gazetteer will t,h e
. tl ace given to man 111 1 . ' last arc found also at Matrah. Other Bntlsh subJects or plOteeted
1ll 10 sp h1' 1 d' 0' all or most of those who l'c1tUn any lm-POl't.."tllce
be fOllnd a, to. ?I me U Inc· persons arc either Hindus or M uhammaJans, in the second case generally
at the present time.
·-
. T k' G C I E
Saivid Sir Fnlsal-bm· \11' ' I , f. • . " IS
Khojahs, and are distributed as follow s :--
Muhlm-
'1.'ho 11l'cscn t Su It ,tn, •J • in his OWll Plare. lIindus.
Muham-
U1allana.
Plnce. Hindus. madanL
)l'ivatc individual, of the followmg estates
pl'opl'ietol', as a I 11 1 Sa.ham 10 6
Barkah
territory! 107 Shinas 9
Khabfirah
n ow proceeds ~rc disposed of. Sohar 8 13
~ Ilt UfC 0 1 property.
AnnUAl value. MaeDa'ah 10 18
Whore situated. Sur 28 31
Masqat 253 122
Suwaiq 7 3'
$300 Assignod \ 0 Su\aiman. Matrah 37 665
, Auhi in t.he sub- Do.te.groves and bin.Suwailim, lately dc- Quryat 9 1 'fobls 382 998
Wilii:ya.t of Sohar cultivated lantl . rCRflPd, who was WiiH of
Dhuffir and in recent
yeRrs of Sohar 0.180 . A brn.nch of i be Arabian Thtfission of thc R eformed (Dutch) Church
. Do. of America is established at Masqat.
Dnte-groves. ~2.500
Bidbi (l in Wadi
Samail $300 Do.
H:\il in Wa.di-al- Date-groves and
Hilti cultivated hmd. As<:.igned to the Wiili of
Do. 51.000
Khasah Khasab.
Nil. Assigned to thE:l officer
Manah Gra.zing l!\nd. of Manah.
Assigned to tht'< WaH of
Uniformity of physical, social and political conditions throughout 'OMAN *
N akh1 Date.gravE's and $1,000
Nakh1. that part of 'Oman which extends from the frontier of the ' Oman (TRUCIAL)
cul tivated land.
$2,000 A::.signcd to tho Witi of ,}o&
Dale-g roves. Nizwa.. • 1'hc matter of tllis alticle a.nd of the "lI1inor articles dependent upon it ha1l been
N izwa
~350
Asslrrncd to the Wali of f(lr the mnst part spec ially collected during tho Jcars 190! to 1907. An abstract of
Quryat Do. Qt'iryat. the then exi8ting informa Lion co ncerning Truciul 'Oman W,IS 'c ompleted h the writer
Hetaincd by t he Sultan. in November 190·1, fr om all a.\·ailnble books and reports; it amounted to 17 pri nted
A few sma.1l date-
Ruwi fo olscap pnges and IVa!! only intended to !'lervc as a basis for further investigation .
groves.
52,000 Assigned to ~ ~le 'ViIi of
Date-grove" and Hi sn Samail. Earl.v in 1905 Iho wrilf'r visitod Sharjah ']'OWI1. where with t.he assistance nf
Samail land. Retained by the SulUtn. Mr. J C. Gaskin. Uncovenanted Politicnl Assistallt in the P ersinn Oulf. and of 'Abdu l
A few small date-
Sid.b Latif, I{csi dency Agent at Sharjah, he W:IS able t.o oollect a quantit.yof freeh in·
groves. ~2 000 ASIIiA'ncil by the S?lt~n to
Date-groves and .. • his eldest SOli TalTuu r. rormation. A serics of articles pr eparf' d from the mat.,·rif11 thus obtained was ready
Wataiyah in Janunry 1906 and f:lIed 65 oct.avo pages of print : this draft was oiroulated to
\ oult.ivat ed Ia.nd . •
lhe local offic ers Wh086 atlent.ion it engaged during the whole of 1906. The
- aheady rcmarked above and furthcr explained by t hIS greater ralt of the work of revision and ampli6cation fell on Major P. Z. Cox,
The S nIt au, as tt . -tent out Rf'eident in the Prreian Gulf, who in July tOOG pa.id a special viuit. to Fujairah t
. bl' d to defray the expenses of governmcu 0 some ex
table, IS 0 1ge and on K. B. 'Abdul Latif-bin·' Abdul' Rahman, n.f:sidcnoy A:.;ent at Sharjab, who
h' oeket d t undertook slich of the inquiri('s as Majol' Cox was unable to carry out persona.H)' .
of IS own P db'. Tt'rki t he brother of the Sultan, owns a small a e-
Muhamma • m - , . . In tho next flet of drafts, which appeared early ill 1907 and extendcd to over 120
lantation at Raudhab in the Masqat D,stn ct.. 1 . and Wataiyah oelayo pages of print, W{'TO incorf,orllt('d the re8ul ts or an important jonrney me.do by
P Thc Sultan possesses conlltry-ho~s:s at_B.alt-al-Fa aJ Mu.jor Cox in December 1905 from Rii.s-;ai·Khaimah Town to the Baraimi Oasis;
also those of oareful inquiries by the same officer reg:t rdillg the Dhafrah tract.; new
. M t District and at Fal.1J m Batmah.
tn the .a.s~a . ~ . 'rrl interests in the 'Oman Sulta.nate, whether data relating 10 communi catic..ns oblaincd by Liclltrnnnt C. H. Gabriel at the end of
Fore f 91t 1nteresf,~.-} Otelt:P~..1 . tly British and Britain is the only HJ05 j the facls cnntained in a I<e .. ics of usefnl reports by Captain F. B. Prideaux,
. ' 1 mmerCla) al'e pl'eu O m l n a n , d tl Political Agent in Bahrain, on the wh oht (GllEtal r egion bllt.lVeen Qatar and Abu
pohtlCa. or co ., C 1 P l' t ical' Agent France an 10
Dhabi Town j t.ho oblcrva.lionil or Commander W. S. Bowman of H. M. S.·' Sphinx"
ted by a onEin or 0 I •
power reprcsen 1 V' C . 1 The only European on t.he islands of Bli. Musa and Tunb, recorded after a villit. to tho same; ana some
United States arc each repl'cscntC( by a lCC- ons\~. fi. which
t' B 't'sh as arc also most the European Ims or I'omflrks by Captain A. P. 'frevor, Assi stant Re8iden~, on tho islands of Tunb an d
firm at Ma~qatlls . . r~ \ ~me of the more recently establisbed businesses Nibi,u Tunb, aillo founded 011 a personal inspection.
ha.ve agenCieS lere, U . ' 4v
· belong to French or RUSSian subjects.
in the a.rms 1lOO
Sult~n~te on the east to Qatar and tbe Jafiirah desert on the west requires
that the region should be treated as a geographical unit.
For discnssion!! of tbe ancient geography Sprenger's Alte Geo9"apltic A.1·alJiens,
1975, and Miles Note OIL Pliny's Gcogt'apl,y of tile East Coast of Arabia, 1876,
may be COll8ulted.
The prinoipal authorit.y ill I'ilgard to the geography of 'l'L'llciai 'Oman hBs hitherto
beeD the Per8ian Gulf Pilot, 1898, in which t.he Coa~t alld all maritime features fire
fully describei. bllt littl.., is said of the intprior j simiJRrly restri,-ted in its scope,
for the most part, is tho older information cl'lntained in B ombay Selections X Xl fT,
1866. Vll.lllsbJe IhollAh early authorities (In the coentry are Wllite \..ck 's A ccount of
the ..dmbs, etc., and his Llcsc'I'i1Jtiull of tlUJ ~ f'abialt Ooast, 1836-38, the former of
whicb is occupied largely with tho subjecl of population . Trllde, as it, WI\8 in 1863, and
qaestion8 of iocail'csources, taxa tion, etc., are fully d£'alt with by Pelly in hill Report
on the Tribes, etc" at'ou1ld tlw Shares of tile Persian Gulf, ] 863, in which some older
statistics for 1826 Ilnd 1831 lire also quotod. Recent topographical and olhol' infor-
mation regarding the interior is due almost clitirely to Major P. Z, Cox, among whose
communications the following are important: his Notes to a('company Sketch Map of
R oute ... from Abu Th abi t o Mask at ill tho Proceedings of the Govern ment of India
in the Foreign Depllrtment for December 1903 (rela.ting to the route between Abu
Dhabi Town and tbe Baraimi Oasis); his letter No. 290 of tho 2nd July 1902 in
Foreign Department Pl'cccedings for NMewber J902, (relating to the Shamailiyah
district.); aud tbe el.closure to his letter No. laOO of the 5th AIlgU8t 1906, a" Resident
in the Persian Gulf to the Secretarr in the Forei~n Department to the Government
of India (des~ribing tho route from Ras-al-Khaim&h 'I'own to the Baraimi Oasis).
The onJ ,V other modern account of aUJ part of tile oOllntry at a distance from the coast
will be found in the Rev_ S, M. Zwemer's 7'k,'cc J OU1'IlCYS in iVortliet'll Omall, 1902;
I to a perpetual maritime truce which regulates the relations of the rulers
bot a recent descripfion of plaoes on the CI)f!st, accompanied by photogI'II phs, if! given by
Burchardt in his Ost-.Ambien von Basf'a bis Ma ,,:Cat, 19C6,
The Annual Administration and Commercil'l l\epol'ts of the Prrsian Gulf Rasidency
are the principal pource of information in reg-arli to trarle,
The map whioh acoompanies this Gllutteer is the most uscfnl, for ceneml purposetl,
of Trncial'Omsn; its pr.. dece88or in this re8pe c~ wa.s that knowil as Pa9'ts Of ..d.9·abia
and Persia, 1883, on tho SSIDe scale. Smaller portion ... of the region aro ~IIOWIl on a
largel' scale in the R Qutc of LicutclIant·Coloncl Ht.'·l'bC'1·t Dish9'OW6 ... and Captui'lf.
Walter Powell ... ii'om Dibba ht tkc I mliall Ocean to Ra,~- el· Kkyman in tllc Pet'sian
Gulf. 1865, R.nd in thl' R oute taken hy ldajot· p, Z. 00.7' mid LieutcnUll.t
O. ..d. Scott, R,I.}'}., f'l'om Ras-al-Khaima t o Suhm' yia. R emimi, 1905; the former
of t.hese i8 map No, 1366 in tho Library of the I!'oleign Departmelot, Simla, and the
laUer Wtloll reprodnced by the Survey of India. in 1907. .A 11Iap of DnafNth, Liwah.
ctc., 1906, compiled by l\1ajor Cox from nativ~ information, giv ps the topilgraphy of
tllat tract so far as it could be ascertained and is fil ed as map No. 1367 in the LibrliTY
of the Foreign Department, Simla; and 0110 by Capt.ain F. n, Pridea1lx, Political
Agent in Bahrain, from a similar sourcc,- Map of Jiifumh, 'Agal, Mfjun and
Sabalcnat Matti, 1906, Foreign Department Lib1'ar~; No, 1E65 -is the be!'t for the
tracts mentiolle i in its title, but is not of equal authority with Major Cox's Dbarrilh
map for those furth er to eastward.
The whole coa..t ofT1'ncial 'Oman :.ppt'ar s ill C1,arts NOQ, 2373-2837A and 2374.-
2837B of tho Persian Gf4lji A.nd Chart No. 2376·763, Entmllcc Of the Persia1&
Gtl.lf, containll parte of the same on a largor 8cale, vi~" the stretch from Dibah
The name '1 fucial 'Oman.-The region in question consists of the
~ctual possessions of tbe Shaikhs of 'Ajman, Abu Dhabi, Dihai,
U mm-al-Qaiwain and Sharjah and of the territories of the tribes who, in
fact or in theory, are directly subjec t to their influence; but in Arabic it
has no general name. A mOl1g the subjects of the 'Oman Sultanate the
whole is kl own as Shamal Jt..,.;., either on account of its position with
l'efel'enre to t h eir own country oj' because or
its exposure to the north-west
wind; and in Eastern Arabia, further to the 1l( lrthward, the part
adjoining AJU Dhabi Town seems to be spo ken of as "Oman-ash-Shamali
be('au~e it is the northernmost part of 'Oman j but neither of these
terms is in t.'ommon use among the inhabitants of the regions \\ hich
they used to describe, The nenl'est approach to a recognised gen~ral
designation is apparent ly Sahil 'Oman '-:Jt..>,~ JAot.... 01' Coast of 'OllIan ;
but this expl'ession, though not unknown to the pCOI)le of the country,
is wanting in precision and distinctiveness and is far from being
universally understood. In English official literature :t part of the shore
line has long been familiar under the name of {( The Pirate Coast H j but
the term is not sufficiently comprehensive, and, at the presont day, is
obsolete and even misleading, inasmuch as the ~tate of affa.irs which it
once accumtely connoted has long since passed away. Regard being had
to one another alld to the British Government the pentarchy in question
may he stylc~, not inappropriately, Tl'llci.1 'Omiin*; but it must be
l'elllemhercd that Lhe trncial obligations of the Shaikhs do not exteDd
to the interior of their dominions.
The component principalities or Trucial 'Oman arc fully described
elsewhere under t heir own names; and the function of t}l c. present
:11,ticle is accordingly to correla.te them! to describe the cc.untry and its
inhabitants as a whole, and to dispose of eertain matters (such as com-
munications) which could not be dealt with piecemeal under the names
of the separate principalities,
to Khor Fakkan (n the f'll.stern, a.nd tllnt from Sha'am to Dibai en the ,;estern
side of the 'Oman Promontory. Of the Cl'Iflst between Abu Dhabi To'vo 3:ld tbe
island of YnB the best delineation will t:c found in a. 1.'riqonometrical Surve.1/ of
tIl e .d:,·abian or southe-rn side of tlte P C9 ·si(.J,1~ Gulf from .iJ.botlJuLLee to Z,aboot
Isl and, 182·.1. j tid .. was apparently Ollee 1\ chart IllImbered 19B, but it seems to have
been wit.h(\I'IIWD. A small sketch of P ad (if Klw1'-al·Batin was prepared by
Commander G. Sin clair, R,l.M., in 1906 ror the iuformatioll of the writpr. and is now
wap No, 1364 in the Library of th e Foreign Del'artment, Sitnla.
., This nam e was enggested by C"plain F. B. Prideaux, and ;in the absenoe of any
other, either Arabic or English, it appears to bc the wos~ convenient, the most. des.
r.riptive, and goneTall.Y tho most suitable for adoption.

