Page 104 - UAE Truncal States_Neat

The Tribal Structure of Society

moves twice a year; because of Ihe scarcity of water in the mountains
during the summer months crops cannot be grown and neither man
nor beast can live there.
Doslal also found that in this poor region any surplus production
is offered firstly to the neighbours. Only if this surplus is not required
by any of the communities within reach is it taken to the market at
Khasab, Ra’s al Khaimah or Dibah. A surplus of dales is produced
most years, and goats are also one of the few items from which
Shihuh families can earn cash; wheal and barley never have been
grown in such quantities that they can be exported.
Since the small terraced fields which a family owns in the
mountains and the date gardens on the coast form the precious
narrow base of its existence, such properly is not lightly given away
to other families through marriage. Therefore the custom of bint
'amm marriages is even more rigidly adhered to among the Shihuh
than among most other Arab tribes.130 The intrusion of foreigners
who might damage the water cisterns and terraces is met with
suspicion and even hostility.
By far the larger part of the Shihuh and Dhahuriyln do not reside
within the territory of the former Trucial States, but are subjects of
the Sultan of Oman. Because they dominate a strategically important i
enclave of the Sultanate of Oman, because of the economic necessity
to come down to the coast, and because of tribal bonds with Shihuh
who reside in Ra’s al Khaimah, Sharjah and Fujairah, they have
throughout most periods of recent history been the cause of
numerous incidents. In very recent years the number of Shihuh who
live in the United Arab Emirates has increased because they could
find work even as near to home as Ra’s al Khaimah.131
The tenuous Omani suzerainty over the Shihuh was established
during the 19th century as a result of the long struggle between the
Qawasim Rulers and the Sultan of Oman. Being of the Hinawi
political faction,132 the Shihuh welcomed any support against the
Ghafiri Qawasim. As we have seen, they even, for a time, recognised
Zayid bin Khallfah of Abu Dhabi as an overlord. The frequent
disputes between the Qawasim Rulers and the headmen of the
various Shihuh sections usually concerned the coastal markets,
villages and beaches where the Shihuh could sell their produce, buy
provisions, beach their boats, and go fishing. Friction also rose at
Bai'ah and Dibah, where many Shihuh lived during the summer. In
1859 when the British Political Resident visited Bukhah, Khasab,
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