Dhofar’s Nomads: How Oman’s Renaissance Changed a Way of Life Forever - Couverture rigide

Vogler-Fiesser, Gisela; Al Mahri, Mussallem Hassan

Couverture rigide

ISBN 10 : 1908531738 ISBN 13 : 9781908531735

Editeur : Nomad Publishing, 2023

Synopsis

Dhofar s Nomads bridges two images of Oman: the one passed to us through the renowned travelogues of Wilfrid Thesiger and his fe ted fellow explorers of the Arabian Peninsula in the 20th century, and the less familair version of the same story as expressed by the Omani population who lived through this period. This other side of the coin is locked in an oral tradition that has not yet found sufficient expression in Western descriptions. This is the account of a nomad boy whose life story mirrors the rapid social and economical changes experienced by almost all of the pastoral people of Oman. Mussallem s personal account maps the tensions and challenges encountered by the nomadic population of Dhofar as it went through a process of rapid modernisation during the Omani Renaissance. Spell-binding and informative throughout, with surprises and twists for even the most experienced student of Oman s history, this charming story is essential reading for an understanding of Oman today. The accession of Sultan Qaboos bin Sa id to the throne in 1970 was a watershed in the recent history of Oman. The rapid change in social and economic conditions that followed was a formidable challenge to traditional ways of life that had remained immutable through many generations. The Sultan s reforms directly affected many Omanis born in the 1950s and 1960s. Their often harsh experience of a childhood in the footsteps of their fathers gradually gave way to a relatively prosperous present. Mussallem Hassan Al Mahri is one such eyewitness to the Omani Renaissance. Growing up in a family of pastoral nomads in Dhofar, Mussallem was one of the first of his tribe to be educated in the newly-established schools. Up until that point indigenous knowledge had been passed down within the tribal unit from one generation to another. Mussallem s father, who like thousands of others had to migrate to neighbouring countries in pursuit of work in order to support his family, wisely recognised the advantages his children would gain from a modern education. After 1970 nomadism in the traditional sense was soon no longer viable. New opportunities were opening at this time to Mussallem, gradually transforming him from nomadic boy into a city dweller and eventually into an entrepreneur in tourism.

A propos du livre

À propos de l'auteur

Gisela Vogler- Fiesser is a German art historian and physicist by academic background, and has been visiting Salalah, Oman, regularly since 2013. Her interest in anthropology and the study of heritage and tradition has resulted in publications ranging from a trilingual rendition of a well-known Gaelic poem Eilean Na h- Oige / Island of Youth in 1985 through to her most recent book, A Harris Way of Life (2002), following the work of Marion Campbell, the Harris Tweed weaver who did so much to preserve the Hebridean craft into the modern age. Gisela s passion captures a unique oral record of Salalah s recent history which might otherwise be lost to future generations of Omanis. Mussallem Hassan Al Mahri grew up in a family of pastoral nomads in the Dhofar region of Oman. Aged nine, he and his father left their traditional mountain habitat and moved to the regional capital, Salalah, where he studied at the Sa'idiyah school before being admitted in 1973 to the Sultan Qaboos Boarding School for Boys, a prestigious project to support such migrating families. Mussallem went on to work for the Omani Land Force, and then the Ministry of Defence, while still continuing his education at evening school, going on to study English at the British Council in Salalah and later French at the French Institute. In 2007 Mussallem set up his own business, the Arabian Sand Tours, offering with a team of guides a wide range of guided tours.

Détails de l'édition

• Éditeur: Nomad Publishing
• Date d'édition: 2023
• Langue: anglais
• ISBN 10: 1908531738
• ISBN 13: 9781908531735
• Reliure: Relié
• Nombre de pages: 190
• Coordonnées du fabricant: non disponible
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