Section 2

The Formation and

History of the UAE
GRASP | ABSORB | APPRECIATE

2
Section 2: The Formation and History of the UAE
Through your work on this section you will be gaining the following Abu Dhabi knowledge:

• Introduction to UAE history:

a. Ancient trade routes in the Arabian Peninsula
b. Early settlement patterns
c. The pearl industry
d. The Trucial States
e. Discovery of oil
• Key milestones for the UAE
• Tribes in the UAE

You will also be able to:

LO3 Give an overview of the history of the UAE and the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, including the late Sheikh
Zayed and his legacy

‘’He who does not know his past cannot make the best of his present and his future, for it is from
the past that we learn.’’ 1

Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan

1
Source: http://www.uaeinteract.com/docs/Sheikh_Zayed_in_quotes/18411.htm
History of Abu Dhabi and UAE
Introduction
The United Arab Emirates is a federal monarchy on the south-east tip of the Arabian Peninsula. It borders
Oman in the east and Saudi Arabia in the south, it shares maritime borders with Qatar in the west and
Iran in the north. It consists of seven Emirates: Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras
Al Khaimah, and Fujairah. These cover 83,600 square kilometres (32,400 square miles) and include 200
islands. The UAE was founded initially with six members on the 2nd December 1971 (Ras Al Khaimah joined
on the 10th February 1972) and is the only federation of separate states in the Arab world.

Archaeological finds suggest a long history of human settlement in the region. In fact, there is evidence
that people have lived there for over 100,000 years. Human settlement probably began in the Paleolithic
period with early Bedouin nomads travelling through the region. As time went by, trade and social interaction
created a greater need for settled communities, but it also brought the dangers of invasion, piracy and war.
The region experienced many centuries of change in terms of industry and influence but recent years have
seen oil and gas bring prosperity. Through an enlightened ruler, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan
of Abu Dhabi, a proud nation and a strong economy has been created.

What started as a primitive settlement of several hundred palm huts in the desert has now become the
proud and successful Emirate of Abu Dhabi. Today, the UAE is a modern, oil-exporting country with a
highly diversified economy, a global hub for tourism, retail and finance, and home to the largest man-made
seaport, a mega-tall skyscraper and snow slopes in shopping malls.

DID YOU KNOW? The British had significant involvement in the region until the late 1960s. They held
maritime treaties with the Trucial Rulers from 1820 and these treaties, including the Treaty of Perpetual
Maritime Peace of 1853, created a relatively peaceful period.

DID YOU KNOW? The Prophet Muhammad’s (PBUH) envoy, Al-Ala’a Bin Al-Hadhrami, was sent to
the province of Bahrain (which covered the coastal line from Kuwait to North Oman from 629 AD) to
invite them to Islam. See the Religion in the UAE section for more information.

Early settlement
For thousands of years, the Bedouin tribes lived on varied terrain, self-sufficient and with lives built around
family values. They moved between the sea for fishing and the desert where they could graze their animals.
The oasis was vital to survival as a water source but it was also where they harvested crops, primarily dates.
Dates were a vitamin-rich staple in the nomadic diet, portable for long journeys across desert, mountains
and sea.

The camel was central to nomadic existence and traditional family and community life in harsh environments
such as the desert. Camels provided a dependable source of food and milk as well as transport, the bride’s
dowry to marriage, a sacrifice and a payment of Zakat [charitable gifts]. Their tough skin and wool was used
for household items and they were even highly esteemed in poetry.

Around 3000 BC, the climate in the region began to get dryer, forcing many nomadic tribes to settle and
begin farming and trading with each other. This shift in lifestyle is evident in the settlements from the late
Bronze and Iron Ages. Irrigation systems, such as the falaj, were developed so that crops could be grown
more efficiently and trading routes became more and more important.

