Page 31 - Liwa18-E

Libraries in Ajman from the beginning of the Twentieth Century until the Formation of the Union

in Sharjah where he studied Tawheed (the oneness of God), Fiqh and Hadith. In his
youth, he worked in trade and did some travels. He was an Imam in Qatar for an
unspecified period, in addition to taking up various religious positions in Ajman,
such as the khitbah (Sermons) on Fridays and holidays, imamship, and execution of
religious contracts. He was an authorized “ma’zoun” until his last years.

• Building his Library:
Sheikh Humaid bin Saleh managed to set up a small library at home, which included
Shari’a books. Moreover, the book collection of his uncle, Sheikh Ali bin Humaid
bin Saif Al Nu’aimi, was passed down to him. His collection grew gradually through
purchasing and gifting. For example, his Qatari friend Sheikh Mohammed bin Ahmed
bin Mohammed Al Thani used to send him gifts of books. During his travels to Bahrain,
Kuwait and Aden, he was able to visit the bookshops over there and buy whatever books
he needed. Most of his books were on the Hanbali jurisprudence and some mosque
sermons because giving sermons was one of his religious functions until the early 1970s.

• The Fate of the Library after his Death:
A year after his death, his daughter, Moza bint Humaid, gave away Sheikh Humaid’s
library collection to Judge Sultan Khalifa Bakhit Al Matroushi (now President of the
Court of Appeal of Ajman). He intended to use it as an authoritative reference in
Shari’a rulings, as a reward for her father, in accordance with the Prophet’s Hadith: “If
a man dies, his work will be cut off except in the case of three things”. One of these
is: “a piece of knowledge that benefits people”.

• Other Libraries:
There were other prominent figures, who have received Shari’a and other types of
education, either through study under clerics, or through self-education. These clerics
also had fine collections of books, but we could obtain little information about them.
Among them:

• Sheikh Rashid bin Humaid Al Nu’aimi, Ruler of Ajman (1928-1981).
• Sheikh Hamad bin Ghanem Al Shamsi (died in the 1930s).
• Sheikh Abdullah bin Humaid bin Thani Al Shamsi (died circa 1969).

• Saif bin Majid bin Salem Al Matroushi (died 1986).
• Rashid bin Khasif bin Musbah Al-Nu’aimi (died 1982).
• Scholar Nasser bin Mohammed Al Ghamlasi (died 1956).

• Sheikh Hamad bin Muharib al-Mutairi (died 1981).

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