1428 'OMAN (TRUCIAL)
Lim'£ta.- Upon the coast, Trnci::t.1 'Oman extends the Gulf or
In
'Oman froIU Kho,' Kalba to Dibah, and in the Per;iau G"U from
Sha'am to Khol'.a,l-'Odaid, the places named being all included in it i
in other words its bound:.!.\'y between these two sets of points is the son .
lllland, its frontiers arc morC difIicult to define; but it covel'S a cOllsi·
del'able portion of the interior of the 'Oman Promontory. au one side
there it is bounded by a line of' nncertaln course which runs from a spot
between the contiguous villages of Dibah and Bai'ah on the east coabt
~o Has Sha'am on the west coast, and so divides it from the
Ruiis-al-JibaJ di strict of the 'Oman Sultanate to the north; ou another
by a line, even morc inde terminate, whi ch leaves t he Gulf between Khor
Kalba and Muralr and, after partially crossing' the promontory in such
it way as to exclude the Mahadhah ~nd Jau distri cts to the south, is
eventually lost in Khatam. Westwards of Khatam t he inland limit of
Trucial 'Oman is at the commencement of the Ruba'~al·Khali and
Jafiirah deserts.
Physical divisilJ1ts.-I.Jeaving out. of consideration £01' the present
the al-tificial political divisions of Tl'ucial 'Oman, we find tha.t it consists
of a maritime belt (or 'raff ";10 ) and islands j of inland plains j and of a
mountain system: these we now pt'Oceed to describe.
Mar/time features and £slaJl(ls oj 'Prnct'al 'Omiill.-The easte rn
coast-that washed by the Gulf of 'Oman-is bold, somewhat re-
sembling the ooast of R niis-al-Jib'il, all I the hills in places eome down
to the wa.ter's edge. ~lhe w03t)rn coast -- that within the Persian
Gulf-is low and monotonous . In the nortl. the latter is diversified by
occasional date groves, especially by those of th ~ Sir tract between Rams
and Ras-al-Khaimah 'fown) but as th e coast trend; away to south and
west trees languish, and at ALl! Dhabi they cea:;;c altogetber. The
hills, too) whicb near Ras ~al~Khaimah Town form a pleasing back -
ground, rapidly recode inlan'l and are E=-oon lost to view fl'om seaward
as the coast is rollowod to the soui h ·wcs~. S ,It-w.1tcr creeks abound
on this coast, and the lag.:>on s at Ras-:d-Khaimah rrOWll :I nd near the
~OWi1 of Abu Dhabi have a considerable superficil3s; yet there are no
inlets of real imporhncc. The creeks so metimes unite i nland to form
l·ackwaters and m;1,ugl'Ove swamps, which are separatell by a short
diFtance only fr Jll1 the coastj and qUlsi-ishtnds, sometimes inhabited and
sometim~s not, are created in this manner. The best known instances
of such islauds are Qnl'lnah bejwee~ Rams and Ras-al-Khaimah;
'OMAN (TRUCIAL) 1429
.Tazirat-al-Hamra; the Siniyah isbnd, formed by Khor-al-Haidhah
near Umrn~al·Qaiwain j Zora; the not altogether insulated site common
to the village of Khan aml to tho Laiyah suburb of Sharjah Town;
and, last hut not least, the tract of country In which stands Lho town
of Abu Dhabi. B oyo nd Abu Dhabi, as far as Khor-al·'Odaid, the
coast is almost ullknownj it is barren and generally low, Lut has some
bluff henella nds.
The only eminence and O()11SpiCllOUS bn(lmark all the ccast of Trueial
'Oman, Dhafrah beine>' 0
cxclll(lod, is Jab al-oVA.li in Dibai territory.
Tn t h c Gulf of 'Oman the sea is deep a,t no great distance from shore.
In the Persian Gulf, from Sha'am to Abu Dhabi it i, open and free from
dangers but rather shallow ; hero the coast lies opcn t o the full fury of
the Shamal, there :tre no ha.t'bours or sheltered anchorages cxcept for
boats, and bndiTlg' i, of ton diffioult. From Abu Dhabi to Khor-al-'Odaid
the coast is adjoined by a In.bYl'inth of islauds, sh oals and reefs,
imperfectly surveyed and so intricate that even AraL vessels, if larger
than pcn.rl boaLS, a.yoid these waterl:i. In this directi oll 1l103t of t he space
bctweeu tile coast an:l the 20 I'athorn linc,-which runs approximately
from opposite Shal'jah T own to tbe tip of t he ~atar peniusuia,-is
occupied by pear! banks. Full details oE these banks are given in the
Appendix 0 11 the Pearl ll'isherics.
A number of is l and~ al'e associated with the coast oE 'L\ucial 'Omfm,
tho most important being llll Miisa, Tunb, SII' Bli Na'air.. Yas and
Dalmah j the last of these is 3djoinocl by a numuer or others which are
enumerated in the artiele on tho Ab" Dhabi Principality, and by
Shura'awah.
Inlanrl plain of 'P'fltcial 'Omun,_rrlw interior of a conntry.so ex-
tensive naturally varies in character from one part to another, but, atten·
tion being for the moment confined. to thc non-mountainous portions,
the variations arc found to be less considerable than might have been
expected. Almost the whole ~ons i t;ts of sandy desert j ull cultivable but
not altogether destitute of natural vegetation 01' even of wood j the
principal exceptions to t he genera l lnEertility are the Jiri plaiu, the
plain of Dhaid and th e L iwah eli vision of the Dhafrah tract, in all of
which somc culti vation, at least of dates, is carried all. . These relatively
small districts nrc fully described in the articles under the names
indicated, and it is lInnoce~sal'y to enter here llPon the exceptional
features which Lhey present. Another tract of a different nature, which
has no general name and which it is consequently impossible to make
 1430 'OMAN (TRUCIAL)
the subject of an article, is described below in the paragraph on the
topography of Tl'ucial 'Oman. The only remaining portion of the
country is that which lies between the sea and an imaginary line joining
Ras·al·Khaimah '1'own to the Baraimi Oasis: it ends southward s in
tho district of Khatam which is elsewhere described under its own n.me.
80 far as can be asccrtained this portion, from Ras·"I·Khaimah as far
south as Dibai 'rown, is not entirely composed of saud duuc!l, but
conta.ins also level shingly plains with sparse aca.cIa. vegetation j
southwards from Dibai the whole surface appears to be sandy and
undulating, but deser~ vegetation a.nd wells and water holes aft! still
sufficiently plentiful t o snpport a scanty Bcdouin populat ion. In the
whole of this region no running watcl' is fOllnd except in one subterranean
aqueduct which irrigates the settlement of Falai; but there arC numerous
wells, sunk generally on the bank s or in the beas of dry wa.tercourses,
and sometimes in spots whieh from their elevated position might have
been supposed unsuitable for tbe purpose. On the Ras·al·Khaimah·
Baraimi routc tbese wells nre genel'ally from 40 to 60 feet deep and
arc lined f or 8 01' 10 feet near the sm'face with timber or rough~hewn
stones brougbt from the hills.
Acacf's, which are the commonest kind of tree, are of t he Ghaf and
Samr varieties; the Ashkar shrub, the ~1arkh bush, and grass of the
kind called Arta are frequently met with; and the dwarf tamarisk, the
wild castor oil plant, and a bulbous grass calicO. Qufa are also found.
Othel' sorts of vegetation which afford grazing are Rimth, a species of
Salsola which, when green, is eaten by camels j Halam, a small sand
plant j 'l'hamam, a coarse g rass which cventually dries up into twigs
and becomes inedible; and Qasad, a small vivid g l'ecn shrub of the caper
tribe: the I.st th"eo are eaten by livestock of all kinds. There is also a
bright green edible weed, somewhat resembling migno~ette, which is
called Hamm.
Hill, of 1rt/cial 'Om<in .-The only mountainous part of the country
is in the east, where a section of the spinal range of Lhe 'Omin Pl'OmOD ~
tory is inolnded: this section is the part between a line joining Dibah
to Sha/am· ou the north, and another, on the south, which runs jnland
from Khor Kalba, first westwards then southwa.rds, so as to curve
ronnd the northern and westem side, of the Mah~dhah tract ..nd the
hills connccted with it. Th. hill traot of Trucial 'Oman is thus abont
50 miles in extent from north to south, and its average breadth seems to
be about 20 mile.. It is still almost entirely unexplored, the only part
'OMAN (TRTlClAL) 1431
of it a s yet traversed by Europeans bciul.! that which lies ou the direct
route, through Wadi·al·Qaliddi, bct.veeu Dibah and R,,,-,,I·Khaimah;
aud e\'eU of this pa.rt no accoHnt appca.rs to be extant. As seen from
the west, from thc Ras·al-Khaimah·Baraimi roule, thc mOl:ntains
appear to be Jisposed iu three more or Jt!SS parallel ridges rUIlning from
uorlh to snuth : of these th~ wester nmost terminates at a. hill ca.lled
Qumr J.J imlTIetl iately behind the village of Adhau j amI the second
ridge, after cUl'v i ug' slightly wcstwardF, scemS to continue the interrupted
line of the first. The third or easternmost ridge contaiu s the big'hest
peaks allll probably o"erlooks the Gulf of 'Oma n: one of these high
pea.ks, situated apparently 12 t o 15 mi les east of Adbau, is :-aicl t o be
named Jaua\ Sa'ta lb~. It is possible, however, tha.t these three
ridges are apparent ouly, twd t hat the hill systcrn is more complex tha.n
from the west it scorns ill be. As Adhau iu the Jiri plain is considered
to be a vilbgc of Wadi Ham, il may be inferred that this v"lley pierces
the whole mfl ss of mountain s from side to side and even conveys part of
tbe drainage of th'c soulh end of the Jiri plain to the Gulf or 'Om,tu at
Fujairah; out it has not beel! fonnd po:: sible to locate with certainty
the true head ot 'V~ldi Ham: in auy cast', howe\'er, its average direction
appear~ ill be fr,HTI north-wc::it to sQuth-east, and not from west to
cast as has hitherto been gcnerally supposed. ",V'-tdi-al-Qor, further
south than " 'adi Ham, is th. only other considerable valley that
comes down to t he sea. [rom the bills of 'Prucial 'Oman on their eastern
side. 'l'he dl'aillagc from the western slope of the hills never,
apparently, reaches the Persian Gulf, but is swallowed up by the
intervening sands.
Climolc. -The olimate of Tl'ucial 'Oman in winter is pleasantly cool
oy day and cold at night, but frost is unknown: 011 the coast, in the
same seasou, the weather is often boisterous. Between l\fay and October
the climate is excc@sively hot aud trying' ; and during the worst of the
heat, that is from .\ lay to September, travellers j ou rney by night as
much as pObsible. The rainfall is scanty and is believed to average
about 5 inches a year. .M.o:::;~ of the rain is received in midwinter, but
there arc also occasional showers in sprin g',
PtJ1J1tlo/ioil allt! /l' ibe.}' .- 1I he people of 'rl'lIcial 'Om~LU belong to
llun1.CI'OliS di::itind tribes; indeed, the countl'y is tribally one of the mORL
composite and perph·xing ill the P~reiau Gulf. The comprehensi\'e
H Joasmee J) tribe, ass umed by some wl'itel'~, has no real existence. Only
 'OMAN (TRUCIAL) 1433
1432 'oMAN (TRUCIAL)

