History of Oman

The history of Oman describes the development of the country of Oman .

antiquity

In southeastern Arabia , as early as the 3rd millennium BC, Chr. Advanced cultures. The most important of these is the Umm-an-Nar culture (2700–2000 BC), which was named after a site near Abu Dhabi and which expanded into what is now the United Arab Emirates and Nordoman . She maintained close trade contacts with the Sumerians in Mesopotamia and with the Indus culture in today's Pakistan . In the Sumerian tradition, the country Magan (also: Makan , Makkan ) is mentioned as an important trading partner , which, according to the current state of research, comprised the area of ​​today's Nordoman. Magan was an important stopover for the trade between Sumerians and the Indus culture.

One of the so-called beehive graves of al-Ain from the 3rd millennium BC. Chr.

The foundation for the Nachal fortress was laid during the Sassanid occupation.

The country was also of great importance in the trading system of that time because of its extensive copper mining , since copper was a base metal for the production of bronze . At the height of copper production between 2200 BC. BC and 1900 BC 2000 to 4000 tons of copper are said to have been produced. In addition, stones were also exported from Magan. Gudea von Lagasch reports on imports of diorite from Magan for the manufacture of statues. The trade was carried out with ships that had a loading capacity of up to 20 t. Although much is known about the commercial significance of Magan, little is known about the country's political organization. But there seems to have been at least a principality or kingdom, since Naram-Sin of Akkad around 2200 BC. BC reported of a victory over King Manium of Magan.

Around 1800 BC BC Magan lost its importance with the fall of the Indus culture and the end of direct trade connections to Mesopotamia. Copper continued to be mined and exported, but Dilmun / Bahrain now attracted the middleman . At this time, Magan disappears from the Sumerian sources. One reason was probably that Mesopotamia's copper needs were increasingly being met by Cyprus .

Introducing the irrigation system of the Aflaj , conquered in the 6th century BC. BC first the Persians the coast of Oman. In the 2nd century AD , the Arab tribe of the Azd, who came from Yemen , drove the Parthians out of the country and settled in Oman. After the coastal areas were later ruled again by the Persian Sassanids , under whom Mazun / Suhar rose to become an important trading center in the Gulf region, the Azd empire with the center of Nizwa was subjugated by the Muslims in the 7th century . Belonging to the Azd Dschulanda Dynasty held under the Caliph dynasties of the Umayyads and Abbasids , however, until the end of the 8th century in power.

Early Islam

The Islamic history of Oman begins with the arrival of an Azd delegation in Medina and the dispatch of the companion of the Prophet Amr ibn al-ʿĀs to Oman, which is dated between 627 and 632. After the death of Muhammad in 632 there was an uprising against the Islamic government in Medina in the Omani town of Dibā, which was led by Laqīt ibn Mālik from the Azd tribe. The Islamic sources report that he himself acted like a prophet. In the 8th century, the Kharijite teaching of the Ibadites spread in Oman , the first imam of which came from the Julanda dynasty and was killed in 751 as part of a punitive expedition by the Abbasid caliph as-Saffah .

The second Ibadite Imamate (793-893)

In 793 the Ibadites established a second imamate in Oman, which existed until 893 and at times also included the Hadramaut . The Ibadite imams who ruled Oman at this time included Muhammad ibn Abī ʿAffān (r. 793–795), al-Wārith ibn Kaʿb (r. 795-807), Ghassān ibn ʿAbdallāh al-Yahmadī (r. 808– 823), ʿAbd al-Malik ibn Humaid (r. 823-840) and al-Muhannā ibn Jaifar (r. 840-851) and as-Salt ibn Mālik (r. 851-886). During the reign of Imam as-Salt there were violent political conflicts in Oman, which finally led to the deposition of as-Salts in 886 and the installation of Rāschid ibn an-Nadr by Mūsā ibn Mūsā, the leading scholars of the Banū-Sama family . Two scholars who disagreed with the dismissal of as-Salt ibn Mālik, Ibn Chumais al-Charūsī and Abū Qahtān al-Hajjari, wrote political pamphlets during this period in which they defended as-Salt's claim to the imamate with historical arguments . These works are important sources on the early Islamic history of Oman.

