'Gazetteer of Arabia Vol. II' [‎1399] (460/688)

'OMAN SULTANATE
1399-
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sea: connected with it is a rocky table-land which forms a background to the greater part
of the bay at some miles from the coast. « t-.- 01, i, +-+
Eas Sauqirah to Eds Sharbatdt^-Ftom Ras Sauqirah to Ras Sharbatat, a distance
of 24 miles, the coast presents to the sea a noble lime-stone cliff, 600 feet in height, falling
precipitously to the water's edge and having a table-land behind its summit.
Eds Sharbatdt to Eds Nvs.—From Ras Sharbatat to Ras Nus again the coast forms
a slight bay, 82 miles in extent, which contains the Kuria Muria islands, described else-
where under their own name. With a few intervals the coast in this part also consists of
cliffs supporting table-land 500 to 800 feet high ; they are throughout of pale-brown lime
stone rock except at Ras ShuwSmiyah, about the middle of the bay, where there is
a remarkable outburst of igneous rock corresponding doubtless to the Kuria Muna islands
which lie opposite it. Ras Qarwao, 6 miles west of Ras Sharbatat, is a headland nearly
insulated by a lake at the inner end of which the water is fresh ; a few Jannabah fishermen
reside there in caves j and hares, foxes, partridge, plover, duck and widgeon are said to
be found near the lagoon. Near the west end of the bay are Wadis Raikhut and Hasik.
Wadi A seasonal or intermittent watercourse, or the valley in which it flows. Raikhut is a valley opening on the sea 12 miles north of Ras Nus, where there is
a spring of fresh and a lake of brackish water ; it appears to be thickly wooded and well
watered, is said to come down from the far interior, and shows signs of violent torrent
action * Hasik is a miserable village at the mouth of a valley thickly wooded with small
trees - 'it is near the head of a bay of the same name three miles south-east of Wadi A seasonal or intermittent watercourse, or the valley in which it flows.
Raikhut and ten miles north of Ras, Kiis. What was once an inlet of the sea is now
a marsh contained by a sand bar, but there is still a well of brackish water. There are
considerable ruins here and tradition relates that the place was once a thriving town ;
it is said to have been ruined by pirates from the coast of Trucial r Oman, who earned off
the women and children into slavery at the beginning of the 19th century. The present
inhabitants are some 15 families of various tribes ; they are very poor, subsist alomst
entirelv on fish and are nearly destitute of clothing. They have about 300 sheep and
goats ; there are no boats, but vessels from Sur call occasionally. There are cocoanuts
here and a few dates. . s „ a
Inhabitants —As will have been observed, there are no places of any importance except
Lashkarah and Mahot, on the whole south-eastern coast of 'Oman. Such villages aa
exist are mostly small and fluctuating, inhabited by migratory fisher-folk who dispose
of shark-fins to passing vessels and obtain in exchange the dates, grain and cloth of which
thev stand in need. Many of these fishermen have no boats, and between Ras-ar-Ruwais
and Hasik they commonly put to sea on a float made of a goat or sheep-skin ; after this
has been inflated they tie the hind and forelegs together with string and sitting on the
string with the skin in front of them paddle their way with their hands to the fishing
ground. As many as twenty men have been seen to enter the water at once in this
manner and proceed two miles out to sea. ,,, n ,
Exclusive of places belonging to the Ja'alan district the settled population of the south
eastern coast of 'Oman is extremely small in proportion to its extent. An estimate
gives only 1,500 souls, distributed as follows:— , . . A , ...
Ras Jibsh to Mishayu, 60 families ; Mahot, 50 families; Bahr-al-Hadn, 40 families ;
Ras 'Sharbatat to Ras Nus, 30 families ; and Nasirah island, 120 families.
The Bedouins of the district, whose number is uncertain, are chiefly Jannabah, A1
Wahibah, and 'Awamir.
0M The Suhanate of 'Oman is not, as explained in the article on 'Oman, co-extensive with
'Oman in the geographical sense ; for Trucial 'Oman, the Baraimi Oasis and the Ma-
hadhah tract, though they belong to 'Oman, are not included among the Sultan s pos
sessions. On the other hand the Gwadar District on the coast of Baluchistan and the
Dhufar District on the southern coast of Arabia are under the Sultan's govemmenb
and form part of his Sultanate. In the present article, except in the general paragraphs
on administration, etc., the district of Gwadar, which is fully dealt with elsewhere
under its own name, will be left out of consideration, and our attention will be con
fined to the Sultan's Arabian possessions. _
Boundaries.—The dominions of the Sultan of 'Oman, if taken as comprising not only
regions under his direct government but also independent or semi-independent localities
where his influence is strong er than that of any other recognised authority, extend along
' A. sketch of the mouth of this valley will be found in Admiralty Chart No.. 11.
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