Page 103 - UAE Truncal States

Chapter Two

At the turn of the century the Shihuh were estimated to number
about 21,500 people; this was almost certainly an over-estimate. 127
They are divided into two main sections, the Bani Hadiyah and the
Bani Shatair. Both sections are further divided, such as the
Kumzarah and Habus, and the latter is sometimes considered as a
separate tribe. Under the leadership of their muqaddam, the
subsections are probably more independent of the leaders of the two
main sections than would be the case in most other tribes of Oman.
The reason is probably the sheer physical problem of co-ordination
between the isolated communities. In order to gain the maximum
benefit from the meagre resources which the country offers, most
Shihuh families seasonally change their domicile. During the cooler
winter months, when the infrequent rainfall can be expected, they
live high up on the few fertile terraces on gentle slopes and shoulders
of the otherwise barren limestone mountains. There they have rough
stone houses, the floors of which are often dug into the ground. Such
winter settlements are often occupied just by one extended family; in
other cases a community of several related extended families forms a
larger settlement.128 Nearby are a few terraced fields for the
cultivation of wheal and barley. As far as is known there are no
springs anywhere in the mountains and valleys of Ru’us al Jibal, and
wells are not sunk because the limestone does not retain the little
water there is. Thus rainwater, stored in man-made underground
tanks and fed into the fields along channels, has to suffice for men,
beasts and crops during the winter months. In the vicinity of the
hamlets goats graze on the sparse vegetation of the slopes.
During the summer the entire family or village community moves
down to the coast into musaif; these are summer settlements
consisting of palm frond huts erected in the vicinity of date gardens
either on the coast north of Ra’s al Khaimah, or near Dibah, or in the
few wadi mouths of the northern Ru’us al Jibal.129 Some Shihuh go to
the shore nearest to their winter settlement and then proceed by boat
to their date gardens. During the height of the pearling industry
many Shihuh participated in the seasonal dive, but only as hired
hands on boats belonging to Ra’s al Khaimah, Rams or Sha'am. Very
few Shihuh live entirely off fishing, but many do go fishing during the
summer months while living on the coast. Dostal’s research into the
seasonal movement, tahwll, and the economic pattern of the people
inhabiting the Musandam Peninsula also verified that there are no
purely beduin sections of the Shihuh. Almost the entire population

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