Tawam (region)
Tawam[1]
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Tawam (
Etymology and geography
Al-Ain is the main settlement
The word 'Tawam' means 'twins', and it reportedly refers to a pair of
In the mid-19th century, an Omani scholar, Salil ibn Raziq, basically said that Buraimi used to be called Tawam. People picked up on that but have never critically examined the earlier sources. Al Tabari writes of a Persian sphere of influence along the Batinah plain of Oman and an Arab sphere of influence in the interior with its capital at a place called Tawam. In that he deals with the events of 893/94, in which there is a dispute amongst different local factions about who should rule in Oman. One of these factions approaches the Abbasids for outside assistance. The faction who do this are called the Bani Sama and they are based in Buraimi before they base themselves in Sohar, call themselves the Wajihid Dynasty and assume the leadership of the whole region.
— Timothy Power.[5]
Hafit {Tuwwam} abounds in
History and prehistory
Archaeological remains dating to the
Like Dibba and present-day Ras Al Khaimah, the region witnessed events relevant to the history of Islam during the Rashidun, Umayyad and Abbasid eras.[3][10]
Around the Islamic Golden Age in the Middle Ages, the region, with its capital at 'Tawam', was an important sphere of influence for Arabs. Ceramics and other materials found here were believed to have been imported from Mesopotamia, India and China. At this time, Sohar, located to the east of this region, was of such prominence as a trading port on the coast of the Gulf of Oman that it was considered[by whom?] to be the "Dubai or Singapore of its day"[citation needed]. A mosque, considered[how?] to be the oldest in the country, was found[when?] in the vicinity of the Sheikh Khalifa Mosque in Al-Ain by Dr Walid Al Tikriti, besides a falaj, a group of houses, and a village dating to the 9th or 10th century.[5][citation needed]
Being strategically located near the Western Hajar, the area was[when?] an important stop for people and caravans traveling between the mountains and other parts of Arabia, such as Al-Hasa. Not only was the area, being rich in date palms, important for trade, but it was also used by certain people for smuggling slaves, women or children, years before the foundation of the UAE.[9]
References
- ^ ISBN 978-1-5760-7919-5.
- ^ a b Al-Hosani, Hamad Ali (2012). The Political Thought of Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan (PhD Thesis) (Thesis). Durham University. pp. 43–44. Archived (PDF) from the original on 5 February 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2016.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-7802-3580-6. Retrieved 8 November 2016.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-3172-9164-0.
- ^ a b c d e f Leech, Nick (22 October 2015). "The long read: has a lost Arab capital been found on the Oman-UAE border?". The National. Retrieved 20 January 2019.
- ^ El Reyes, Abdulla, ed. (December 2014). Liwa Journal of the National Archives (PDF). United Arab Emirates: Emirati National Archives. pp. 35–37.
- ISBN 978-1-9070-6521-7.
- ISBN 978-1-9100-6858-8.
- ^ ISBN 978-3-1102-2339-2.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-900724-47-0.
- ^ Salama, Samir (30 December 2011). "Al Ain bears evidence of a culture's ability to adapt". Gulf News. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
- OCLC 54405078.