Sha'am Explained

Official Name:Sha'am
Pushpin Map:United Arab Emirates
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:United Arab Emirates
Subdivision Type1:Emirate
Subdivision Name1:Ras Al Khaimah
Area Urban Km2:0.776
Population As Of:2015
Population Total:1,550
Coordinates:26.0244°N 56.0839°W
Elevation Ft:354
Elevation M:107

Sha'am is a village in Northern Ras Al Khaimah, in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

History

A coastal village which traded on the cultivation of its rich hinterland at the foot of the Hajar Mountains, Sha'am considered itself essentially independent from Ras Al Khaimah and frequently asserted this independence. One such attempt by Sha'am to secede from Ras Al Khaimah under Sheikh Humaid bin Abdullah Al Qasimi in 1885 resulted in Humaid retaking the village and extracting a fine of 1,600 Marie Theresa Dollars.[1]

By the turn of the 20th century, Sha'am consisted of some 300 houses, mostly of mud brick construction and home to settled members of the Bani Shutair section of the Shihhu Bedouin tribe. They subsisted through fishing, pearl diving (a small fleet of 2 pearl boats) and date cultivation, as well as the sale of dry fish and firewood which they would take to Sharjah town on the 6 or 7 coasters the villagers owned.[2]

Notes and References

  1. Book: Heard-Bey, Frauke. From Trucial States to United Arab Emirates : a society in transition. 2005. Motivate. 1860631673. London. 87. 64689681.
  2. Book: Lorimer, John. Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf, Vol II. British Government, Bombay. 1915. 1684.