Ghost Town of the Northern Emirates - Case Study Example

The abandoned pearling village in Ras Al Khaimah Emirate, Jazirat Al Hamra Name Course Institution Date The ghost town Jazirat Al Hamra, infamously known as the Red Island, is a coastal town about eighteen kilometers southwest of Ras Al Khaimah, a vintage trading Centre. The town is presently divided into new and old areas. It is a historical site among the Emirate nations. It is Called the ghost town because of its rich culture and abandoned old buildings and deserted streets. The inhabitants of the town trace their origin from the fourteenth century and are of Za’ab tribe. The villagers were mostly coastal fishers and divers dubbed the Hadhr1. The town was once home to store keepers, pearl fishermen and their families. With the pearling crisis between the 1920s and 1930s, Al Jazirat residents upped and left lured in by better government housing in the nearby village next door. Recently, parts of the Al Hamra are being partially restored, for example the Village’s fort. I climb its stairs cases up the roof with trepidation. “The steps feel firm but there is a large gap between the wall and where they once had been attached”. The two stories structure rests on wooden beams. Amid the moody decay it would have been wonderful to have a traditional band to photograph. Sadly none were on site. However the village is rich and full of culture alongside great historical tales. The bride’s mosque This magnificent and beautifully built mosque solely owes its existence to the young bride of Jazirat Al Hamra. She had been married to a Saudi Arabian Prince at the time. During this pre-oil era, it was common for women to be married abroad, across the Gulf, where they later begun a new life far away from their families. The women at the time moved into more wealthier and comfortable lives but never forgot their families back home. The young bride of Jazirat Al Hamra appointed her uncle, a carpenter known by the name Yousef Al Aary,to oversee the construction of this mosque. Ali bin Ahmed Jaafar a builder from the late 1960s was also appointed to this construction job. Ali bin Ahmed Jaafar, said “the bride’s mosque stood on the old shore line, where it displayed various traditional features such as a verandah, tall and thin windows overlooking the sea whilst catching the sea breeze”. It had been constructed out of coral stones and breeze blocks. The small fishing villages like Al Hamra used these humble minarets such as the mosque as elevated platforms where they recited the call to prayer. In more recent time with the arrival of oil revenue, the taller one story skyline concrete minarets become common additions. This was necessary in the old dense Middle Eastern cities of Cairo and Damascus as it signified change to the vast crowds leaving in these urban centers. Sadly the brides name was lost to time but this magnificent land mark of the mosque that she funded still stands to date. It is one of the most recognizable land marks among the Emirate Nations. The Pearl Diver’s House A renowned pearling center, Jazirat Al Hamra, home to taw-wash and merchants who engaged in the trade of pearls, bought pearls from ship captains and later sold them to Indian merchants. The Indian merchants had been dubbed with the responsibility to finance these ships in exchange of the pearls. The Ahmed Al Omran two story house stands in testimony of this. The house was fused with Indian and Arabic traditions with a taste of traditional Gulf architecture. The reception room on the top floor of the house was adorned with tall niches and well decorated graceful arches. Slits served as ventilation, with slits at the bottom of the high niches caught the see breeze and provide shade from the scorching sun. The house demonstrates incredible statue and wealth that were being received from the enormous oyster beds. Jazirat Al Hamra and Ras Al khaimah pearling centers generated taxes in the early 20th century for the ruler of Ras Al Khaimah. These centers had the ability to support fleets of ships thanks to the fact that they pose a rich agricultural base of the nearby Hajjar Mountains. Men from surrounding regions came to also join these fleets of Za’ab. The centers had about 25 fleets of pearling ships supporting an approximate number of over 80,000 men at its peak in the early 1900s.This was made possible too as the men enjoyed enormous support from the women who supported families back home when the men were on the long voyages . However, with the invention of the Japanese cultured pearl in 1928, the Gulf pearl trade collapsed and the Jazirat Al Hamra pearl trading industry which had sustained the people died2. Farming With the collapse of pearling, Za’ab turned to farming and invested their revenues earned from the sea into farming. Common Gulf expressions suggest that the sea belongs to God and the land belongs to the people. Figures like Ahmed Youssef depicted this farming culture by saying that the palm trees were the lifeblood of the people. Ahmed Youssef says, “I had turned to