Page 185 - Arabian Studies (II)

Development of Culture on the Coast of Oman 177

Palestinian Islamic Congress in Jerusalem in 1930, a meeting was held
in the chief mosque in Sharjah, at which two educated young men,
Mubarak al-Nakhl and Ibrahim al-Midfa‘, gave enthusiastic nationalist
speeches, after which money was collected for the Palestinian cause.
Two Cairo magazines, Al-Fath (edited by Muhibb al-DTn) and
Al-Shura (edited by a young Palestinian refugee, Muhammad ‘AIT
al-Tahir) cherished nationalist revolutionary sentiments and eulogised
the heroes and martyrs of the Palestinian, Syrian and Iraqi struggles.
Teachers, particularly in the Falah school in Dubai, spread the
extreme nationalist sentiments existing in Iraq.
During the 1930s some social changes took place on the Coast.
The traditional Omani style of clothing was modified to include such
adaptations as buttons, and many men exchanged their white
headband for black. Some young men began to shave their beards,
wear modern wrist watches rather than pocket watches, and shoes
brought from Bombay rather than sandals. Jackets also began to be
seen in the towns. With the establishment of an aerodrome at Sharjah
in 1933 and the continuous flights from there, the people witnessed
an important aspect of modern European technology, which en­
couraged progressive elements in the society. The Sharjah airport was
frequently visited by the Rulers of the Coast accompanied by the
notables of their towns, to witness the landing and taking off of
aeroplanes. By 1938, owing to their income from oil concessions, all
the Shaikhs and some wealthy merchants had bought cars. Bahrain,
where the British established a modern administration, customs and
security force, was held up as a fine example of modernisation.
Reviewing the poems available to me today, one sees a true
reflection of the fundamental change in political, social and cultural
attitudes during this period. Arab unity was the dream of these
poets, who began to express a sense of affinity with the larger
political entity of Oman, rather than the small enclosed city-state.
They combined nationalist sympathies with Islamic sentiments, and
important events in the Arab World found a great response in their
literature.
Resentment of British control of the Coast was expressed in the
praise of Shaykh Sultan b. Salim, Ruler of Ras al-Khaimah, who
showed a certain defiance of the British authorities. It was clearly
manifested during the negotiations with Shaykh SaTd b. Maktum,
the Shaykh of Dubai, for the securing of an oil concession for a !
British company between the years 1936—7. During the 1930s there
was insecurity outside the towns, on account of Bedouin raids on the
surrounding areas. The Rulers, who tolerated such disturbances, were