Kumzari people

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Kumzari
Kumzar
کومزاري
Regions with significant populations
 Oman (Kumzar)5,000[1]
 Iran500[2]
Languages
Kumzari, Arabic
Religion
Islam[3]
Related ethnic groups
Lurs, Shihuh

The Kumzari or Kumzar (کومزاري) are an Iranian ethnic group[citation needed] native to the Musandam peninsula in northern Oman. They speak the Kumzari language along with the Shihuh tribe who are Arabs unlike the Kumzar. They are traditional fisherman.[4]

History

The Kumzari are said to have been a Persian-related people who traveled to the northern coast of Oman 500 years ago.[5][better source needed][6][failed verification] Other sources say that the Kumzari originated from the Azd tribe who came to Yemen in the third to fifth centuries AD.[7] The village was ruled by a shaikh who was elected by the Kumzari and Shihuh people of Kumzar.[8] Many Kumzari shaikhs married people outside of their village like Labtiab.[9]

Traditions

Kumzari men perform traditional dances like the Dandana which is a type of dance during Kumzari weddings.[10] They are regarded as semi-nomads and travel to the village of Khasab for trade.[11] They have been regarded as "brave fighters" when it comes to combat.[12]

Language

The Kumzari people have spoken the Kumzari language, which has been designated as an Iranian language, but has a huge Arabic influence as well as Portuguese, English, and Balochi.[13][14]

References

  1. ^ https://multicast.aspra.uni-bamberg.de/resources/wowa/data/iranian/kumzari_musandam/wowa_iran_kumzari_musandam__metadata.pdf[bare URL PDF]
  2. ^ https://multicast.aspra.uni-bamberg.de/resources/wowa/data/iranian/kumzari_musandam/wowa_iran_kumzari_musandam__metadata.pdf[bare URL PDF]
  3. ^ "Rare language also under threat in Straits of Hormuz". 13 April 2012.
  4. ^ Lancaster, William; Lancaster, Fidelity (2011). Honour is in Contentment: Life Before Oil in Ras Al-Khaimah (UAE) and Some Neighboring Countries. ISBN 9783110223392.
  5. ^ Inc., IBP (2013). Oman: How to Invest, Start and Run Profitable Business in Oman Guide. ISBN 9781433084225. {{cite book}}: |last1= has generic name (help)
  6. ^ "An Omani Village Emerges from Isolation". NPR.org.
  7. ^ van der Wal Anonby, Christina (2014). "Traces of Arabian in Kumzari". Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 44: 137–146. JSTOR 43782857.
  8. ^ Adamec, Ludwig W. (1976). Historical Gazetteer of Iran: Zahidan and southeastern Iran (4 ed.). Akademische Drucku. Verlagsanstalt. p. 273. ISBN 9783201014281.
  9. ^ Cavendish, Marshall (September 2006). World and Its Peoples (1 ed.). 2006. ISBN 9780761475712.
  10. ^ https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/ottawa-couple-document-centuries-old-oral-language-to-sustain-it-1.3219025[bare URL]
  11. ^ "Kumzari: The Omani language on the verge of extinction". YouTube.
  12. ^ "Tribes of Musandam".
  13. ^ "The hidden world of the kumzaris". 12 June 2019.
  14. ^ "Why the Kumzari tongue consists of ancient words with a future". 7 December 2012.