DID YOU KNOW? There are over 160 words for camel in the Arabic language. Camels are
now essentially used for racing, which enjoys the patronage of the current Rulers.
The timeline for early settlement of the region

Paleolithic Age Bronze Age Iron Age

6000 BC - 3500 BC 3200 BC - 1300 BC 1300 BC - 300 BC
Nomadic Settlements Settled communities
Fishing Agriculture Irrigation
Grazing Copper mining Established trade routes
Trading Farming

Irrigation system

Ancient trade routes in the Arabian Peninsula

As the nomadic communities settled, and trading between different settlements grew, trade routes began to
emerge across the Arabian Peninsula. By the early 7th century, these were stretching as far as Europe, India
and Asia. These routes were hugely influential in the development of the region and many are still famous
today such as the Spice and Silk Routes. The main route across Arabia became known as the Incense
Route or the Incense Road of Antiquity. It was part of an extensive network of land and sea trading routes
linking the countries in the Mediterranean with Eastern and Southern sources of incense, spices and other
luxury goods such as silk. These precious products were brought from the south of the Arabian Peninsula,
up the Red Sea coast and across the Sinai Desert to Egypt. There they were loaded onto ships and sailed
to destinations across the Mediterranean Sea.

The Incense Routes were mostly controlled by the Arabs who brought frankincense and myrrh by camel
caravan from southern Arabia and for trade with India, Africa and East Asia. This included a variety of exotic
spices, precious stones, ebony, silk and fine textiles such as carpets. There was also trade in the rare
woods, feathers, animal skins and gold from Africa. This period made the region immensely prosperous,
with taxes levied on the caravans and also on the merchants setting up trading posts all along the routes.
Julfar, in Ras Al Khaimah, became a wealthy port and pearling centre, hosting the great wooden dhows that
sailed across the Indian Ocean. After Baghdad emerged as the main centre for Islamic civilisation, eastern
Arabia greatly benefited from the increased demand for foreign goods from the city.

Of course, it was not just trade that flowed through these routes; they also acted as cultural channels and
forms of communication between the civilisations of east and west, north and south. For example, long-
distance trade with the Greeks, Romans and Persians introduced artistic and cultural changes which can be
seen in art, design and cuisine throughout the UAE today.
Pearl industry
The pearl oyster or lulu (qamasha) was the main source of economic wealth in the region before the
discovery of oil. Pearl oysters occur naturally in the calm water and shallow banks (fasht) of the Gulf. Exactly
when the people of the region first began to harvest this valuable resource is not known: individual pearls
have been found in excavations on archaeological sites that date back at least 7,000 years. There are
mentions of the beauty of the Gulf pearls in ancient Greek literature from the 3rd century (‘The Sophists
at Dinner’ – sometimes known as the oldest cookbook). We do know that pearls were traded extensively
in Roman times and the Arab geographer, Al Idrisi, mentions that in 1154 Julfar, in Ras Al Khaimah, was
already a major pearling centre. Certainly, historical accounts indicate that Julfar’s fame had spread far and
wide by the 15th century.

In 1517, the Portuguese writer Duarte Barbosa recorded that ‘’Here [Julfar] is a very great fishery as
well, of seed pearls; and the Moors of Hormuz come hither to buy them and carry them to India and many
other lands’’.

The expansion of pearl fishing really changed the settlement habits of the nomadic communities from the
interior and their agricultural-based lifestyle to that of the coastal fringes. Many families settled in places like
Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah. However, the risks of the pearling industry were very great
and the life of a pearl diver was dangerous and often short.

The decline of the pearl industry began before World War II and was due to many factors, including the
production of cheaper cultured pearls in Japan in 1921. This was followed by the economic depression of
the 1920s and ‘30s which ruined the wealth of many potential customers, and then a ban was imposed on
pearl imports by the Indian Government in 1947. This was very hard on families who had specialised in pearl
diving and did not have other family businesses.

The Trucial States

In 1498, Portuguese explorer, Vasco de Gama, circumnavigated the Cape of Good Hope to establish a
sea route to India. He was the first European to reach India by sea, opening up this lucrative trade route
and bypassing the camel caravans which had provided the Arab merchants with much of their wealth for
centuries. By 1515, the Portuguese occupied Julfar near Ras Al Khaimah and built a customs house where
they taxed the region’s flourishing trade with India and the Far East.

