Asia. Its official religion is Islam. Holding a strategically important position at the mouth of the Persian Gulf , the country shares
land borders with the United Arab Emirates to the northwest, Saudi Arabia to the west, and Yemen to the southwest, and shares
marine borders with Iran and Pakistan. The coast is made by the Arabian Sea on the southeast and therefore the Gulf of Oman on the
northeast. The Madha and Musandam exclaves are surrounded by the UAE on their land borders, with the Strait of Hormuz and
Gulf of Oman forming Musandam's coastal boundaries.
Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean . At its peak within the 19th century, Omani influence or control extended across the Strait of Hormuz
to modern-day Iran and Pakistan, and as far south as Zanzibar. When its power declined within the 20th century, the sultanate came
under the influence of the uk . For over 300 years, the relations built between the 2 empires were supported
mutual benefits. the united kingdom recognized Oman's geographical importance as a trading hub that secured their trade lanes within the
Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean and guarded their empire within the Indian sub-continent. Historically, Muscat was the principal
trading port of the Persian Gulf region. Muscat was also among the foremost important trading ports of the Indian Ocean .
Sultan Qaboos bin Said al Said was the hereditary leader of the country, which is an absolute monarchy, from 1970 until his
death on 10 January 2020.
Oman may be a member of the United Nations , the Arab League , the Gulf Cooperation Council, the Non-Aligned Movement and therefore the
Organisation of Islamic Cooperation. it's sizeable oil reserves, ranking 25th globally. In 2010, the United Nations
Development Programme ranked Oman because the most improved nation within the world in terms of development during the preceding
40 years. a big portion of its economy involves tourism and trade of fish, dates and certain agricultural produce. Oman is
categorized as a high-income economy and ranks because the 69th most peaceful country within the world consistent with the worldwide Peace
Index.
Etymology
The origin of Oman's name is uncertain. It seems to be associated with Pliny the Elder's Omana and Ptolemy's Omanon, both probably
the ancient Sohar. the town or region is usually etymologized in Arabic from aamen or amoun,
History
Prehistory and ancient history
At Aybut Al Auwal, within the Dhofar Governorate of Oman, a site was discovered in 2011 containing quite 100 surface
scatters of stone tools, belonging to a regionally specific African lithic industry—the late Nubian Complex—known previously
only from the northeast and Horn of Africa. Two optically stimulated luminescence age estimates place the Arabian Nubian
Complex at 106,000 years old. This supports the proposition that early human populations moved from Africa into Arabia during
the Late Pleistocene.
In recent years known primarily from survey finds, Palaeolithic and Neolithic sites have come to light most on the eastern coast.
Main Palaeolithic sites include Saiwan-Ghunaim within the Barr al-Hikman. Archaeological remains are particularly numerous for
the Bronze Age Umm an-Nar and Wadi Suq periods. Sites like Bat show professional wheel-turned pottery, excellent handmade stone vessels, a metals industry and monumental architecture
. the first and Late Iron Ages show more differences than similarities to every other. Thereafter, until the approaching of the
Ibadhidya, little or nothing is understood .
During the 8th century BC, it's believed that the Yaarub, the descendant of Kahtan, ruled the whole Yemen, including Oman.
Wathil bin Himyar bin Abd-Shams-Saba bin Jashjub bin Yaarub later ruled Oman. believed by virtue of oral history that within the
6th century BC, the Achaemenids exerted control over the Omani peninsula, presumably ruling from a coastal centre like
Suhar. Central Oman has its own indigenous Samad Late Iron Age cultural assemblage named eponymously from Samad alShan. within the northern a part of the Oman Peninsula the Recent Pre-Islamic Period begins within the 3rd century BC and extends into
the 3rd A.D. century. Whether or not Persians brought south-eastern Arabian under their control may be a moot point, since the shortage of
Persian finds speak against this belief. M. Caussin de Percevel suggests that Shammir bin Wathil bin Himyar recognized the
authority of Cyrus over Oman in 536 B.C.
Sumerian tablets mentioned Oman as "Magan" and within the Akkadian language "Makan", a reputation which links Oman's ancient
copper resources. Mazoon, a Persian name wont to ask Oman's region, which was a part of the Sasanian Empire.
Arab settlement
Over centuries tribes from the west settled in Oman, making a living by fishing, farming, herding or stock breeding, and many
present day Omani families trace their ancestral roots to other parts of Arabia. Arab migration to Oman started from northernwestern and south-western Arabia and people who chose to settle had to compete with the indigenous population for the simplest
arable land. When Arab tribes began to migrate to Oman, there have been two distinct groups. One group, a segment of the Azd tribe
migrated from southwest of Arabia during a .D. 120 Other historians believe that Malik bin Fahm was the primary settler of Alazd. He
first settled in Qalhat. Malik, with an armed force of quite 6000 men and horses, fought against Marzban of the Sasanian
Empire within the battle of Salut in Oman and eventually defeated the Persia .
In the 7th century AD, Omanis came in touch with and accepted Islam. The conversion of Omanis to Islam is ascribed to Amr
ibn al-As, who was sent by the prophet Muhammad during the Expedition of Zaid ibn Haritha . Amer was dispatched to satisfy
with Jaifer and Abd, the sons of Julanda who ruled Oman. they seem to possess readily embraced Islam.
