Oman and East Africa

New Light on Early Kilwan History from the Omani Sources

Datos Bibliográficos

ID3913809
AutoresJohn C Wilkinson (autor de correspondencia)
Año1981
Volumen14
Número2
Páginas272
Fecha de publicación1981-01-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessNo
TipoARTICLE
RevistaThe International Journal of African Historical Studies (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0361-7882 • E-ISSN: 2326-3016
EditorialJSTOR (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.2307/218046
OpenAlexW2283447558
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas22

Oman has a very long recorded history which, until recently was known only through a couple of eighteenth and nineteenth century works translated into English.l In reality these two sources are of minor importance in comparison with the enormous wealth of surviving documents from authorities dating as far back as the ninth century. Virtually all this material is Ibadi, for the most partfiqh (jurisprudence) works that, at first sight, are of limited interest to the historian and quite incomprehensible without a major understanding of their bio-bibliographical background. Close study in fact reveals a wealth of detail pertaining to the everyday life of the country, including the organization of the overseas commerce, which is a subject scarcely touched on in the chronicles. Recently, the Ministry of National Heritage in Muscat has formed a collection of these manuscripts, which the writer has been privileged to study for a short time.2 In this collection are two copies3 of an undated composite manuscript entitled The Kilwa Sira, which contains two documents of especial interest for medieval East African history.4

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