palm farming for survival. When pearling had collapsed they had farms in Khatt, Hail, Khalba, Dibba and the Batinah coast”. According to Ahmed Youssef, he said “after the collapse, the people would not have survived if it were not for the dates.A young palm tree after two years would yield dates”. However, Agriculture in Jarizat Al hamra did not succeed due to the fact the region poses saline soils. Donkeys were then used as a main source of transport as most farms were located in Khatt. There are many types of dates but the best are Barhi and Khalas varieties. Poor dates became animal feed. Like navigation, agriculture depended on the stars. For example; the Pleiades star cluster marked the ripening of dates whereas the Antares signaled the harvesting of dates. Suhail star marked the end of the hottest months in the region. With the alignment of the stars, male and female palm trees had to be fertilized. Plams trees were used for more than food .the branches were built into houses, fibers woven into fishing nets, baskets, fans and mats. Ahmed Youssef recalls that in the past, the wealthy used palm fronds to build areesh, palm leafy houses. It is important to note that pearl and date harvesting times corresponded. The men headed south coast to the enormous pearl fleets, while the women remained back home, left to migrate to the gardens with the help of the Khawatir desert tribe. Ahmed Youssef suggested “Women oversaw the harvest in addition to their family duties. With the appearance of Suhali star, the women moved back south to the coast to meet up with their men towards the end of summer”. Fishing The fisherman Sultan Mohammed, rows out slowly in the night, nets filled with jeesh, sheri and hammour. With his fellow men they row into darkness chanting and singing ayal ala , ayal ala. The stars shone brightly above them in the hot sky. On reaching the harvest they all fell silent. Khabbat fish flashed below water and beside their boats.Mr. Mohammed said “I and my father would bend over our row boat,heaving heavy nets filled with fish,approximately harvesting 200 king mackerel and about 400 khabbat” ,as he recalls. In addition oral histories record that Al Hamra men did deep sea diving and sold their catch to coastal towns of Kuwait. The Souq Each morning the village awoke to the ambiance of prayer calls and to Rashid Jumaa’s sound slapping his flatbread against the tanoor sides at the souq bakery.Rashid alongside his friend Abdul sago sweets, helluwa,sugar and rice.Smoke and sweet fragrance from cardamom brew and water filled the souq before special celebrations like the three day weddings.Rashid a baker had used his earnings from his pearls days to his current bakery investment at the Souq’s. According to Rashid Jumaa he recalls “When pearling collapsed, Al Hamra lost its status as a trade Centre. This negatively impacted the souq as it went empty.solely because local citizens lacked the financial ability to purchase goods or products to sell”. But when the men lacked the money to buy food; it was given to them on credit which would be paid at a later date. This demonstrated Kingman ship and brother hood. Men knew the importance of community. According to Ahmed Youssef, “there is nothing special about the souq.Just empty spaces between permanent buildings where shops built of areesh and palm frond stood” he recalled. They sold fish, bread and flour. Here things were cheap. Sadly people lacked money as they toiled and spent all they had earned at the shops.people who borrowed from the shop would pay back soon when they returned from abroad, neighboring Kuwait and other place they had worked. A popular shop at the souq favored by the locals was the Abdelkarim shop. Trade in relation to the homes of Al Jazirat The significance of the Indian Ocean trade is deeply rooted and evident from a visit of any household in the Al Jazirat region. From the ambiance of carved wooden door originally from Africa to the chandal supported roofs and wooden beams found at the East African coast. However most of the interior decorations and furnishing were from India. Ranging from wooden beds, mirrors, clocks, radios and gramophones had arrived on board deep sea trade ships. Coffee cups, bowls, porcelain from Persia, India, and Africa reached the gulf markets directly via the established trade routes. Earthenware such as incense burners and clay pots came from Wadi Haqeel a town north of Ras Khaimah region whereas storage trunks came from India or Africa. Textiles such as painted trucks or bride shoes came from India. This intimacy in trading among merchants, artisans among the two regions is further illustrated through the story about a brides wedding dress. Ahmed Youssef said “When the girls’ male relatives had bought the turquoise dress from India, the women of the bride’s family sent it back”. They sent it back to India with instructions on what embroidery it should have to the Indian tailors. Bibliography Allison, A. (2011). Ghost town of the northern Emirates. Retrieved from http://www.wanderingsavage.com Read More