During Rāschid's reign (886–890), the political conflicts between the two camps intensified and took on the character of a tribal war. The followers of Rāschid regarded themselves as Northern Arabs and named themselves Nizāriten after their ancestors Nizār ibn Maʿadd, his opponents, who were led by the Banū Hināʾ, saw themselves as Southern Arabs and accordingly referred to themselves as Yamanites. After Mūsā ibn Mūsā had deposed Rāschid in 890 and exchanged it for the Imam ʿAzzān ibn Tamīm, the political constellation changed. Opposition to the Imamate now came from the Nizāritic party. With al-Hauwārī ibn ʿAbdallāh they chose their own imam, who resided in Suhar. In 891 there was a battle between the two camps at a place called al-Qāʿ, which ended with a defeat for the Nizāriten. Two sheikhs of the Nizāriten then turned to the Abbasids for help. These sent 893 troops to Oman and put an end to the second Ibadit imamate.

Oman in the Middle Ages

In the early 10th century, the Qarmatians were active in Oman and from here they threatened the Baghdad Caliphate. Since the center of the caliphate shifted to Iraq through the establishment of Baghdad , the Gulf region, and with it Oman, has regained importance in international trade. From the 8th to the 10th century, Suhar was one of the most important trading ports in the Islamic world. The trade extended to East Africa and rear India , as well as before the Huang Chao uprising (approx. 878) regularly to China , with Chinese ships also coming to Oman and the Gulf. A severe blow to the Omani sea trade was the destruction of Suhar by the Persian Buyids (965), who wanted to eliminate competition for the ports of Basra and Siraf they ruled . Along with Suhar, other coastal areas of Oman came under the rule of the Buyids around 972, who established the indigenous governor dynasty of the Mukramids here around 1000 , while the Ibadi imams continued to rule in the interior.

Hisn Tamah Nabhani fortress in Bahla

After the Mukramids were deposed as a result of a revolt in 1042, the direct Buyid rule over Oman was dissolved in an uprising of the Ibadites around 1050, whereupon the country was conquered by the Kerman-Seljuq Qawurd . The Seljuq rule (around 1064–1153) was followed by that of the native Nabhani dynasty (1153–1436). No imams are known from the time of the Nabhani Maliks . In the late 12th century the Atabegs of Fars (the Salghurids ) intervened in Oman, Suhar was destroyed again in 1225, and after 1250 the northern coast came under the rule of the Princes of Hormuz , who established a chain of fortified bases and beginning with the arrival of the Portuguese controlled the golf in the 16th century . The sources again show imams as rulers of Oman in the early 15th century, although the Beni Nabhan exerted considerable influence until the 17th century. Around 1500, Muscat took the place of Suhar.

The Dominance of Portugal and the Rise of the Yaruba Dynasty

In 1507 the Portuguese came to Oman after opening the sea ​​route to India in 1498 . They conquered Muscat, Sur and Suhar, but had to defend themselves against the Ottomans , the English , the Dutch and the Persians .

Finally, in 1650, the Yaruba dynasty expelled the Portuguese after the unification of the country. Oman then quickly developed into a major sea power in the Indian Ocean and began to drive the Portuguese out of their East African colonies. From their bases in East Africa, the Omani traders carried on a profitable slave trade with the Islamic world. When a civil war broke out due to power struggles in the Yaruba dynasty (1720–1746), the Persians tried to conquer the country, but were repulsed by Ahmad ibn Said . In 1746 he founded the Said dynasty, which is still ruling today .

Oman under the Said Dynasty

Under the Said dynasty, Oman was pacified and parts of East Africa were subdued again. Once again, Oman rose to become a major sea power in the Indian Ocean. Under Said ibn Sultan (1804-1856) the focus of the empire shifted to the economically prosperous coast of East Africa (slave trade, cultivation of cloves ), with Zanzibar as the new residence of the rulers.

After power struggles within the dynasty, Great Britain achieved the division of the empire into the Sultanate of Oman and the Sultanate of Zanzibar in 1861 . This led to the economic decline of Oman, as the customs revenue from the African ports was lost. Its merchant fleet could not compete with the new European steamers, the slave trade was banned. As a result, Oman became dependent on Great Britain, which secured exclusive rights in Oman through contracts of 1891, which were not completely repealed until 1958.

Time of isolation

The decline of the economy and the impoverishment of the country led to the stagnation of society in many areas. This was exacerbated by the deliberate policy of isolation of the sultans, especially Said ibn Taimur (1932–1970). In addition, the country was divided between the Sultan in Muscat and the elected Imams of the Ibadites in Nizwa. After a tribal uprising under the Imam (1915), a peace treaty, the Treaty of Sib , was signed between both parties in 1920 . The peace lasted until 1954 when a new imam, with the support of Egypt and Saudi Arabia, sparked a new uprising and sought independence. With the help of the British, however, Said ibn Taimur succeeded in subjugating the rebels in 1959 and reuniting the country.

On September 8, 1958, the Omani enclave Gwadar in Balochistan was ceded to Pakistan since 1792 , after Aga Khan III. had paid three million pounds for it.