the members of the family of the Shaikh of Sharjah, numbering at the Settled in
'fnlt'ial
Bedouing
in Tmcial
Sing'llar. Location. LhtH AlIi:9.
Tribe. 'Om~n
present day about 20 adult males, arc Qawasim (Jawiisim) by blood; 'Omir."
(;.oOlls) • (sJuls).
and tbe use of thc namc to denote all suhjccts of the Sharjah Sbaikb,
though partially sanctioned by local practice, is really incorrect. Dllababihah Adhbaihi. 200 Wadi Sfuni and The dest'fllt of tllis
its bl'Rl\ch tribe is unknown:
The following IS a synop~is of the principal tribes of rrl'ucial ~l~;,) ~~')J
Wadi Nllidain . they Ilre said to be
'Oman:- aboriginaL

Ghafa1ah Ghafaili. 500 See art icle Ghafalah.

Scttl('d In Bedouins 1.titC
Trucinl lu '1'r ucial oliU:
Tribe. Singular. 'Oman 'Omlin
Locatioll. REloIJ.lIIJI. "-:!"
(souls), (soulel· Halalamah Hallami. 75 Abll Dhabi formerly a section of
...)u~ TO\,\,D . the Bani. Qitab, but
----1---- --- - - - I./""l.l.. now attached to tho
'Abadilah 'A bdiili. 1,160 See article' Aba:dilah. I Bani Yas. In reli-
..r.)~ gion they 0.1'0 1\'1aliki
~J)~~
Sunnis.
'Ali (AI) 'All yi. 6,750 See article Al 'Ali.
.;: JT w
Ham'id(13ani) A few. l-hir in Sllnmai·
u~ Hyab.
'Arolm(AI Eu) 'Amlmi.. 120 Abu Dhabi Originally. it is said, ~c/!
r~ r. Jj '1'own. Bani Tamim; but
now practically merg-
ed in lhe Hani Yae ,
Hfiwalah
.
"!y.
1,500 Sharjah rrOWIl Seo article Huwalah.

'Awamir ,Amiri. Ur.ccl'- None in patti· See artide 'Awa;mir. Jalajilah

J II laijali. 50 Furfar and Hail The tribe is divid .. d in
J"!1' <.fft~ tain cular. SOIl1(, of the tribe
o.l7'- 1l;>. al1 .. giallce between
in Shamai·
and come ItS hr w~st 88 ."l~ liyah al~o the ShHikh of Shar-
Huetu· Sharjah 'rowr. in j
ating. spring for the sake of Ind lik in Wadi jah lind the nbcl
the grazil1g. Nu~lah, a side ~bllikh of Fujairah .
valley <If Wadi· The name is gene·
'AwQnat 50 Kh:,tt in tI,e Jiri This tribe is n c, w prac. al·Qor . rall.v pronounced
.::"GI.).& plain Dibah tically extinct; and, Yalayilah.
l~lld J azlml ·al · acoording to somp-,
Hamra. those who remain Kalhani. 70 POl'haps a section of
Kal"i (AIllu) the Al B li 1\ baraiban
are not genuine ,,-!il~lS
'Awanat. Some say .,,~ y! Ji section of the Na'im.
that th e 'Awanat
wpre s\:wcs of the 2,000 Riis·al·Khai·
Khaimah mah Town.
Qawasim j others (Ahl Rus-al-)
t.hat they were con·
necLed with the crl) J.>I
Maqabil. 6. .. ~JJ
Khamarah 375 Abu Dhabi Originally from
llah!irinah BahrRlli. 600 Abu Dhabi lind See article Bahari. Town. Khamir in Persia.
,u)k! They 1Il'f' Miilikie by
";I;=! Dibai Towns' j nah. religinn find c1~jm to
Dahaila,t Ad~haili. 200 At,u Dhabi By some l't'gal'de.9 as a be ennnected with tho
~~::...~ ·Utub.
~ol Town. section of tho Al Eli
Mahair.
Kunfid Kindi. 150 Set' article Kunud.
Oabilminah Dahmiini. 150 Raha, Faihrah Sunnis and belong to ' '.,,.is ~.j.iJ
~lA.,) ,.;t..o alld NuslRh in tho G1lafiri faction .
WaJi·al·Qor;
also l\Ianai'i in Mahair 1\-1 a.ba iri. 5,500 \ 100 See article Al fil
the neighbolll'· (AIBU) ~rf'" Mahair.
hood of tbe j~~ )~ Jj
sarno valley.
 v.u............. \ .... .'-',uv ... .a. ...... , · VM.dL' ~J.n.uvJ..o..u) i':lh.'"

"

I Settled In
,'rueial
BedOUlns j
I, 8ctlled lu
Trllcinl
ijedolllll~
'I'ruelsl
ID
Singular. Loclltlou. RSNAIIIs.
Tribe.
'Omlin
(~oul,).
" '''''',' I
'Omlln
(lfOull).
I.oCll tion HI!NAltlfl. Tribe. Sillgular. 'Omlill
(SOUI Sl .
'Omlin
(SOllla).