Imamate of Oman
Omani Azd wont to visit Basra for trade, which was a centre of Islam during the Umayyad empire. Omani Azd were granted
a section of Basra, where they might settle and attend their needs. Many of the Omani Azd who settled in Basra became wealthy
merchants and under their leader Muhallab bin Abi Sufrah began to expand the influence of power east towards Khorasan.
Ibadhi Islam originated in Basra by its founder Abdullah ibn Ibada round the year 650 CE, which the Omani Azd in Iraq
followed. Later, Alhajjaj, the governor of Iraq, came into conflict with the Ibadhis, which forced them bent Oman. Among
those who returned to Oman was the scholar Jaber bin Zaid. His return and therefore the return of the many other scholars greatly enhanced
the Ibadhi movement in Oman.
The first elective Imamate of Oman is believed to possess been established shortly after the autumn of the Umayyad Dynasty in
750/755 AD when Janah bin Abbada Alhinawi was elected. Other scholars claim that Janah bin Abbada served as a Wali under
Umayyad dynasty and later ratified the Imamate, while Julanda bin Masud was the primary elected Imam of Oman during a .D. 751. The
first Imamate reached its peak power within the ninth A.D. century. The Nabhanis ruled as muluk, or kings, while the Imams were
reduced to largely symbolic significance. The capital of the dynasty was Bahla. The Banu Nabhan controlled the trade
frankincense on the overland route via Sohar to the Yabrin oasis, then north to Bahrain, Baghdad and Damascus. The
mango-tree was introduced to Oman during the time of Nabhani dynasty, by ElFellah bin Muhsin. The Nabhani dynasty started
to deteriorate in 1507 when Portuguese colonisers captured the coastal city of Muscat, and gradually extended their control along
the coast up to Sohar within the north and right down to Sur within the southeast. Other historians argue that the Nabhani dynasty ended earlier
in A.D. 1435 when conflicts between the dynasty and Alhinawis arose, which led to the restoration of the elective Imamate.
Yaruba dynasty
The Ottoman Turks temporarily captured Muscat from the Portuguese in 1581 and held it until 1588. During the 17th century,
the Omanis were reunited by the Yaruba Imams. Nasir bin Murshid became the primary Yaarubah Imam in 1624, when he was
elected in Rustak. Nasir's energy and perseverance is believed to possess earned him the election. Imam Nasir succeeded in forcing
the Portuguese colonisers out of Oman. The Omanis over time established a maritime empire that later expelled the Portuguese
from East Africa , which became an Omani colony. In 1652, Zanzibar was captured from the Portuguese. Later on, Saif bin
Sultan, the Imam of Oman, pressed down the Swahili Coast. a serious obstacle to his progress was Fort Jesus, housing the
garrison of a Portuguese settlement at Mombasa. After a two-year siege, the fort fell to Saif bin Sultan in 1698. Thereafter the
Omanis easily ejected the Portuguese from other African coastal regions including Kilwa and Pemba. Saif bin Sultan occupied
Bahrain in 1700. Qeshm was captured in 1720. The rivalry within the house of Yaruba over power after the death of Imam
Sultan in 1718 weakened the dynasty. With the facility of the Yaruba Dynasty dwindling, Imam Saif bin Sultan II eventually
asked for help against his rivals from Nader Shah of Persia. A Persian force arrived in March 1737 to assist Saif. From their base at
Julfar, the Persian forces eventually rebelled against the Yaruba in 1743. The Persia colonised Oman for a brief period
until 1747.
18th and 19th centuries
After the decolonization of Oman from the Persians, Ahmed bin Sa'id Albusaidi in 1749 became the elected Imam of Oman,
with Rustaq as its capital. Since the Yaruba dynasty, the Omanis kept the elective system but, as long as the person is deemed
qualified, gave preference to a member of the ruling family. Following Imam Ahmed's death in 1783, his son, Said bin Ahmed
became the elected Imam. His son, Seyyid Hamed bin Said, overthrew the representative of the Imam in Muscat and obtained
the possession of Muscat fortress. Hamed ruled as "Seyyid". Afterwards, Seyyid Sultan bin Ahmed, the uncle of Seyyid Hamed,
took over power. Seyyid Said bin Sultan succeeded Sultan bin Ahmed. During the whole 19th century, additionally to Imam Said
bin Ahmed who retained the title until he died in 1803, Azzan bin Qais was the sole elected Imam of Oman. His rule started in
1868. However, British refused to simply accept Imam Azzan as a ruler. The refusal played an instrument in deposing Imam
Azzan in 1871 by a sultan who Britain deemed to be more acceptable.
Oman's Imam Sultan, defeated ruler of Muscat, was granted sovereignty over Gwadar, a neighborhood of recent day Pakistan. This
coastal city is found within the Makran region of what's now the far southwestern corner of Pakistan, near the present-day border
of Iran, at the mouth of the Gulf of Oman. After regaining control of Muscat, this sovereignty was continued via an appointed
wali .
The British empire was keen to dominate southeast Arabia to stifle the growing power of other European states and to curb the
Omani maritime power that grew during the 17th century. In 1798, the primary treaty between British Malay Archipelago Company and
Albusaidi family was signed by Sultan bin Ahmed. The treaty was to dam commercial competition of the French and therefore the Dutch
as well as obtain a concession to create a British factory at Bandar Abbas. A second treaty was signed in 1800, which stipulated
that a British representative shall reside at the port of Muscat and manage all external affairs with other states. British
government achieved predominating control over Muscat, which, for the foremost part, impeded competition from other nations.
0 comments: