OMAN

officially Sultanate of Oman, Arabic Saltanat 'Uman country occupying the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bounded to the southwest by Yemen, to the south and east by the Arabian Sea, to the north by the Gulf of Oman, to the northwest by the United Arab Emirates, and to the west by Saudi Arabia. A small enclave, the Ru'us Al-Jibal (the Mountaintops), occupies the northern tip of the Musandam Peninsula at the Strait of Hormuz; this territory gives Oman its only frontage on the Persian Gulf. Oman's total area is about 119,500 square miles (309,500 square km). Its offshore territories include Masirah Island to the east and Al-Hallaniyah Island (the largest of the five Khuriya Muriya Islands) 25 miles (40 km) off the south coast. Muscat (Masqat), a port on the Gulf of Oman, is the capital. Additional reading Comparative coverage of the Persian Gulf region is provided by Michael Herb, All in the Family: Absolutism, Revolution, and Democracy in the Middle Eastern Monarchies (1999); Helen Chapin Metz (ed.), Persian Gulf States: Country Studies, 3rd ed. (1994); F. Gregory Gause III, Oil Monarchies: Domestic and Security Challenges in the Arab Gulf States (1994); Anthony H. Cordesman, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, and the UAE (1997); John Bulloch, The Persian Gulf Unveiled (also published as The Gulf, 1984); and Alvin J. Cottrell (ed.), The Persian Gulf States: A General Survey (1980). Discussions of early regional history include Juan R.I. Cole, Rival Empires of Trade and Imami Shi'ism in Eastern Arabia, 13001800, International Journal of Middle East Studies, 19:177203 (May 1987); and J.B. Kelly, Britain and the Persian Gulf, 17951880 (1968).Works on Oman include Carol J. Riphenburg, Oman: Political Development in a Changing World (1998); Miriam Joyce, The Sultanate of Oman: A Twentieth Century History (1995); Ian Skeet, Oman: Politics and Development (1992); Calvin H. Allen, Jr., Oman: The Modernization of the Sultanate (1987); Donald Hawley, Oman & Its Renaissance, jubilee ed., rev. and reconstructed (1995); B.R. Pridham (ed.), Oman: Economic, Social, and Strategic Developments (1987); Liesl Graz, The Omanis: Sentinels of the Gulf (1982; originally published in French, 1981); John Duke Anthony, John Peterson, and Donald Sean Abelson, Historical and Cultural Dictionary of the Sultanate of Oman and the Emirates of Eastern Arabia (1976); and S.B. Miles, The Countries and Tribes of the Persian Gulf, 2 vol. (1919, reprinted in 1 vol., 1994), which focuses on Oman.Anthropological studies include Jrg Janzen, Nomads in the Sultanate of Oman: Tradition and Development in Dhofar (1986; originally published in German, 1980); and Fredrik Barth, Sohar: Culture and Society in an Omani Town (1983). The role of women is the subject of Christine Eickelman, Women and Community in Oman (1984); and Unni Wikan, Behind the Veil in Arabia: Women in Oman (1982, reissued 1991). Patricia Risso, Oman & Muscat: An Early Modern History (1986); and Robert Geran Landen, Oman Since 1856: Disruptive Modernization in a Traditional Arab Society (1967), are scholarly treatments of the first and second halves of the 19th century, respectively. Oman's relationship with East Africa is covered in M. Reda Bhacker, Trade and Empire in Muscat and Zanzibar: Roots of British Domination (1992). J.E. Peterson, Oman in the Twentieth Century: Political Foundations of an Emerging State (1978), gives a political history of the sultanate; and John C. Wilkinson, The Imamate Tradition of Oman (1987), outlines the background of the events leading to the demise of the Ibadi imamate in the 1950s. The period before the 1970 coup d'tat is described in Ian Skeet, Muscat and Oman: The End of an Era (1974; also published as Oman before 1970: The End of an Era, 1985); while John Townsend, Oman: The Making of a Modern State (1977), gives a general assessment of the challenges facing the state after the coup. Further information may be found in Frank A. Clements (compiler), Oman , rev. and expanded ed. (1994), an annotated bibliography. Jill Ann Crystal Administration and social conditions Government Oman is governed by a monarchy (sultanate). The sultan is assisted by the Council of Ministers, the members of which he typically appoints from among Muscat merchants, informal representatives of interior tribes, and Dhofaris. The sultan is the head of state and commander in chief of the country's armed forces. Although he acts as the prime minister, the sultan is allowed to appoint one if he chooses. There are no political parties or elections. The Consultative Assembly, formed by the sultan in 1981, was replaced in 1991 by a new Consultative Council (Majlis al-Shura), whose 82 appointed members serve three-year terms, represent the wilayat (provinces) of the country, and discuss legislative matters. In 1994 women from a few consitituencies were given the right to serve on the council. In 1996 the sultan announced the establishment of the Basic Law of the State, which outlined a new system of government, placed the Consultative Council within what was named the Oman Council, and clarified the succession process; in addition, the right to serve was extended to all Omani women. A Council of State (Majlis al-Dawlah), comprising 41 members appointed by the sultan, was also created as an upper house of the Oman Council to discuss policy issues. Local government is carried out by a combination of traditional walis (representatives of the sultan) and by more recently established municipal councils. Oman has a two-tiered judicial system: Islamic courts, based on the Ibadite interpretation of the Shari'ah (Islamic law), handle personal status cases (family law and probate), and secular courts oversee commercial matters. There are also courts of the first instance and criminal and specialized administrative courts. The Sultan's Armed Forces, formed in 1958 from several smaller regiments, has grown since 1970 to more than 40,000 personnel, spurred in part by the rebellion in Dhofar in 196475. Education Education has expanded dramatically since 1970, when only three primary schools existed and few girls received any schooling. By the late 1990s nearly three-fourths of elementary-age and more than half of secondary-age children were enrolled, and nearly half of all these were female. Education is provided free to all Omanis but is still not mandatory. About three-fifths of Oman's adult population is literate, with a substantial increase in the number of literate women. The country's only university, Sultan Qabus University, was opened in Muscat in 1986. Cultural life Oman is a tribal society, although tribal influence is gradually declining. Women have enjoyed relatively more freedom in Oman than elsewhere in the Arab world. Attempts have been made to preserve much of the traditional society in the midst of development. Traditional elements of architecture have been incorporated in new buildings, and Oman passed a law (1986; since revised) forbidding Omani nationals to marry foreigners. The Ministry of National Heritage and Culture is charged with preserving historic buildings, excavating archaeological sites, and supporting such traditional crafts as weaving and silver and gold jewelry making. The Royal Oman Symphony Orchestra was formed in the late 1980s and has performed with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra. Mealtime serves as the centre of most social gatherings. The typical Omani meal consists of rice, spiced lamb or fish, dates, and coffee or tea. Incensenotably frankincense, which is native to Omanis burned at the end of the meal. Dhow racing is a popular traditional sport, as is camel racing. Falconry is practiced by the wealthy elite. More modern sports include sandsurfing and waterskiing; football (soccer) and rugby are also widely played. Though there is government censorship of the press and state-run newspapers, several independently run Arabic-language newspapers are published on a daily and weekly basis, as are two English-language dailies. The television station is state-run, and radio stations broadcast in both Arabic and English. J.E. Peterson Jill Ann Crystal