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'Gazetteer of Arabia Vol. II' [‎1182] (231/688)

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The record is made up of 1 volume (341 folios). It was created in 1917. It was written in English. The original is part of the British Library: India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. Records and Private Papers Documents collected in a private capacity. .

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1182 MASlRAH
The inhabitants of Maslrah subsist on fish and turtle which they catch themselves,
on dates from 'Oman Proper and Batinah, and on rice from India which is brought by
boats from Sur, When provisions run short they obtain dates from Mah5t. The
women and children eat shell-fishes. Domestic animals are sheep and goats, which are
not numerous on account of the scarcity of pasture ; also dogs, cats and fowls.
In the monsoon the "northern end of Maslrah island is (or was till lately) frequented
by tribesmen from the mainland who came, under pretext of fishing, to indulge in wreck
ing and other nefarious practices ; among these were the A1 Bu 'Isa Bedouins of the
Ja'alan district. The massacre of the crew of the " Baron Inverdale " at Jidufah in
1904 was committed by these summer immigrants.
The exports of Masirah are tortoise-shells, shark-fins and dried fish, all of which
go to Bombay in Sur boats ; and the principal import is cotton cloth brought by the same
vessels. The people extract porpoise oil. The statement that they deal in ambergris
is now incorrect: none has been found for over 40 years.
The following article brings out some additional information regarding Maslrah island.
(South extreme, latitude 20° 10' N., Long. 58° 38' E.) From its southern end,
Masirah island is about 36 miles long in a north-north-easterly direction by 10 miles
wide, and has an area of nearly 200 square miles. It is from 8 to 12 miles distant from
the mainland, between which and it are many islets, shallow banks, and rocky patches,
leaving only narrow navigable channels.
The island is generally of a hilly aspect, but low in the centre and at the northern
. extreme ; see view on plan. The hills form clusters of small peaks, the greatest height
being 620 feet and the average about 400 feet. Approaching the island from the north
ward or north-eastward, the most conspicuous hill is Jabal Madhrub, a rounded hill on
the northern range 620 feet high and standing amidst a cluster of lesser hills, one of
which about 1| miles, north-eastwards of Jabal Madhrub, is named Sharp peak, from
its peculiar form. Nearly all the hills are volcanic formation, except some table land in
the vicinitv Has Yai, the eastern extreme of the island.
The island itself is barren and sterile producing no vegetation beyond two or thre-j
date groves and a few pumpkins. The animals found are a few gazelles, hyaenas, jackals
and wild asses.
Copper ore of a poor quality exists in the southern part of the island near Jabal Sawir ;
the remains of smelting furnaces, said to have been used by the Persians many years
ago, are still to be seen.
The depth is on the eastern side of the island are irregular as regards distance from the
shore, but increase gradually to seaward. There are several shallow patches at soma
distance from the shore, as hereafter described.
Population.—Produce. —The population of Mas'rah island is scanty, amounting
probably to about 1,000 souls, chiefly of the Jannabah tribe, and mostly very poor,
subsisting chiefly on fish, and formerly thought to be not over friendly to Europeans ;
they have no cattle, but possess a few dhows and many fishing-boats. Fish of very
excellent quality are plentiful all round the island. Sharks abound, and are caught for
their fins and tails, which are dried and exported to Masqat for the Chinese markets.
Turtles are very numerous between Mas'rah and the mainland, but more particularly
in the neighbourhood of Ghubbat Hash'sh. There are two kinds, the edible, probably
the Chelone mydas, and the inedible C. imbricata, or hawk's bill turtle, both common
to the Indian Ocean. The latter, or inedible turtle as it is termed from its being so much
less fleshly and fat, yields the turtle shell of commerce. The inedible turtle is much
scarcer than the edible one. The carapaces of both species are used by the Arab
fishermen for fireplace in their boats.
Ambergris is sometimes found at Maslrah, as well as on the opposite coast. The sperm
whale is common, also several species of cetacea, and myriads of cuttle fish and capha-
lopods of all kinds, on which the whale feeds.
Climate. —The climate of Masira is generally healthy. In the north-east monsoon the
thermometer ranges from 68° to 78° Fahrenheit. Rain is very uncommon, but judging
from the enormous water-courses visible in all parts of the island, it must fall heavily at
times.
East and north coast of Maslrah . —Has Abu Rasas (Lat. 20° 10' N. Long. 58° 38' E.),
the southern point of Masirah island, is a low rocky sharp point, having Jabal Sawir, a
conspicuous conical hill 468 feet high, about 2 miles north-eastward of it.

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Content

Volume II of III of the Gazetteer of Arabia. The Gazetteer is alphabetically-arranged and this volume contains entries K through to R.

The Gazetteer is an alphabetically-arranged compendium of the tribes, clans and geographical features (including towns, villages, lakes, mountains and wells) of Arabia that is contained within three seperate bound volumes. The entries range from short descriptions of one or two sentences to longer entries of several pages for places such as Iraq and Yemen.

A brief introduction states that the gazetteer was originally intended to deal with the whole of Arabia, "south of a line drawn from the head of the Gulf of 'Aqabah, through Ma'an, to Abu Kamal on the Euphrates, and to include Baghdad and Basrah Wilayats" and notes that before the gazetteer could be completed its publication was postponed and that therefore the three volumes that now form this file simply contain "as much of the MSS. [manuscript] as was ready at the time". It further notes that the contents have not been checked.

Extent and format
1 volume (341 folios)
Physical characteristics

Foliation: This volume's foliation system is circled in pencil, in the top right corner of the recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. of each folio.

Written in
English in Latin script
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'Gazetteer of Arabia Vol. II' [‎1182] (231/688), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/MIL/17/16/2/2, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100023727633.0x000020> [accessed 28 March 2024]

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