Over the next 100 years, there was fierce rivalry between the European countries, particularly the Dutch and
the French, to control the trade with India and with the Gulf. By the middle of the 17th century, however, it
was the British who came to dominate. The rich cargoes provided tempting targets for pirates who regularly
harassed European ships, despite the presence of European and Omani warships to protect them. As a
result, the whole area acquired the name of the ‘Pirate Coast’. The conflict led to a series of interventions by
the British to stop the piracy and, in 1820, the British imposed a General Treaty of Peace on the nine Arab
Sheikhdoms and established a garrison in the region.

Raids continued intermittently until 1835, when the Sheikhs agreed not to engage in hostilities at sea by
signing the Maritime Truce. In 1853, they signed the Treaty of Peace in Perpetuity with Britain under which
the Sheikhs agreed to a perpetual maritime truce. The British enforced it and disputes between the Sheikhs
were referred to the British for settlement. As a result of this series of treaties, the area became known as
the Trucial Coast and the Emirates as the Trucial States.

Primarily in reaction to the colonial ambitions of other European countries, Britain and the Trucial
Sheikhdoms established closer bonds with the 1892 treaty similar to treaties entered into by Britain
with other Arabian Gulf principalities. The Sheikhs agreed not to enter into relationships with any foreign
government other than Britain without its consent. In return, the British promised to protect the Trucial Coast
from all aggression by sea and to help in case of land attack. The area was known as the Trucial Coast until
the British Government decided to withdraw from the region in the late 1960s and the subsequent creation
of the UAE in 1971.
The main concern of the British was to protect trade by sea and they did not wish to become involved
in inter-tribal politics. Throughout this period, the strongest group within the Bedouin tribes was the Bani
Yas. The Bani Yas were originally based in Liwa, an oasis deep in the Empty Quarter desert, but moved
their base to Abu Dhabi in 1793. They maintained an uneasy peace with the other tribes of the interior but
diminishing resources caused unrest and inter-tribal troubles over land continued to use up the resources of
the British.

DID YOU KNOW? Separate families within the Bani Yas moved to Abu Dhabi and to Dubai;
the tribal group in Abu Dhabi is called Al Bu Falah and the tribal group in Dubai is known as
Al Bu Falasah.

Discovery of oil
At the beginning of the 20th century, Abu Dhabi was a subsistence economy made up of small fishing
villages, pearling, camel herding and farming in the oases. The decline of the pearl industry in the 1930s
created significant hardship for the local population with the loss of their largest export. The economy was
struggling and many people were suffering. However, the discovery of oil in Iran, Iraq, Bahrain and then
Saudi Arabia was to change all of this.

World War II delayed developments in the region, but the Sheikhs of Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah were
already in discussions about oil exploration in the Trucial States and, in 1939, Sheikh Shakhbout bin Sultan
Al Nahyan granted the first oil concessions.

The first oil find was under an old pearling bed in the Gulf, Umm Shaif, in 1958 and then they struck oil in
the desert at Murban in 1960. The first cargo of crude oil was exported from Jabel Dhanna in Abu Dhabi in
1962. As oil revenues increased, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan began a comprehensive programme
to build new schools, housing, hospitals and roads. When Dubai’s oil exports commenced in 1969, Sheikh
Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum, the Ruler of Dubai, also used oil revenues to improve his people’s quality
of life.

There were two oil companies:

• Petroleum Development (Trucial Coast – PDTC) later renamed Abu Dhabi Petroleum Company (ADPC)
whose partners included BP. They were responsible for onshore exploration
• Abu Dhabi Marine Areas Ltd. (ADMA), a joint venture between BP and Campagnie Francaise des
Petroles (later Total) of France. They were responsible for offshore exploration.

On 6th August 1966, Sheikh Shakhbout was succeeded by his younger brother, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan
Al Nahayn. In 1971, Sheikh Zayed became president of the newly-created UAE and the Abu Dhabi National
Oil Company was founded (ADNOC). In December 1974, the company gained a 60% interest in ADPC and
ADMA. In Dubai, the Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC) was formed to manage oil production in Dubai.

