State formation in Oman 1861-1970
The main hypothesis of this study is that in the period from the 1860s to the 1960s the politics and decision-making of the Omani state were influenced by four forces, namely the British, the merchants, the tribal leaders and the ulama. The arguments relate only to the Sultanate of Oman, since no reliable data are available for the Imamate of Oman. During the second half of the seventeenth century the Omani state entered its imperial age, which lasted until the middle of the nineteenth century. The Ya'ariba dynasty, which was the first ruling family in that age, was similar to the states described by Ibn Khaldun. This was followed by the rise of the Al Bu Said dynasty. The imperial age lasted until the collapse of the Omani empire in 1861. The main finding of this study are first that the British role was the most prominent in the formation of the post-imperial Omani state, while these of the merchants, the tribal leaders and the ulama were mostly indirect or minimal. Secondly, the study found that, in addition to the tribal conflict, the period between 1861 and the 1950s was dominated by two other forms of social struggle, namely conflict between the merchants and the peasants, and tensions in the fragile
Al-Hinai, Abdulmalik Abdullah
Middle East
State formation in Oman 1861-1970. The main hypothesis of this study is that in the period from the 1860s to the 1960s the politics and decision-making of the Omani state were influenced by four forces, namely the British, the merchants, the tribal leaders and the ulama. The arguments relate only to the Sultanate of Oman, since no reliable data are available for the Imamate of Oman. During the second half of the seventeenth century the Omani state entered its imperial age, which lasted until the middle of the nineteenth century. The Ya'ariba dynasty, which was the first ruling family in that age, was similar to the states described by Ibn Khaldun. This was followed by the rise of the Al Bu Said dynasty. The imperial age lasted until the collapse of the Omani empire in 1861. The main finding of this study are first that the British role was the most prominent in the formation of the post-imperial Omani state, while these of the merchants, the tribal leaders and the ulama were mostly indirect or minimal. Secondly, the study found that, in addition to the tribal conflict, the period between 1861 and the 1950s was dominated by two other forms of social struggle, namely conflict between the merchants and the peasants, and tensions in the fragile
state_formation oman main_hypothesis study period politics decision_making omani state influence force namely british_merchant tribal leader ulama argument relate oman since reliable data_available imamate oman omani state enter imperial age last dynasty first rule family age similar state describe follow rise dynasty imperial age last collapse omani empire main_finding study first british role prominent formation post imperial omani state merchant tribal leader ulama mostly indirect minimal secondly study find addition tribal conflict period dominate form social struggle namely conflict merchant peasant tension fragile