- -- ---
Ma!lii.rah
&}~J<O
l\In.hfi.
I..S .;s:'"
.. J I
l,25~ ... Rii8·a!·Khaimah The origin of t.his
'I'own. tribe i8 ob~llure; th ey
Qawii.id Qil.itli . ... 260 AL and the
'"
neighb 0 11 1'-
By ~Ollle thl'.Y
bt·liovOII t o u. on
.r.
AppNU' to hnve some oJlj l.J'..JlJ huod uf olTshoot of no
conuuoLion with the ShiJk",h in Mazari' , but t hia
Za'ab, bnd Itcoflrding Wiidi Ham. i, doulttful. 'rhey
to 100!\1 trad it ion
they are of the same " 'Own about 10 ou.mels
aud 150 sheep aud
stock as Mir goat!! j but tbey also
Mahnnna, the cele- cultivato a li ttle,

Mall1i.rizah l\ lahlliri1.i. 1 250

brated pinl.to of Rig
in the 18th century,
-rtlnsiifi. and Tniri- Origillally tile Malla-
\ number
sottled.
.r.
and Bomo of their
semi-

'.ills>' <,fj.r:-r< L:l.h in Wiidi l'ir.ah may have been

rUtm. Qawasim Qasi mi
a 8('cl ion of tile
~_C;
GO .. . ... Seo articlo Qa"Wilsim.
~barqiyin; but it ,_I);
"dmilled that
"
in ilmt case they
Qitbi. 200 2,100 ... See article Bani Qitab.
have 110W 8eceded Qitab (Bani)
and hecome
rate tribe.
•
fepa- ~.J! .r
Mana sir Mansilri. 100 1,300 ... Sec article Manasir. 125 ... 'A ~im[\ h in There is also a SlUg'U-
.J~~ti.... '-;?y..,a.i... Shah ii.i rah Ashhari .
Wadi Ham. lar ~)lahJ'ii.ri . '1 he
,;~~. ~J";'J ,
Marar
)JA
Mani.
.
'-:!f"
1,350 350 ... Sec tllticle Marar .
Shflhiiilah are consid-
ered to be aborigi&
nn\.
bl iiibll h ... 25 ... 'Aj miin T\lwn. Thc$e ar e an off-shoot
~l-.... of t.he Na'im with
Shamaili Shamaili . 1,000 ... Shimil in Sir. Th. Hani Shflmaili
(hni) are said to hs\'o heen
an admil.ture of J~ ori~illl\lI.v J ews
negro blood. .,.~ .)! (~'i(' ). but now they
Mniil.rlah M!\lrfl~hi. 1,000 ... n1'O closely c(1nnpctod
Sh iirjah Town. 1'hi ~ tl'ibe fount!
cf.!;) lhA ~"'::')Jh'" ""
I\lso ill tho Bl1tinall
with lite Shihfih
and maya.lmost bo
distri.:t "f the rrl;ntdod 11.8 a sect ion
'Omiin Sultanate. of lhnt tribr,
Mnzari' !\1nz ti,'j. 1,400 ... ... Seo attide Maziiri'.
thou!!h not indud ed
ill eithe r of its 2
tl)y ..j'J))'" 'those "f tho t ri be
\\+0 arc clca dy con-
sideri'd to be 0 aeo-
main
'l'hfly
called
.r. divisions.
also
SbamaiiYlu
tion of tho Baui Y8S
are excludt'd herc. ~-. A fe .. of
them who are noma-
Na'im Na'aimi. 3,500 ... ... See arti.cle Na' im . die IHe f4l1lnd amon~
r W
--:r~ the Shiblib
the Ruus&al ..
in
Naqbiyin
~;i.i
Naghi .
.;;;,;
1,800 ... ... s., article Naqbiy· Jib;;'1 distliot. of
t i, e 'Oman SuI·
in. II tanate.
Nasir (;\ Illi n) NitSiri. ]20 ... Ahu Dhabi Thefie nrc ~:\id to be of
'-::fr",lj 1h" S'UIlf' ~Iock fI~ Lho
y"u ",,! Jf '1\''''11.
Bahnrinah, uut
Sbiqosb
v:,.:;t..:. ... ... . Ajman 'I'ho :-lhaqosh a.re
!lecLinn of the URni
•
i th ey are Sunni!!
'I'awn.
I I I by rt.:! igio ll.
hb'iu of Qisbm.
 1436 'oMAN ('fRUCIAL)
'oMAN (TRUCIAL) 143 7

S.-ttled in r Drdo,JiIlS
I Muimmmallans at Dibai, ll'ls·al·Khaimah "nd Sha rj ah TowIIs;
rrudal \" 'J"rueial
Tribe. ~illgular.
'Om~n 'Om >l n
I,oration. U.liaUIlKH,
and Pcrr:: ian$\, ~OIl1C Ara,Lil'i~ct1 a.ml t-iomc not, abo lit 2,.100 at Abu
(~v'll~.) (soJi~.)
Dhabi all(l Dibai TO\\,Il', II: hoI' Fakkan and Ghiillah. Negro
S1a.VCRarc exceptiunally lll/mel'OIlS in the coa$\t tOWlll-l, but no separate
S har q iyin S\u\I'qi. 7,000 .. ~ee a l't i ~ i e
cstimato of tbem i~ pO:'l'iblc nnd tbcy may he takcn as inc:1uc1cd in our
Sbarqiy i n .
I.;/~~'r .jr tables among'tile Arabs to whom they belong'. rrhe Indians are not
Shihfih
Cr -
-,
SLihhi.

'-?=-
2,500 ... ... See article Shihfih. domiciled nor accumpanied by their families.
to m ention that the Ua.radir ]!.,')~ found III
Hcrc it mn.y be useful
Sir, :It Dibah, and
elsewhel'O ".g., "L Khasab III Ruiis-al·J ibal, me not a t ri be
Sh wllihiyi n ... 2.050 ... D ibai Rnd rrhh II ibe ore apparrntlJ'
but :1 cl:MH":,-' the cln.!'!' Hamely of the agricultural la,ootlrer to
Shiirjah identical with the
d:'«.1~ Towns. !<ection simi lar! y whatever tribe he may belong. 'rhc !'ingnlar of the name is Baidul'
nnm .. d of tho Ba,; i
Ka'ab, willi wh ich )!.>~ .
tribe they st ill inter-
1Ilt'lITY. but ;n this
The toLal nllmhel' of Bedouins in 'l'ruciai ) Omii.n may be estimated
Gazettee r they have in accOl'cian('c with the tahle a.hoyc a.t al)out 8,UOO !'Oli1!'. ] n respect of
noL been i~cll1dcd
amnllg the latter . In settled popula.tioll) howeyCl', the ta.ble is llOt exhausti,'c, :1nd rOcoul'se must
r~ligion th!')' a l"O be bad to tbe articles upon the principalities, from which it will appea.r
Han bali!'!.
tbat tbe figurcs al'C ': -
Sudan SUII':\iJi. 5,000 ... .. . Sec ar lic:le SUdan .
}'rinripality, Scttlru inl'lluitants,
owI !J)' ... ~~:J""" 'Ajmfin 750
, Dhabi (Abu) J 1,000
T anaij Tanai ji. :&,500 1,500 ... 81'0 IHticlc T a naij .
Dibai . 10,250
j.I, ,.iJ,
.. Qaiwain (U mm-al-) 6,000
t' ~~

,15 ,000
Sharjah
Thamairat 'l'hiimil'i. 120 ... Abu D habi Tho Thl\mairiit wero
o ~~ .... J l:!J~t.:i" TIlwn. originnlly Marar. 'I'otal £'JI' l'rl1cial 'Oman 72,000
but t h"y are now
rcciloncd amon g
tht Ban i Vas. By far the strongcst numcricallyof the settled tribes arC tbe Ban i Yas,
whose Bedouins al!'o arc the mo::; t numerous of any cxecpt t be Bani Qitab.
Yi'iB
,-",4
(llan;)
Yiisi. 10,000 2,000 ... See 8r ~iele Bani Vas.
0 .,-4 Next aftl'r thc llani Vas therc rank, in point of lltllnUcrs among t he
Z a1ab Za'abi. 3,500 ... .. . See a r ~icle Z a.'iib . settled tribe" fir,t the Sbarqiyi n and Al 'Ali, and tben tbe Al Bu
~l tj .,r.lt; Mahair and tbe Siidan.
7.n. hiim Zabllli . 100 ... Sij i near Wad i They a r t! ~ aiu Lo Puliticul and 1'e/i,qi IUtj d /stiJlclio1ls.-Like thc l)Co plc of the ' Oman
,"""; ..rj Ham. h!lvC bC'(>n forme r ly
Sha rqiy in of the Sultanate those of Trucia,l ' Oman arc divided betwecn the H inawi a nd
H I!. rai Hit section, but Ghftfll'i political factions, but G hanriyn.h gren.t1y prcJominate, t he Bn.ni
at t lle present ti m e
they nre un· Yas and the Shi hiih alone being 11 inawi; and) whereas in the Sultn.nate
dOllbterl lya distinct thc Hinfnviyah arc mostly Ib5.dhi~ and the Ghafil'ipth mostly Sunnis by
hibe.
religion, herc the Hinawiyah arc all Stlnnis of the l\ [fi,Jiki sc hool w hile
tbe Gbiifiriyah arc yirtnal Wahhiibis. The Wabbiibi ism of Trucial
Besides the foregoing tbere arc about 1,-100 Baliichis at lJibai TowD,
'Omtin is not now, howevcr, of the militant ordcr; it is generally
Ghallah and ltiis·al· Khaimah ; 101 Hindus at Abu Dhabi, Dibal',
described as Sunniism of the orthodox school of Ibn lIanbul, and it even
Umm-al-Qaiwain and Sharjah Towns; 214 Khoj ahs or other Indian
connives at tbe private consumption of tobacco, though not as yet at tbe

