|
The Sultanate of Oman occupies the
southeastern tip of the Arabian Peninsula
with 1700km (1062 miles) of coastline stretching along the Indian Ocean
and the Arabian Gulf. It is bordered by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the
west and the Republic of Yemen to the south. The United Arab Emirates lies
to the northwest of Oman and to the east lies the Arabian Sea and the Gulf
of Oman.
There are many different opinions as to how Oman gained its name. Various
sources link it to the Qahtani tribe of Oman, others to the Arabic
adjective, 'aamen', which means 'a settled man'. The early Roman
historian, Yalainous (23 - 79AD) was one of the first to acknowledge a
city named Omana, which is also mentioned in the writings of Ptolemy.
Oman has also been referred to as Mazoun and Magan, perhaps a direct
reference to Oman's history of shipbuilding (a magan is a type of ship's
chassis). Indeed, Oman was renowned for its role in ocean navigation by
the magnitude of its ships and also by its prolific trade in copper, stone
and timber to the Mesopotamian cities. Due to its
strategic position lying on some of the world's most
important trade routes, the ports of Sohar and Muttrah have held great
prominence among spice, edible oil and textile trading merchants. By
around 300AD, Oman was considered one of the world's wealthiest countries
due to its abundance of frankincense, which, at one time, was more
valuable than gold.
 Muscat
has been the capital of Oman for the past two centuries, since the third
Al Bu Said ruler established his residence there in the 1780s. Until 1970
its name was woven into that of the country, "Muscat and Oman". A name
with so much fame, one feels, should belong to a sizable place. Yet in the
case of Muscat this is not so; the old town is less than a kilometre long
by half a kilometre wide.
It is no less impressive for all that: an unforgettable little gem of a
place tightly enclosed in its rocky bay by barren brown-black mountains.
And the bay itself is as picturesque as the town, a horseshoe of deep blue
water surrounded by rocky promontories and islets, all but hidden from the
open sea. "There was something soothing and magical about that old city at
night", wrote James Morris 30 years ago.
Al-Qurum in Muscat is thought to be one of the oldest inhabited regions in
the Arabian Peninsula. Archaeological digs have found evidence of villages
which have been dated at around 6000BC, indicating the existence of
communities since the Stone Age. Other excavations have unearthed dwelling
sites, tombs and kilns for firing pottery, the remains of which date back
to 3400-3000BC.
|
|
