Page 43 - 2022UNESCO ICDH Newsletter_vol.4

A Glimpse Into Oman's Documentary Heritage Humaid Siaf Al Nofli | Director of the Department of Culture, The Oman National Commisson for Education, Culture, and Science

Oman's great documentary heritage is characterized by richness due to two
important aspects:
1. The depth of scientific and documentary experience of Omanis
throughout history.
2. State's interest in preserving this type of heritage due to its great
importance for Omanis and the rare knowledge and sciences it contains.
3. A Historical Look at Oman's Documentary Heritage:
First: In terms of numbers:
1. There are more than 10,000 Omani manuscripts, increasable to 30,000 or more.
2. There are 760 non-Omani manuscripts in the Sultanate of Oman.
3. The number of total duplicate Omani manuscript copies is 7,298 (This indicates
an active and extensive copying movement, which requires a lot of resources and
effort.)
Second: In terms of time:
A. In the first Hijri (AH) century / eighth century AD, we only find three authors:
1- Jaber bin Zaid.
2- Salem bin Thakwan Al Hilali.
3- Sohar bin Al Abbas Al Abdi.
B. Then the authorship movement began to rise.
C. Between 1250 -1350 AH / 1815-1915 AD it reached its peak, being the most
productive period throughout Omani history with abundant authorship.
Third: In terms of location:
Some Omani cities have excelled in the authorship movement throughout Omani
history as follows.
1. Nizwa (424 authors).
2. Izki (162 authors).
3. Bahla (144 authors).
4. Samael (144 authors).
5. Legislations for the Safeguarding of Documentary Heritage in the Sultanate of
Oman over the past fifty years:
1974: The Ministry of Heritage and Culture was established with a
dedicated Omani Manuscripts House.
1980: The Omani Heritage Law was promulgated, which established the
necessary legislation for the safeguarding of heritage in general,
including documentary heritage in the Sultanate of Oman.
2007: The National Records and Archives Authority was established to
contribute to the preservation of documentary heritage.
2012: Formation of a National Team to follow up on UNESCO's Memory of
the World Programme, which gathers several bodies closely related
to documentary heritage.
2019: Oman's new Heritage Law was promulgated, with an important
amendment to heritage in general and documentary heritage in
particular.

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