1438 'oMAN (TRUCIAL)
public sale of the same. Modol'll rifles are widoly clistributccl among the
people in bot.h town and co untry .
Character, '~le a.nrt languIIg". - rl~h{' people of the western COllst, at least
those of tho 0101'0 llortllct'li parts, kwe shown themscl ves in tho past a
bold alld energetic r::tci..'. By t hei r piratical ex.ploits at the beginning of
the 19th cOllill!'Y iboy gained, \llIdel' t he mif'lcadillg' name of {( Joasmees,"
a pe rmanent pla.ce ill history; a.nd t hoy played a. largo part in tho politics
of the Persian Coast, cSjlecially ot Qishm i, lalld, and in those of
Bahrain and the 'Oman Sultanate. At the present day they lead a
quiet a.nd nnobtrllsive existence, but doubtless the old qualities am latent
in them stil l.
frhe weJ.l-ta-do classes on the coast of 'l'rllcial 'Omfltl have throo meals
a. Jay j lhe fin.t, ('a.lIcd Fakk.:n·.R.i(l , .y}I~;
.
or (( LooRf'n illg of the
Spittle," killd 01: IJre:1kra~t and cOlu..:isb f.;ometimcs of pancakes
i ~:~
m:u\c or eggs, ril'(' nOll!' :1llll Rugal' j the otlll'r two meals, :1L noo n and
evening, {,Illllpris(' I'i('c wilh H:-:h 01' nwat, a.('compallipd hy datos and
thin cakes of white 1,read, Coffel' is drunk s('v('ml timCR a day.
Virtually tLe whole f],(1e popula.tion is Arab, a.nd Arabic is almost the
only language spoken. Swahili, how'evcr, fmrvives among' neg'l'o slaves
of the full blood.
OCCMjHtty'01lS anrl fcso/trcc8 .-Pcarl di\·ing' is, Rince the snppression of
piracy, the principal and almost the sole occupation of the maritime
population. In 81111111101' most of t ill' ahle·hodied men, to the number of
more than 22,0 110, are aiJscnt. at the pearl hank!; j anll the coast tow ns
am} villages arc 10ft to a gn':LiJ cxtl'nt u1lprotected and ucsorted . '11110
I1l1mb('1' of pearllJoats in Tnu'ial 'Qmflll is approxim::dJ{'ly ],2 15, carrying
On th e :L\' Cr:lg'C NeWS of about 18 1I1 CH cadI: they :,I1'e distributed
us toll ows : -
Prin cipalit.y, Number of LOlLh,
, AjmaD 40
Dhabi (Abu) 410
Dibai 335
Qaiwain (Umm·f41.) 7C1
Sharjah 360
In winter so mc of the pearl diving class take purt in the ordinary
sca fisheries, but the majol'ity or thcm ~ pcnd t he Rcason at home in idleness,
supported hy boat owncrs and contractors who thercby a.cquire, nndcl' the
stringcnt r\lles of the industry, :1.n indcfeasible licn all theil' se rvices for
the ncxt pearling season. A few of the scafaring class arc employed on
the cargo vessels mentioned in the pa.ragra.ph on shipping below. Fish
'oMAN (TRUClAL) 1439
a.re everywhere plentifnl and excellent, and turtle are caught upon ~h c
181andH.*
fJ1he f'(.f,tll'1i pOl'u lal iUlI who dn I1 cd lin' by t.he H'a axe herd smen and
agl'i(,llltul'il'tK: to t hi!' ('!n$!'< helong' 1l1()l'it of UH' Hon-Homa.dl' of the intel'ior
and of til(' ca.!'tl'rn f'ide of the ' Oman Promo1ltory, rl'lI(' a.gri cultul'i.\l
capab iliticR o f the ('01lnt,I'Y :tn', llOwt,\,C'I', very limited j alill cel'eal8, 8\1ch as
wheat alill jowa,1'i, :1,r/..' p;rowlI only in a. few favourcd local itic!\ suc h as Sir
allll the Shamailiyah diHtl'i ct. Dates flouris h in most places; but on
thc west coast sonth of Ras-al-Khaimah ffown they ncver fully ripen, £01'
want of watur, and nre caten £I·esh. Vegetables arc raised at most
places by m('allS of well irl'ig·ation. Li \'cstock are chie fly camels,
uOllh'YK, c;LUll', l'll('('p :LlId g'oats, ;LIlU there is plc1lty of poulLry; but
hor:-:es :1.1'(' few ill ('01lSt'qW'IH'P of thl' tliflk ul ty of fl'eding them j the last
arc k<'pL Oil hal'll'y aml tit':-:(,1'L g'l'aSS, wit.h o('(';lsi()tla,lly a litLle lu cc rne, wllicit
in plac('\-i i ~ g'rowli :UII OIlg- the date gT()\'l'!-\.
The Bl'llnllillH dc'pl'nd {·hidly (!II LlIl'ir li\'esLiJck f(JI' Hu hsil'tcll('e, hut
801l1C of thl'lIl take parL ill till' Jll'ad fi :dl(,l'ies. 1n winter, wlleH the
wcather is cool and grazill g' abundant, Lhcy are ficat1ereu fa.r and widc in
small partie:.'; hllf, as water and pasture bl~COHlC scarcc with the approach
of summer, they cong' rcg:ltc ill larger bodies around the marc c01)ions
wells in t.hc less inhos pitable parts of the country. li'avouritc Bedouin
sum111cr rc~ol'ts of thifi kind. arc the Jiri plain in the north and Bainunah
in the \\·e., t. 'rhc.y own ma.lIY camels awl a 1111mbc r of donkey!' j bnt the
latter a.rc I!~ed only \'01' work in the lleig- hLolll'hood of Lhe campt;, and 1I0t
[or long car:L\':lIl jOlll'lll'YS,
1Ioi't' i!J it !tll(if. - ComllH'rcial st.atistit"s a rc available o nly for thc Ia.rger
lowns 011 t he western side of the 'Oman Promo ntory, and so much o[ ihe
foreigll trade 01' the cOHntry a.!-i is carried on from til e Shamailiyah coast
('6C3.1)C5 obtlervatioll: the :.LIllOltllt of this trade is I'rohahly incollf;idcrable,
but the fact. o[ it:; nO Ll· inclusion should be hornc in mind. Scrutiny or
the trade stat.il'ties shows how artifiClal is t hc ex istence of the largcr coast
settlcmcnts or Trucial 'OwfUl and Low enti rely uependent they arc on the
proceeds of the pearl fh;bery f or the mc...'\\lS of purchasing the ordinary
necess-aries of li[e, which thcy do noL t.hemselves produce.
\ Pea.rls a.re the on ly export of :1l1 y ma.g-nitudc, and the aH!1'ag-c a11nllal
value of tit()SC scnt abroa.d (:t1most cntirel y til India) during- the last seveu
ycars ha~ beoll 67 la.kln; or I'upees: the !'I.'collll eX:l'()rt ill valnt' is tllat of
mother·of- pcarl shell, worth only t,- 01' a lakh of I'llpeer: Pt'l' a,n1lum.
Dibai is now the chief pcarl mart of the Pe rsian Gulf after Bahrain a.nd
1440 'oMAN (TRUCIAL) 'OMAN (TRUOIAL) l-M.l

occupieR in this rCSl)Cct the place formerly held by Lingeh; it has also
tmpplanted Lingeh as tho distributing centre for impol'teu goods on the
Arabian coast between Ruiis-al-Jibal and Qatar.
rrhe following arc the ch ief imports with the ~L\'crag'c annual ya,lue of
each during the past scptellil ium (ill Jakbs of rupees): -grain and pulse,
chicO), from Persia. <:tHO India, 12k; cotion picce-goods, from I nd ia, 4;
dates and date juice, mostly from rrlll'kish )Iraq, :3; coffee, from India,
2~; miscellaneous provision", il'om Persia, 2. j and sugar, from 01' through
India, 11. Con siderable amonnts or specie rtlso pass in both directions.
In face of the facts it docs not seem nnl'easonable to hold that all
sources of profit ho1'o are subsidiar}' to pearl divillg, alld that if the pearl
banks WOI'C to rail this coast would EilOrLly be depopnlated,
Shipping.-Dibai is the only ~icam port of rrt'llcia,l 'Oman, 'rcn years
ago Dibai was almost nnvif'ited hy Europcan "essel1', unt in 1905·00 the
numbcr of stcamers calling bad rison to 34, all British, with a tonnagc of
Umm-al-Qaiwain; the average number!=; launcbed annuaJly are a.bout
20 at that place, ]0 at Dibai and 5 at Sharjah Town.
Topog,-aphy. -The topography of ncarly the whole of Trncial 'OI1'.'n
is explained in the articles on the five principalities of which it consists,
and ill the various subsidiary articles to which clum; are given in
the articles on the principalities. Some additional facts may he
learned from the paragraph on communications which follows b310w.
It only remains to deal in this place with the topography or a small land-
locked tract which does not apparently belong to anyone of the !ll'inci.
palities in particular, and which bas no general name; the centre of this
tract is approxi mately the l\fad~'tm plain which lies about ·:W miles inland,
south-eastwards, from Sharjah Town. The principal points of the tract
in question are as follow * '-
Position. Clmracter. R8)LUU:S.
N;lme,

70,132; thc progress of thc place is 3i COil sequence of the decline of

Lingeh . 'rLe number of nati,'c sailing Ycssclf.:, - other than 11earl boats, 'A;~'o h In tilt' c"ntre of lh<.l A lIingle well, lined at The s:te i.~ 811rt'ounded
l\flidiim p·ain. the top w:th limber . by Ilclic i BS.
coasters and flshing boat!', - owned ill the ports of r!'rucial 'Oman IS a)'~

'Aui\ij (Ramlal) 20 miles south of A narrow stl ip of This tract lies east
about 90, distributeu as follows :- Aiyoh. rolling l'A.nd hills. god weg- IlC!~IIP the
. ;u,.
Bidyah ' ]0 Khaimah (Hii.s·a.l-) '1'o wn 15 ~~ r. U' e froll1 Riis-R i.
Dhabi (Ahu) Town 10 Qaiwain (Umlll'al-) Tow n 1
Khaimah T O il n to
Ibe Bar a i mi Oa,is.
Dibai Town 20 Rams.
Fakkan (Khor) 5 and Badu' 11 miles ~ol1th bv A group of water 'rhe sito isII blind re-
west of ·Aiyoh. · holes. enTrant alllong- f:'.IIU ·
GhaHah 10 Sharjah'ruwl1 18 hills, Iorilling a
The majority appeal' to be SamLfi1{fo" but a proportion of them arc b,·sn.·b of Wiidi Sa-
maini.
Baghlahs, and there are some jollrboat~ and lladans: these vossels are
chiefly employed in runnin s to India and port~ of the Pcr~iall Gulf for Dhlikhal' B tWpen Raml>lt A well . It i~ flit1lRt.ed flo litt1(' to
. Anaij fLnd Bs,~ :he west of (IrdiIlK,"Y
snpplie!'. rfhe statif'tics of pearl boa.t~ are given in the Appendix on the }o-'o hah S-I,lItliLil 011 rOllt!' bf,tw ·t'n HaS-'ll·
pead fisilOl'ics. Fishing boats nota-1 m used as pcarlel's appear to be roughly t i, e rig t hallk of Khai mah T;)wo
the latter . fL- d the Bar aimi
eqw11 in number to pearl boats, hnt they are often extremely small. OaS!8.
Jazimt-al-Hamra and Sha'am, though they hftve no large vessels,
Fii."Ah (Jabal) 1 to 2 milrs we~t of A range of hill .. , At the n{lrthern ex~
possess some coa.sters of a. useful f:izc.
~t;~ th .. oldillar,V mlJTe
hetwl·;·n Rlls ai-
Khaima.h '1\ wn
R.bout 1,0.
runs
°
rpliclli,,~ 1\ rei~ht
feet; it
nOl'lh and
(If hemitl" (If
Fii \ ah Arc tw(! (:.n ·
ta,,:ic TOI'ka forming
Jabal

