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'Handbook of Arabia. Vol. I. 1917' [279] (288/748)
The record is made up of 1 volume (371 folios). It was created in 1916. It was written in English and Arabic. 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. .
Transcription
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DISTRICTS
279
The climate is unhealthy. In the monsoon tribesmen and Bedouins
from the mainland frequent the N. end of the island with the object
of wrecking ; in 1904, at Jidufah, they massacred the crew of the
Baron Inverdale.
2, Dhofdr
In its widest sense, as a separate district of the Oman Sultanate,
the term Dhofar is employed for the whole coastal tract, from Has
Nus westward to a point beyond the village of Kharifot. Used in
this sense it has a length of 134 miles and a maximum breadth
inland, across the Dhofar plain, of 20 miles ; it consists in the main
of barren hills, at no great distance from the sea, forming an irregular
and discontinuous range known as Samhdn. More properly
the term denotes the maritime plain between the Samhan hills and
the sea, from the Khor Rori westward to Ras Risut, a distance of
some 30 miles. In a still more restricted sense it is applied to the
villages Hafah and Salalah, which together contain two-thirds of
the population of the plain. There is no large harbour in Dhofar,
and landing is difficult because of the surf. The bays of Murbat and
Risut afford good anchorage for small vessels in the NE. and SW.
monsoons respectively ; but only fishing-boats, and practically no
sea-going vessels, are owned in Dhofar. The most valuable export
is frankincense from the Samhan hills, which is carried to Bombay
in native boats. The seasons are here regulated chiefly by the
monsoons. The SW. monsoon, which brings rain, arrives about
June 11, and is sometimes preceded for 10 days by a severe gale
from the S. or SE. In December and January the climate is
pleasant.
Of the two great tribes of the district, the Qaras are found chiefly
in the Samhan hills, and speak a language of their own. The A1
Kathir, occurring both in the hills and on the plain, are said to
speak an Arabic dialect which differs considerably from that of the
Persian Gulf
The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran.
. The villagers are agriculturists, but indolent; the
blood-feud flourishes, and the population continues to decrease, in
spite of efforts to introduce a more stable system of administration
and control.
The district is ruled by a Vali appointed by the Sultan of Oman.
The revenue from sea-customs (about $5,000 a year), (esti
mated at $15,000 a year), and from animals (generally received in
kind) only suffices to cover expenses of government. The military
force normally consists of from 50 to 200 askaris, or armed levies,
most of them raised locally and paid from the local revenues. The
About this item
- Content
This volume is A Handbook of Arabia, Volume I, General (Admiralty War Staff, Intelligence Department: May, 1916) and contains geographical and political information of a general character concerning the Arabian Peninsula. The volume was prepared on behalf of the Admiralty and War Office, from sources, including native information obtained for the purpose of compiling the volume, since the outbreak of the First World War. Separate chapters are devoted to each of the districts or provinces of the Arabian Peninsula and include information on the physical character, as well as social and political surveys.
The volume includes a note on official use, title page, and a 'Note' on the compilation of the volume. There is a page of 'Contents' that includes the following sections:
- Chapter 1: Physical Survey;
- Chapter 2: Social Survey;
- Chapter 3: The Bedouin Tribes: A. Northern Tribes, B. Tribes of the Central West, C. Tribes of the Central South, D. Tribes of the Central East, Supplement: Non-Bedouin Nomads;
- Chapter 4: Hejaz;
- Chapter 5: Asir;
- Chapter 6: Yemen;
- Chapter 7: Aden and Hadhramaut: A. Aden and the Interior, B. Hadhramaut;
- Chapter 8: Oman: A. The sultanate of Oman, B. Independent Oman;
- Chapter 9: The Gulf Coast: A. The Sultanate of Koweit [Kuwait], B. Hasa, C. Bahrain, D. El-Qatar, E. Trucial Oman A name used by Britain from the nineteenth century to 1971 to refer to the present-day United Arab Emirates. ;
- Chapter 10: Nejd;
- Chapter 11: Jebel Shammar;
- Chapter 12: The Northern Nefūd and Dahanah Belts;
- Chapter 13: Settled Tribes of the North-West;
- Chapter 14: Settled Tribes of the West;
- Chapter 15: Settled Tribes of the South;
- Chapter 16: Settled Tribes of the Centre;
- Appendix: Note of Topographical and Common Terms;
- Index;
- Plates.
The front of the volume includes a 'List of Maps' and a 'Note on the Spelling of Proper Names'. Maps contained in this volume are:
- Map 1: Arabia: Districts and Towns;
- Map 2: Orographical Features of Arabia;
- Map 3: Land Surface Features of Arabia;
- Map 4: Tribal Map of Arabia.
The volume also contains fifteen plates of photographs and sketches by Captain William Henry Irvine Shakespear, Douglas Carruthers, Captain Gerard Leachman, Dr Julius Euting, George Wyman Bury, and Samuel Barrett Miles.
- Extent and format
- 1 volume (371 folios)
- Arrangement
The volume is arranged in chapters. There is a contents page, list of maps, alphabetical index, and list of plates.
- Physical characteristics
Foliation: There is a foliation sequence, which 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. It begins on the front cover, on number 1, and ends on the last of various maps which are inserted at the back of the volume, on number 371.
- Written in
- English and Arabic in Latin script View the complete information for this record
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'Handbook of Arabia. Vol. I. 1917' [279] (288/748), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/20/E84/1, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100037114036.0x000059> [accessed 3 January 2025]
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Copyright: How to use this content
- Reference
- IOR/L/PS/20/E84/1
- Title
- 'Handbook of Arabia. Vol. I. 1917'
- Pages
- front, back, spine, edge, head, tail, front-i, i-r:i-v, 1:381, 384:726, ii-r:ii-v, ii-r:ii-v, back-i
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence