Kumzari people
کومزاري | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
 Oman (Kumzar) | 5,000[1] |
 Iran | 500[2] |
 UAE | Unspecified[3] |
| Languages | |
| Kumzari, Arabic (Omani, Emirati, Shihhi) | |
| Religion | |
| Islam[4] | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Lurs, Shihuh | |
The Kumzari or Kumzar (کومزاري) are an Iranian ethnic group[5] 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.[6]
History
The Kumzari people are said to have been a Persian-related people who travelled to the northern coast of Oman 500 years ago.[7][8]
Other sources say that the Kumzari originated from the Azd tribe who came to Yemen in the third to fifth centuries AD.[9] The village was ruled by a shaikh who was elected by the Kumzari and Shihuh people of Kumzar.[10] Many Kumzari shaikhs married people outside of their village like Labtiab.[11]
Traditions
Kumzari men perform traditional dances like the Dandana which is a type of dance during Kumzari weddings.[12] They are regarded as semi-nomads and travel to the village of Khasab for trade.[13] They have been regarded as "brave fighters" when it comes to combat.[14]
Language
The Kumzari people have spoken the Kumzari language, which has been designated as an Iranian (Iranic) language, but has a huge Arabic influence as well as Portuguese, English, and Balochi.[15][16]
References
- ^ https://multicast.aspra.uni-bamberg.de/resources/wowa/data/iranian/kumzari_musandam/wowa_iran_kumzari_musandam__metadata.pdf
- ^ https://multicast.aspra.uni-bamberg.de/resources/wowa/data/iranian/kumzari_musandam/wowa_iran_kumzari_musandam__metadata.pdf
- ^ "Kumzari". cambridge.org. August 2025.
- ^ "Rare language also under threat in Straits of Hormuz". 13 April 2012.
- ^ www.rudaw.net https://www.rudaw.net/notfound.html. Retrieved 2025-08-04.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ Lancaster, William; Lancaster, Fidelity (2011). Honour is in Contentment: Life Before Oil in Ras Al-Khaimah (UAE) and Some Neighboring Countries. Walter de Gruyter. ISBN 9783110223392.
- ^ IBP, Inc. (2013). Oman: How to Invest, Start and Run Profitable Business in Oman Guide. Lulu.com. ISBN 9781433084225.
- ^ Watson, Ivan (28 April 2007). "An Omani Village Emerges from Isolation". NPR.org.
- ^ van der Wal Anonby, Christina (2014). "Traces of Arabian in Kumzari". Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 44: 137–146. JSTOR 43782857.
- ^ Adamec, Ludwig W. (1976). Historical Gazetteer of Iran: Zahidan and southeastern Iran (4 ed.). Akademische Drucku. Verlagsanstalt. p. 273. ISBN 9783201014281.
- ^ Cavendish, Marshall (September 2006). World and Its Peoples (1 ed.). 2006. ISBN 9780761475712.
- ^ https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/ottawa-couple-document-centuries-old-oral-language-to-sustain-it-1.3219025
- ^ "Kumzari: The Omani language on the verge of extinction". YouTube. 7 June 2019.
- ^ "Tribes of Musandam".
- ^ "The hidden world of the kumzaris". 12 June 2019.
- ^ "Why the Kumzari tongue consists of ancient words with a future". 7 December 2012.