Internal trade a lid manlifacturc8.-Inluml traliic if' pett,}, a.nd it; ch ieAy Illidthe Baraimi /-"lIlh wit!. fL lcnlZth j"nnmlu ks, T ill y
with thc Bcdoui" tribes; but Sharjah, Dibai amI All" Dhabi divide with 0\, iI" _fr"m Qallah of Sbllut 12 mill'S, li re known HI' Zibb-al·

Sohar Town in the 'Oman Sultanate tho trade, suc h as it is, of the Mat.iitldh un Ihe
Iionh to the
ann is ronglily
pitrall,} to th .. rnai'l 'Az:lh ,,:"",~I ":j I a.nd
Baraimi Oasis. M ,u1ii.,m plain on mllgon£ lh,,'Oman lOtll.rikii :-al·Jiili \" a h
the south, Plumol!tory at'out 4.~) l ~JI 01;' .>~, n~mea
Local manufactures are few and none of them are exported. Fine
sheep wool 'Abas are made at Sharjah rrown, and daggors at Has-al-
:l<A,rfhority.-Majol' P. Z. C.·x f(olll pelsolla} observHtionand inquir.l'. Most. of
Khaimah. A certain number of sailing ,"oswls are built, chiefly at the plaoe!! m<tntioned in this taLla are :..hown in th~ HH>l) RG'l'[(' ta~'I'n by Maj(J.'
P. Z. Ooz, 6tc., 1905.
 1442 'OMAN (TRUCIAL)

Namc. Pflsilin . Character. REVil1l1:B.

20 miks 10 the ('alit· of \l"\lieh the mCfLll-

ward of it in~s are appareutly
nbsc('uc.

Fiiiy.ih (Yahfli.l'- 8 mill'fI north by /I well similar to that This well is on the
a!-) ('u~l of 'Aiyoh . of lI amdah. ordil18n route viii
Warii 'Hatta from
6-.P tiJ !..lis!. Dibai to Shinas
'1'own. .

Gherif I See Ilrticlf' Gharif.

JV
A I'inj!ie well about 1 It ill on the north
Hamdah
......
10 to 11 miles south
of Dhaid vi!lage . 40 fe"t. deep nnd blink of a hollow .,c
timber.lined :\1 the which fm-ma the E
iou southern border of 0
. I QaU"h Mahii.6.dh.
0;
TIaxl':-g,dh-llha.bi 17 mil('s south of A well wooded @.trip · The nan'e means" The ·u
.......
of ph\in, H Or 2 lia'lellj"s BOlllld", :::I
bJi 'Aiyoh. (The ex -
0 tY :It't p~lsition is 2,rJ miles III 1!I'efl.ti1h'l The lolace is also ::::
42' I ti" lIorll! l,y bt'lwfH'lI .Jabal SIl- called KhMaib. G
50 c 4!)' 21;" east.) maini I\od tl;e rig-I t
bllnk (If \\ Rdi Ra-
.,
:E
..c
~
0:
ma.ini. Q

Tu centre i~ nbnnt A \\'ooeled pJt\in several The plain il' enclosed

miles ill dialll('tf'r h,' the FO'lth elld of
.,• ;;:
-N
<

40 Inil('s Muth - :I:

elst of Sharjah
'l'uwn,
:Inti containing \,al,i-
ons Wl'lls arnong
th~m I h ose of
,J;b,,1 Faiyah on the
nort h, by Jabal
J!&dhah on the nort h-
-
.,
'Ail Olt, ~lt1sdfi and
Yiuaiyak
eHSt. and bv the
llortJw1"n par't of
...
;:;
~

.r allal Samflini 011 the

ens! : on 1he we!:t it
i,~ divided by Wi'idi
Yidaiyah froln a traci
of sanuhil1ll, l\hdiim
is a. camping ground
of noml1dic Na'im
connl'cted widl the
Baraimi Oasis.
bhhA6dh 8 toO 11 milo~ !:olltb A ClOlly plnt(,8 n This pblin ",lopes: down
Jabj (.f Dhaid villngc. wilhonL watel' or ~l'ntly from the bafe
of J a bal Faiyah on
h;k" J-; gnw.ing.
f eet
abollt
I,i~h f' ''
20
than the the we:<t to the foot
co Inlr)' imnH'dilllelv of th~l main range of
to tlH~ north of it the 'Oman Frumon.
ami 550 to 610 feet t (lry on the c... st.
above 8~a le\"el. Jt and it ltho oecli"e8
run~ "t'"t, Rnd Cllst A"rariually from north
111111 is S niiles bl"oal~ to south, 'fhe soil is
from north to south. s(lund alld hard, con ·

I
_______ . _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _._ _________,_J_._'I~~_~~_y_al_,_th~
sisling of black Bind
",,<I ,hi,,"I.; nCR< to
 'OMAN (TRUCUL) 1443

Name. I'ositiou. CharaeUr .

land is coarse nnd

bo uld er" taka the
place of shillglo.

MUf'laifi (Yllhfar) On th e northern . A

I wrIt. Th ere is oilly a lI in~ J a
ed~e o f L~e )ladil1l! bori ng. At th e top
~4A.~!. pltllll , 2 milc!! it if! lined with
west of J abal timber.
IIOdhah.

P.odl",h (J .bal) A lon t .~ m ilE'S A de l8cl ed hill about It fo rms a fine blnff
10Ith'E'3st of t ho 1,500 feet high. peak .
"-") <-4e- midd le o r the
1\ladillll plain .

San;l\ ini (J a.bitl) On the west. s iJe of
t h" tra ~ t under
~~+ .... J~?- ('on,.i<1('r a I ion,
frl'lu Lh ... l1adilm
plain in th e H<, rth
to tho) sout.hern
t'xt ltl lH it.r .
A hog backed rauge This range is parall el
running' nnrth an d to, bilL fL p p('ar~ to he
£ollth for a distnnce sepllrated by fin in.
of nbuut 20 mil es, {(, l"vA.l from, tl lc mai It
nnd attaining in on e rIln gc of tbe 'Oman
plac e nn all itudo of Promontory, wl lich i.
I\bont 2,01.10 fee t. to ~be east of it.

811maini ( Wiidi) In the 1I0nthern 11 bl'ond drainage It emerges from a V-

v~+ ... lS.)j p!'rlof t.he tract hollow, encl osin g th e I'h'l ped gap n ellr the
HOW in qucstion. p lai n of ITlI zn"arlh - south end of Jabal
Dhabi bi-twecn ihelf Sn.m:lini and run.
and Jabal ::=amnini, firl-t ,J, wi lcs wt'st-
and co ntai ni ng wards, then 7 mil es
furth er dnw n t he northWArds, and thon
water hol es of Bndu', westwards ngain to
I the desert.
S:anail!ll (Rat-h ah ) P orms th e southern Allord lllary drainage It ("O lll !!!; from the
J~... 6.s.b~ 11ll1llldary o( t he holl ow or water lIeighbourhood of
trncL lIlHh' I' con si - scanI'. .'!. bal Khadhm
demtiolt. fwlli ch is con nected
wit h Mnbadbah) on
tho ca st and goe.
west wor ds t.o the
dC801 t. T he well of
D hikhar is on it.
righ~ bank.

Y~ai)'ah ( Wadi) Along th e wcstel'll A fin e Bat-hah or On its right bank is

borde r of the Wadi which descends. the well of YidaiJah,
~~ l?J!, "Madiim plai n. in this part of it s lmed with W(I(Y.l. like
cour~c, fr om sout h that of 3IasBlil.
to :J.ort h.

CO!fl1Jl1micationa,-Th e principal routes of Tracia.l 'Oman may be

diyided into three groups, viz .) (1) those which lead 2C1'OSS the 'Oman Pl'O-
mon(o ry from Uw P er. ian Gulf to the Gulf of 'Oman, (2) those whicL
4 z2
 'oMAN (TRUCIAL)
oonnect the western coast of the 'Oman Promontory with the Baraimi
Oasis, aud (3) those which run westwards through Dhafrah, providing
access from tile castern parts of Trucial 'Oman and from the Barai-
mi Oasis to Qatar and the Hasa Sanjiiq. We proceed to deal with them
in the above order .
I (a) . ROlttefrom. Ra,,·al·Khni1llak Town to Dibali.*-The places first
passed arc Falaiyah, Hail and Khatt jn Sir, which arc reached at 6, 7
and 14 miles, respecti\'ely, from Ra-al-Khaimah Town. A bout I ! miles
beyond Khatt the hills of tbe 'Oman Promontory are entered; and
from this point the w"y lies up Wildi·al·Qaliddi to a pass neal' Muhln,rqah
vilbgc j the chief poinif; passed hctw('cn KhaLt and l\fullt:U(Plll arc g·iven
as Labiinnh 6.jt~ , S:Jnllll ('J~' and rpllwij':lin \.:..rl.~,b) whiGh are water ing
placcf'J aBd tile vill:lg'c of Ya,'akal. li'rom tile pass nca r ~fllhtarqah,
which is "bout h"lf way from Khatt 10 Ilibah al1(\ has good waleI', the
route descends towards Dibah j and at five miles Ahort of that place it
emerges from the hill s, continuing for the rest of the way ovcr a. plain
grown with brushwood. The journey was pcrformed (in the reverse
direction to that described) by Colonel "isbrowe and Captain Powell in
1 ~65, apparently in E'i,!!ht st.:'l.ges, cut most of these were extrcmely short.
The direct distance between the termini ECCIDS to be less than 25 miles,
but the actual distance is probably about '1·0: the general direction is,
rou g hly, from west-north-west to cast-Rout.h-cast.
] (6). Rout" (r" 'm ''Umm-nj-Q ,liwo£n 'PI"f01t to Fu,1nirolt.t-This l'Outr
rUlls across the desert by t he wcllt-: of ~1m\'aih ~b"" ,Ghal'a ~i, and Umm-an-
Naghul J)'iiJI ~I to the ill!:1lltl villagc of Valaj AI 'Ali (01' lralai), whicll
is a dependency (·f Umm-al-Qaiwain :lnd ] 6 miles distant, south- east..
wards, {!'OID. t he same, From Falaj AI 'Ali it continues 8 miles further,
south·eastwards, to the Muraqqibat wells in the yicinity of Dhaid. It
tben enters the hills, passes by Slji, and drops into Wadi Ham which it
follows down to Fujairah. This ronte is f:aid to pl'eEcnt no difficulties
to camel transpoJ't: its length, wcre it straight, would be undel' 60 miles,
but in consequence of windings it is probahly a good deal more than tbis.
1'be average direction if: nearly south-cast .
• ,dllth',rjtie.r.-Pl\rlly ~I&ior P. Z. Cox from n Jitive informAti on. C-,I" II .. 1 H_ Dis-
browe, T'olitira} Agent, lind C .. ptl\in W. l ' iI W .. II, LN., travcl1ed this W ily in 1865 i a
sketch of the route h.y the hlt .er is cxt.8n~ . but the n'p"rt, if any existed. is I IO W luAt.
t From native information obLlliued by Mu.jor P_ Z. t:ox: and Lieutena.n t C. H.
O.briol·
'OMAN (TRUCIAL)
l(r). R n"te fro", Sha,;nh Town to nr".air.*-'l'he first part of t.hi.
route lies ovel' open desert by the wells of Zibair J~j and Tahil ~u to
Dhaid village, a distance o[ about 3U miles. From Dhaid it run s to the
wells of "'-usilali, and thereafter it. ente rs Wadi-al-Qor, which it descends
to l\1"urair. I t is asscrted by native informants tha.t Wadi-al-Qor has
easy gradients and co uld probably be made practicable for wh~eled trallie
witllOllt great difficulty, uut. the, statement must be treated With l'ese~ve.
1 ' he distance dil'el't born Sharjah Towll to Murair is under 70 miles,
but by roa.d it must be conside rably lUorc. 'l'he general dil'eetion is
about south-east by east.
The part of this route beyoud Dhaid may be used also 'by travellers
from Hamriyah and Umm-al·Qaiwain, those from Hamriyah making
direct for Dhaid (25 mil,>s) hy the wells of SilTah ;- and Ban'ah "!;) j
and tho," from U lllm·,I-Qaiwain following route No. 1 (h) above as far
as 11'a,laj AI' Ali and then diverging to Dhaid (0 mil es from Fala.j AI 'Ali).
l(d). R01ft e from /)i/'ai 'l'0101t 10 Shi'R.as J'ouJ1t .1' - This route crOsses
the de.ert behind Dibai Town by th c well. of Matluah ...,h~, Kha-
walliJ' .01,':'" ]\fuhdathah ",j,,>.r'"', and
Gh!lttah or Q atta Ibj; passing ovet
.
t ·· ,
(or thr~ug'b) Jabal Paiyah it arrive' at the well of Yahfar-al-Faiyah, 37
miles iu a direct line f,om D.bai. It then £aI ,s into \\ adi Hatt.a
whieh it follows down to Shinas. 'rhe actual distance in travelling
must exe' eel by a good deal the di!:'t,lllce in a straight line-which is a.
little over 811 miles-between t he ext t'clIll! point!), The averag\! dilection
is south-east by east.
T,aveller; from Sharjah T ow n Lo Shin as may al,o (LV.il them'elve,
o[ this rout.e, joining it at Ghalta.h 0 1' at ): a.hfar-a.I-!":liyah.
2(a). Rottte Irom RaB-at- A'haimah 't oW/t to th e Barainu: Oasif.t-
This rout.e can be most conveniently described in tabular form, a'j
follows : -
Stllrt\lIg poi ll t. Halling place.
c,jurnctr r "f halliug n elcription of t h .. Interml'<iI:Ho
\llaee. Sh g tl.
- - --- - ---
Ra..'- ~ 'I·'Khai- Had ,ithll h Soc article Jiri. 'I be loln l dillill1lce by ro\d
mah'l'owu
~...).~
18 mil,·s and Iho L.','n"ril.l "
dirl'cLiOIl 8ou: b by W ('lIt. The
• Autho,.itic.\".--l'l>e ~nml' 811 for l'onle No.1 (6).
t Alltlt fJ ritie4.-TIi0 80.1110 as for I'l'lu'e No.1 (b).
I .d'utltnt'it.V.-~'alor P. Z. Cox, Po\iLi,'a\ Resi-tcnt in the Per"i&1I ';ul£. from
person ...l (IbsrTVutiun in a r t'purt submitted \\jtb his letter No. IBOOof 5th August 1906
to the Govl'rn,,,,,,,,t nf India .
 'OMAN (TRUCIAL) 'OMAN (TRUCIA L) IH.7

Character of halting Description of the i:ltcrmcliiate

e~!lrtinll' peint. llaltiJ.lg place, Cilaracter of halting Dcscrjpti~n of Ihe Intermediate
Illacc. IItflf;i!. Starting point. Jjaltilli plate. pl:.ec. ~tage.

- - _._----- -- -------1- ------ I -1------------

route rllns 2 mill's I!ou t h · at 13 wiles r eaohes the ascellt
wCl'tw:;l.Hls al'l11g the ~pit of to Q'li lah ~l"h§.fi dh . Just
sand npon which ~hc Lown
befofe this a"'ceut is leachen
is 8itllat~d ; then tUI'll3 t ho thet e is good gra7..i nl: iar
bead of the barbour and
CIUl els j on the plateau bi'J and
gops easlwards ov\!r sand ..
nono is obr uinable for ,",ome
hills for l! mile;;, after ,,,i lcs. Wat er f(lr thil:l huH
wh ich it dl'OP3 .illto tile Sir
is laken fr uUl Wu~ha.l l.
plain. The \' illo.~e8 of
Falo.iynh, !hil and lI'ahlai u,
Qallah M.h.fidh lI11:saifi See paragnlpb on The distance to the t raveller
on tho oast, arc passed at topography is 18 Illile>l, and the direction
6 7 and 8 miles .1 list I...}~ above. neil-Ily d ue ~ou th o The
b~youd Fahlnin tho Jiri Q olbh !Iahafidh pLttcau is
ph-in j", t'lllered a:ld the
traversed lor :-3 lll i '~s; the
route follows its weitern
h ollow containing the
edge, tho .. and duneS of the
Hamdah well is then
desert hein:; 1;10 ,6 11 pOll th~ cfo_ sed; lind lit 12 miles the
right, by the ", .. Us of Bu
W4'!\ of Yah fll r·al-~ aiyah ill
Ya'iliin at 14, and those of
reached. Throughout this
Haml'a.ni yah at 16 miles . 103.lch, afte r Qallah Mahilfidh
i.~ lelt behind, .jabal Fii",)ah
Hadaith!lh ill upon Ihe right at aile Of
Faraikh Sec article Tile oistrlllC(, HI 18 mi les by twn mile!! distancf, lind tho
Dhaid. road, n.nd tLc d irection is on
I'ath whlds O\'fr a well -
the aVt.:mgo ~OUtll by we st . wooJ('d mndy pla in . .An
The route conti nues 10 fuJlow
a ltl'l"IlHtiv6 hltiti"g place to
the western marg in 01' the Mu saifi is Yiclaiwi, al:,o in
Jiri plain and pa:-~ .. S the
II t.he Madam plain but 6 wilcs
w<3l:s of 8fi.'nd i at 5 miles .
furtucr to tbe SQut b·wcst.
At 1l~ miles Il high
undlliatiuJ,: tract of ea:td IS The aotual distance is l 0 mile.
entered, which contil1ues Musai6 Haza'·adh-Dha bi Do.
and f.lle generRI direct :tlu is
for 4 luiles and ill which a ",!1iJ1 U. ufarly dHO south. The routo
w inding course must be
cr"ssCB betwet'D 10 and 12
pl1l'sl1~d. T ho r emailldel' of ulIle:, a p1ojfcting' tongue of
the wn.y lic~ down tho sandy
tbe western ~al1d de!lert. At
vaHcy \If J!'araik h. 14 luilp,s it faHs into WId
SRmnini in whioh it CQntiuuell
F",raikb
bj~" ili
.
QaIJ,h M.h.fidh Sec paragraph un
top 0 g r ap h y
The distance bv road IS 16
mile~ lIml I.he diredion ne;l rlv
almost 'lIltil the baltillg'
place is reached.
above. due sout.h. The I!'araiki
lIaza.'-adh·Dhabi ~ isAkin. See ar ticle Til e distallce by roe-d is 1B
valley is f"llow .. d fill' 2 milt's,
after which Wad i ~Ja"g"ol
MaMdhah. miles Hn lt the a.verage d irec
~rt-.... tioll of the 11' 11('1., which i
(thtl lIort\lern b ,undal'Y of
(N. B.-This is crookcd, is a little to tho
th e Dbaid plain) is (·.rossed
not. the :\1iso.kin 'VI'st of sout.h . At 1 mile
a lld the p'Ri" {It" D haid Wild i SHmlOilli is crossed, and
entcred. Dhaid villa.!"e is well but a place
neaf the r ight. olle d its tLibutaries is RS
rcached ;It a li llIe "VCI" fl
bank of Wi\di l:euded 1'1'0'11 thill !,oint for
mil .. s. FO I" ~ miles beyond
Mhaki u Lighor 2 miles. The rollin!! sInd
t he viJlnglJ the routo lit's
up.) hills of Rn.u ,lat 'Anaij ;11'e
oVt'r tho opeu plain: it tht:n
\h('n c ro;o~od. for 3 mile~. and
dr"ps into the- bed of \\ ad
at thei r oonclusion Bal -bah
Kalhail"ah, whil·1! it f,.lI"wiol
Sftnll.ibil is inters('cted. Sand
for 2 H1ile~ to ~ '1 0 \\'tlls (if
dunes of miJdc" alld lefl
'Vu.sh R.l! ; it tl len ont~ ilcross
baneu appeal"r.nce fol~(w, II D~
:llloth~l" I:Itretcu of plain aud