In the 1960s, oil production developed into an important economic factor.

During this time, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Oman , especially in the southern province of Dhofar, appeared with numerous guerrilla actions. She tried, supported by the People's Republic of Yemen (see: South Yemen ) since 1970 , to push through socialist ideas. The period of isolation and stagnation could only be overcome with the fall of Said ibn Taimur by his son Qabus ibn Said (1970). In 1964 there was a revolution in Zanzibar against the Arab upper class of the country. In January 1964, between 5,000 and 20,000 Zanzibaris of Arab origin were massacred. This led to a wave of refugees in Oman.

→ See also History of Dhofar and Persian Gulf Residency .

modernization

The new ruler Qabus ibn Said initiated the modernization of the state (in Oman it is itself called the "Omani Renaissance") and society, although he retained his absolute rule.

With the help of oil revenues was achieved in a few decades the development of a modern infrastructure , a modern education, health, etc. In December 1972, a failed coup attempt mainly in Dhofar operating Popular Front for the Liberation of Oman and the Arabian Gulf PFLOAG . In 1975 the guerrilla movement was pacified. Concerned for the security of the country after the Islamic revolution in Iran and the Soviet intervention in Afghanistan in 1979, Qabus signed a military assistance pact with the USA in 1980, which in return granted the Americans military bases in Oman. In 1981 the Gulf Cooperation Council was founded with the neighboring Arab states.

In the first Gulf War 1980–1988 between Iraq and Iran, Oman remained neutral. Oman was part of the international alliance that fought against Iraq on behalf of the United Nations in the Second Gulf War in 1991. In 1995 the country officially started trade relations with Israel . In 1997, Oman froze these relations after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu resumed settlement construction, including in Har Choma .

In 2005, Oman, along with other states, was hit by cyclone Gonu , which caused severe damage in the capital and killed 50 people nationwide.

Women's suffrage

Since 1994 women have had the right to vote and stand for election, limited to certain seats in the Consultative Assembly . Equal rights for women and men were enshrined in Article 17 of the 1996 Constitution. In 2003, universal active and passive suffrage at the national level was granted in good time for the 2003 elections, thus introducing women's suffrage . In October 2003, in the first general election, in which all Omanis over 21 were allowed to vote, two women were elected to parliament. Before that there had been appointments of women after a limited election:

1. Consultative Assembly (Majlis asch-Shura): Two women, 1997. Both were appointed in 1997 after a restricted election: 50,000 Omanis, including women for the first time, elected a group of nominees for the Consultative Assembly. The Sultan appointed 82 delegates from among the elected. Both women were re-elected in the next election, which allowed for an expanded electorate.

2nd State Assembly (Majlis ad-Dawla): Four women

No woman was elected in 2007, only one in 2012.

See also

• List of rulers of Oman

literature

• Isam al-Rawas: Oman in early Islamic history . Ithaca Press, Reading 2000.
• Abdulrahman al-Salimi and Michael Jansen (eds.): Portugal in the Sea of ​​Oman. Religion and Politics , Research on Documents; 16 volumes with 7680 pages in 3 slip cases. Verlag Philipp von Zabern, Darmstadt 2012, ISBN 978-3-8053-4374-9 .
• Michael Teupel: Oman - The Sultanate . Traveldiary, Hamburg 2006.
• John C. Wilkinson: The Imamate Tradition of Oman . Cambridge University Press, Cambridge u. a. 1987.

Web links

Commons : History of Oman  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Cf. al-Rawas 36-41.
2. ↑ Cf. al-Rawas 42.
3. ↑ See al-Rawas 129-163.
4. ↑ See Wilkinson 1987, 79, 173-175.
5. ↑ Cf. al-Rawas 4-5.
6. ↑ See Wilkinson 10.
7. ↑ Al-Rawas 190-197.
8. ↑ Oman.org
9. ↑ Sergey Plekhanov: A Reformer on the Throne: Sultan Qaboos Bin Said Al Said. Trident Press, 2004, ISBN 1-90072-470-7 , pp. 91ff.
10. ^ Arabs freeze relations with Israel. In: welt.de . March 31, 1997, accessed October 7, 2018 . 
11. ↑ ^{a b c d} - New Parline: the IPU's Open Data Platform (beta). In: data.ipu.org. Retrieved October 5, 2018 . 
12. ↑ ^{a b} Jad Adams: Women and the Vote. A world history. Oxford University Press, Oxford 2014, ISBN 978-0-19-870684-7 , page 426.
13. ^ ^{A b} Mart Martin: The Almanac of Women and Minorities in World Politics. Westview Press Boulder, Colorado, 2000, p. 293.