Today, oil production in the UAE is in the region of 2.3 million barrels per day and it possesses the sixth
largest proven oil reserves in the world. It is the world’s seventh biggest oil producer and the fourth largest
net oil exporter, representing 15% of OPEC’s total oil output.

The key aspects of history that you should be aware of are:

• The early settlements – specifically how the patterns of living changed from nomadic herdsmen and
fishermen to more settled communities
• Ancient trade routes –that carried the valuable markets of spice, silk and incense around the world and
how this changed the fortunes of the traders of Arabia.
• The pearl industry – the rise and fall of pearl fishing in the region and the key challenges it faced
• The Trucial States – the treaties with the British that protected and supported the Sheikhdoms of the
region.
• Discovery of oil – the effect of oil exploration, the companies involved and then the huge impact
production had on the future of the UAE
Key milestones for the United Arab Emirates
Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan
In 1966, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan became Ruler of Abu Dhabi, a post he held for a period of
38 years. He became the principal driving force behind the formation of the United Arab Emirates; Sheikh
Zayed recognised that the wealth generated by oil had the potential to transform the fortunes of Abu Dhabi
and the Emirates. He came to power with a vision for the development and modernisation of the country.
A key priority was developing the country’s infrastructure, which included building new roads, constructing
a bridge to link Abu Dhabi Island to the mainland and establishing schools, housing, medical services, a
seaport and an airport. These major investments created employment and opportunity.

It improved the lives of ordinary people; modern roads were laid over the desert and fresh water and
electricity connected to every house; a modern education system was established and literacy classes
were introduced. It was possible for Bedouins in the desert to receive medical services from a clinic for the
first time.

Independence
On 6th August 1966, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan became Ruler of Abu Dhabi. Sheikh Zayed had a
clear vision for the future of the region and believed that working in cooperation for the good of the people
should be the ultimate goal. Even before he began negotiations on creating a union, he ensured that a large
part of the Emirate’s oil revenue went into the Trucial States Development Fund. In 1968, Britain announced
it would withdraw from the Gulf by 1971. This created a huge opportunity for unification of the Emirates
and the creation of a partnership which would be much more formal than the Trucial States had been. This
prompted Sheikh Zayed, Ruler of Abu Dhabi, and Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Ruler of Dubai, to
begin planning a federation. On February 18 1968, the two rulers met at Al Sameeh on the border between
Abu Dhabi and Dubai. This historic meeting marked an agreement to merge the two Emirates, to conduct
foreign affairs, defence, security and social services jointly, and to adopt a common immigration policy. Other
administrative matters were left to the jurisdiction of the local government of each Emirate. The agreement
became known as the Union Accord and was the first step towards uniting the Trucial Coast as a whole.

In February 1968, the nine states gathered at a constitutional conference in Dubai to agree an 11-point
plan. This included Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah, and Fujairah
plus Bahrain and Qatar. Over the next three years, the states worked on creating a constitutional and
legal framework for the Union. In the summer of 1971, external events led to the independence of Bahrain
and Qatar. On 18th July 1971, the six Emirates of Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain
and Fujairah agreed to the formation of a new federation – the United Arab Emirates. This was formally
announced on 2nd December 1971; Ras Al Khaimah joined the following year on the 10th February 1972.

The rulers of the other Emirates unanimously elected Sheikh Zayed as the first President for a period of five
years and Sheikh Rashid as vice-president. The Supreme Council elected Sheikh Zayed several more times
until he passed away. He is remembered as the builder of the nation and as ‘a loving father to the nation’s
citizens’ (‘Baba Zayed’).