I at 1:1 wiles thl"! ?ecuba.r .0:1

--.~-~.- ..
 l4048
'OMA.N (TRUOIAL)
I
Shortior point. Halting place, Charao(cr of halting
plaee.
I Drscription of tbe idormedi.te
IItage.
1- - -- - - - - - - - - - - - --
of S"fwAn is rellched. At
11 mill's the trl'l.vl'llt'r C'fO"Sf'8
the dr)' I ~ at·bah N .. wa,i.j
find A8Cend~ to the sandy
S I,ibl'1i.t-al·Khidim tr.tct
which continl1t's for 10
milt's: he then (>n~n liD
c:1t(>n~ive dppr~88ion in the
eaIH\hill~,
the drainage of
wh'ch is t'lll'ried by Wil.di
Misskin.
Misl.kill Jimi Villll~e in See article The distance by route is 20
the Baraimi Baraimi Oasis. mill'S, and tile uenp!'al direc-
Oasis. tion is l'oulh·Elouth·west.
The route rUDS Ht fiu'it Ulore
we<::t than south alollg' WJldi
Mis.iikin, jUflt bl·fore leai'ing
whi(,h the .lIisii.kin well on
I he rigbt i! pSS8Pd: for the
Ile:xt 4 Idles il lips /Over the
g""tIl! Rr1Il.ly undIl1atil.D" of
Ihtl Bdlio·al."hiiD and 'he
riil"eetil)D is "olllh, rho Aft .. r
this it, wand"r" fur 7 milee
in the difficnlt Blind I" dretlrt
of Hllmlat K .. b 11. Mas·
'Udi is th" flnst RPtilpment
,lIlBlled aftpr dropping from
the I,i!!h s.'\nd·rlIlD" tract into
the Baraimi Oasil!.
Th o total distance from Ras-al-Khaimah Town to Jimi by this route
is 12. miles, and the journey is generally performed by caravans in 6 to 8
~.ays. '1'1lere IS
- no weJl·worn track, and no two caravans foHow exactly the
• ame COurse. Camel transport i. the only kind used in tr3lvelIing by this
hn e; for donkeys-the only other beast of burden available-cannot,
when laden, negotiate the sandy tracts that have to be cross cd on the way_
Tbe wells nlong the route are generally from 40 to 60 fed deep and are
lined fo r th e uppermost 8 01' 10 feet with timbers or roul"h hewn ,tone
o
from the hills: the water i. invari.bly raised by me "US of a le"the r
, !'uc;'et which ishanled by a rope over a pulley, the pulley being SUSpellrled
from a trestle over the well mouth.
'l'his route i .. the main artery of traffic in the 'Oman Promontory j
the place of leeders to it is taken by routes I (h), 1 «) and 1 (Ii) above,
~~ ieh.in tcrs,et it at 01' near -\ Iul'aqqibiit, Dhaid village and Yahfar-al-
Fal)'llil, respectively. There is reason to th:nk that, by fol1owing a. line
IOm.what further to eastwardB and more cloBelV adjoilling the foot of
'OMAN (TRUCIAL) 14i9
the main hills, a line might be found which could without mnch labour
be adapted for wheeled traffic, and that it might n ot be difficult to
connect such a road with the Bltinah ouast by me;;i.llS or another road
down Wadi-al-Qor.
2, (0 ) Rou,te from lJi bai 1'oUJn to the Ba1'aimi Oasis *.-This route,
which appa.rently run s straight aerMS the intervening desert, is identical
with route No, J (d) above as far :loS Khawanij. rrhe nu,mcs o£
points snbsequently passed are given as 'Awil' ./;:J"_JJ, Habab 1-:-'!~.6,
Badu'-~I-Hilli ].11 f"'! , Madhlill J}6 A , Faqa' t iU and Kbasilb ",~I .
rrhe distance in '~ direct line is between 70 and 7j miles.
2. (e) Route frnm Aim jJh ao; l'ollm to the Barai1Jti Oasis. t-The
distancc is about lOU miles by the route ordin al'ily followed which runs
a little south or east. (rhe stages are nlaqta', whele the creek behind
Abu Dhabi Town is cro3sed, 10 miles; from ~1a'lta' to Suq
Iblis, a rocky landmark, 141 miles j ~liq Iblis to Nahshilah &1..:..;,
water holes, 28 miles j Nah shilah to Bill Huwail, wells, 15 mi les; But
Huwail by Nasuriyah ~))_) to Juhar. water holes, 25 miles; Juhar to
the Baraimi Oasis, 12 miles. Stages named Habal J~~: I and Muwaih
Arnab ~)I o.~)" ,slightly more t o the south, may be substituted for
tbose of Silq ibHsa"d i'ahsbilah. The track from Maqt" , to Baraimi
lies over a. desert of sand dune~, and there is almost no grazing by the
way.
Routes connecting the Baraimi Oasis with Mah:idhah and
Mah:idhah with the route from the Baraimi Oasis to Sohar Towu are
shortly noticed in t he article upon Mah:idhah •
3. There is no fixed route between Baraimi or Trucial 'Oman and
the Rasa Sanjii~ , and different caravans fo llow different lines of wells
aero" Dhafrah and the tl'acts beyond it . A straighter and more inland
course is apparently preferred b:y travellers in winter; while Ih o~e who
make tbe juurney in summer generally take a route less direct but Hearer
to the coast. SiJa', Sakak and the foot of Dohat-"s Salwa s.em to be
among the usual halting places in either seaSon. 'rhc joul'ney as a whole
is not considered clangerous or even difficu it j for water, th )ugh brackish,
is f "und in many place~J and it is ~eluo m necessary to carry a su pply
• .duthor.ty.-From nathe infOl'mation .
t 4 .. thoritl.-Major P. Z. CO~ from personal observation and enquiry.
 'OQAIR (BARR-AL-) 14051
l450 'oMAN (TRUOIAL)
themselves, in consequence of the trea.ties of 1853 and 1892. That the
for morc than two days. A mcsscn gel' ca.n co\'er the distance from
cxistence of so me such position has been in a sense rccogniscd by the
Baraimi t o Hofiif in ten da.ys; caravans bkc about a month.'"
GO"ernment of the French Bepublic will be apparent Oll reference to thc
Adm£uistration.- Eacb of the five principalities of Umm-al -Qaiwain, historical volumc of this Gazetteer.
' Ajman, Sharjah, Dibai and ALu Dhabi i. ru led by an independent British subjects iu rrrucial rOman arc distriLuted as follows and
Shaikh, whose possessions on ILo sen, coast are generally uuder full include at each place a proportion ot 'women and children : -
control; while all except the Shaikh of 'Ajman, and particularly the To\\'n. Hindus. Muhammadans.
Dhabi 65 Nil.
Shaikh of Abu Dhabi, exercise SOme a.uthority or influence over Bedouin
(Abu)
tribes in the interior. 11'01' further details the separate article on each 23
Dibai 67
principality may be consnlted. II No"[.
Qaiwain
(Um m·n l.)
Political position, fo?Oeign relatt'0 1l8 and foreigll, intucsts.-The Kllaimah Nil. 33
political position DE 'I'l'ucial 'Oman in regard to Groat Britain is difficult (Ha,-al-)
to define with exactitude j it is regulated ill the main by two a.greements, Sharjah 61 158

each of which has been signed by, allli. i!:> iutli\'idnally binding lipan, the
five Shaikh. of 'Ajman, Abu Dhabi, Dibai, Umm al-Q,aiwain and
Sharjah.
'rhe earlier in (bte of these agl'cl!mcnts is a perpetual il'Uce, concluded
in 1853, which IJrovided for the entire ccss~tion of hostilities at sea among
the signatorie,s, and impo~ed all the British Government the duty of
enforcing peace and obtaining rcparation for maritimc aggre:;;sions commit-
ted in contravention of the arrangement. It is ill virtuc of this treaty
that the Shaikh, of thc principalities arc styled 'frucial Shaikhs and that
their country may appropriately be stylcd 'l'rucial 'Oman.
By the second trcaty, signed in 189:1" thc '1'rucial Sbaikbs bound
themselves not to enter i nto any agreemcnt or corrcspondence with a
power other than the British Govemment; not to pcrmit, without the
assent of the Briti::; h Government, the residence within their territories
of the agent of any other gO" crnmcnt; and not to cede, bcll, mortgage or
otherwise give for occupation any part ?f their territories save to the
British Government.
The exact international effcct of lhesc two agreemcnts is a matter for
publicists to dcterminc, but taken togethcr they evidently creatc prcferen-
tial and almost exclusive relations betwcen the 13riti~h Government and
thc Trucial Chicfs,-relations which might Le held to imply ihe depen-
dence of the Shaikhs on the Dritish Govcrnment in foreign affairs and a
.moral obligation 011 the part of th£' :British Government to IJfotect the
Shaikhs in so far as they may he endangered, or di,abled from defending
"0111. Miles (vide J. A. S. .B. Volume XLVI, Part I, No~. I~IV. 1877, pages
69·60) giTeS more precise directions than t!u'sC', but the posit ions an (1 flven the Uloer
of hill Itll!toe do ,Dot always agree well with the results of the 1ll0S5 recent enquirie!!.
'l'OTALs 19·1 21,1
If some l:'cl'si.uns from the oppositc coast and thcir concerns are left
out of aCcollllt, G rcat Britain is stili the only foreign country which
possesses :wy moral 01' matcl'ial j!licre~t~ or subjects in rj1rucial 'Oman:
for the l)l'uicctioll of thc~e a Natin: Agent of the 11 ers ian Gulf Residency
is maiutained a.t Sha,rjah 'rown. (rhe :;ubjects in question arc the
Indians, llilldu~ and Khojahs, who arc settled in the la.rger ports .
The name is vcry [rcq l1cntly pL'onounced JOjair. A coastal tract ill 'OQ,AIR
the Sanjii'l of Hasa containing the port of 'Oqair; it falls naturally ( BARR-~L-)
within themaillbountiul.ic!; of Biyadh aDd should l>Cl'haps be regardcd ;>.iWl .r.
as forming' part of that diyibion.
Bonndaries ... Burr-al·'O(lail' cxtends upon thc sca from Tall-az·
Zabanai, on the sonth ,ide of tbe entrance of Dobat Ruhum, to Ras-
as-Sufairah, a. promontory of tbe mainland opposite the south end of
Zakhniin iyah i. land; its length from north-north-wcst to south-south-
east is thus roughly 3S miles. It, dcpth inland is undefined but small:
possibly howevcr the easternmost of tbe wells which arc enumerated in
the article on Biyadh (diyision VI) should be regarded as belonging to
"Barl'-al-'Oqair, ill p:ll'tieul:ll' those of Dannan) Hnghwtill, 1\1ijama'ah
and SU\Y~Ld.