Further your knowledge

To find out more about the UAE’s first elections, visit the following link:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/6182581.stm
 1987 - 2006 1990 - Sheikh Rashid Bin Said Al Maktum passes away and is succeeded
A Time of Growth by his son, Sheikh Maktoum Bin-Rashid Al Maktoum as Ruler of
Dubai and UAE vice-president
1991 - UAE joins forces with the allies aganist Iraq after the invasion
of Kuwait
2004 - UAE President Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan passes away
and is succeeded by his son, Sheikh Khalifa
2005 - Sheikh Khalifa announces plans for the UAE’s first elections. Half of
the members of the FNC will be elected by a limited number
of citizens
2006 - Sheikh Maktoum Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Prime Minister and
vice-president and Ruler of Dubai passes away and is succeeded
by his brother Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum
2006 - First elections held

Tribes in the UAE

Lineage is very important in Arab culture and most Emirati nationals can tell you to which tribe they belong.
The name of the tribe or branch of the tribe, may be part of their name for example HH Sheikh Zayed as
Zayed bin (‘’son of’’) Sultan (his father) Al Nahyan (family of Nahyan). On marriage, women keep their father’s
name so for example Sheikh Zayed’s wife was HH Fatima Bint (‘’daughter of’’) Mubarak (her father) Al Ketbi
(her family name).

first name bin/bint father’s name family name

The family name could be the name of an ancestor from countless generations ago who is considered the
patron of the many groups of families making up the tribe.

The main two tribal groupings are Qawasim and Bani Yas. These two emerged as the leading powers in the
region around the 18th century. The Qawasim were land and sea traders and dominated the region of the
Emirates of Ras Al Khaimah and Sharjah. The Bani Yas were agricultural and pastoral tribes based in what
are now Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

Members of the tribe were traditionally bound by bonds of mutual assistance and a concept of honour to
immediate blood relatives. The strength of these bonds and a mutual dependence provided the basis for the
strength of the tribe.

The Bani Yas can be traced back to Yas Bin Amer, whose tribe came from the tribe of Nizar Bin Maid bin
Adnan. Adnan is thought to be one of the two ancestors (along with Qahtan) of all the tribes of southern
Arabia. The Bani Yas were based in Liwa oasis but grew very powerful throughout the region through
numerical superiority and military prowess. Because of this, many tribes sought to join up with the Bani
Yas for protection and security and it became a confederation of about 20 different sub-sections. In 1793,
a sub-section of this tribe called Al Bu Falah resettled in Abu Dhabi and it is from this sub-section that the
present day rulers of Abu Dhabi, the Al Nahyan family, come.

A traditional Bedouin tribe, the members of the Al Bu Falah spent the winter with their camels in the desert
and went pearl fishing in the summer. In 1833, a large influential group of the Bani Yas moved to Dubai
under the leadership of Maktoum bin Buti Al Maktoum and this family continues to rule Dubai to this day.
Other sections of the Bani Yas tribe included:

Al Rumaithat - this group traditionally depended upon the fishing and pearling industries

Al Bu Mahair - like the Rumaithat, this group were fishermen and pearl divers

Al Qubaisat - one of the largest groups who settled in the Liwa oasis

Al Mazrouei - the main Bedouin section of the Bani Yas, they lived in settlements in the Liwa oasis and
depended on camels, pearling boats and date plantations

Al Hawamil - another large section of the settled population in the Liwa oasis who owned goats and sheep
as well as fishing boats and pearling boats

Al Maharbah - these were both nomadic and settled communities and were involved in the pearling
industry with a small fleet of 40 boats

Al Mishaghin - this was a small group of Bedouin families who settled in Dubai and were a sub-section of
the Al Bu Mahair

Al Sudan - this group was spread out along the entire coast and was dependent on the sea for its
livelihood. They played an active part in the fishing and pearling trade but were also traders.

This traditional tribal grouping became the basis of a nation-state which covered a large and geographically
diverse territory. The coherence of the group was due to the fact that the sections and sub-sections and
allied groups did not live separate existences but shared community life and intermarried in the villages of
the Liwa oasis. They were mutually dependent, bound together by their code of honour. The nomads of one
tribe cared for the camels of another tribe and those with no boats of their own went on the boats of others.
Most families also had relatives living in Abu Dhabi so an urban social mix was also growing.
Knowledge Bank: The Formation and History
of the UAE
Overview of the history of Abu Dhabi and the UAE

1. Early settlement
• Bedouin tribes lived in varied terrain and were self-sufficient with lives built around family values. They
moved between the sea for fishing and the desert where they could graze their animals
• The oasis was vital to survival for the Bedouin as a water source but it was also where they harvested
crops such as dates
• Dates were a vitamin-rich staple in the nomadic diet, portable for long journeys across desert,
mountains and sea
• The camel was central to nomad existence; they provided food and milk as well as transport. Their
tough skin and wool was used for household items

2. Ancient trade routes in the Arabian Peninsula

• As nomadic communities settled, trade routes began to emerge right across the Arabian Peninsula
• By the early 7th century, trade routes stretched as far as Europe, India and Asia
• Trade routes were hugely influential in the development of the region and many are still famous today
such as the Spice and Silk Routes
• The main route across Arabia became known as the Incense Route or the Incense Road of Antiquity
• The Incense Routes were mostly controlled by the Arabs who brought frankincense and myrrh by camel
caravan from southern Arabia and for trade with India, Africa and East Asia

3. Pearl industry
• The pearl oyster or lulu was the main source of economic wealth in the region before the discovery of oil
• Pearl oysters occur naturally in the calm water and shallow banks of the Gulf
• Individual pearls have been found in excavations on archaeological sites that date back at least
7000 years
• The expansion of pearl fishing changed the settlement habits of nomadic communities from their
agricultural-based lifestyle to that of the coastal fringes
• Many families settled in places like Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah
• The risks of the pearling industry were very great and the life of a pearl diver was dangerous and
often short
• The decline of the pearl industry began before World War II and was due to many factors including the
production of cheaper cultured pearls in Japan in 1921

4. The Trucial States

• In 1498, a Portuguese explorer established a sea route to India
• The Portuguese explorer was the first European to reach India by sea, opening up a lucrative trade route
and bypassing the camel caravans
• By 1515, the Portuguese occupied Julfar near Ras Al Khaimah and built a customs house where they
taxed the region’s flourishing trade with India and the Far East
• Conflict led to a series of interventions by the British to stop the piracy and, in 1820, the British imposed
a General Treaty of Peace on the nine Arab Sheikhdoms and established a garrison in the region
• In 1853, the Treaty of Peace in Perpetuity was signed with Britain under which the Sheikhs agreed to a
perpetual maritime truce
• The British enforced the Treaty and disputes between the Sheikhs were referred to the British for
settlement. As a result of this series of treaties, the area became known as the Trucial Coast and the
Emirates as the Trucial States
• The British promised to protect the Trucial Coast from all aggression by sea and to help in case of land
attack. The area was known as the Trucial Coast until the creation of the UAE in 1971
• Abu Dhabi is four hours ahead of UTC (Co-ordinated Universal Time – formerly known as GMT).

5. Discovery of oil
• The decline of the pearl industry in the 1930s created significant hardship for the local population with
the loss of their largest export
• The economy was struggling but the discovery of oil in Iran, Iraq, Bahrain and then Saudi Arabia was to
change all of this
• In 1939, Sheikh Shakhbout bin Sultan Al Nahyan granted the first oil concessions
• The first oil find was under an old pearling bed in the Gulf in 1958
• Oil was then struck in the desert at Murban in 1960
• The first cargo of crude oil was exported from Abu Dhabi in 1962
• There were two oil companies:
- Petroleum Development (Trucial Coast) Ltd (PDTC)
- Abu Dhabi Marine Areas Ltd (ADMA)
• Today, oil production in the UAE is in the region of 2.3 million barrels per day
• The UAE is one of the world’s biggest oil producers

6. Key milestones for the United Arab Emirates

• In 1966, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan became Ruler of Abu Dhabi
• Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan became the driving force behind the formation of the United Arab
Emirates, a post he held for 38 years
• In 1968, Britain announced it would withdraw its position in the Gulf by 1971
• On 18th February 1968, an historic agreement, the Union Accord, was signed between Abu Dhabi and
Dubai in Al Sameeh
• In February 1968, nine states convened a constitutional conference in Dubai and developed an
11-point agreement
• During summer of 1971, Bahrain and Qatar declared independence
• Six Emirates united as one nation on 2nd December 1971; Ras Al Khaimah joined the following year
• Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan is remembered as the builder of the nation and as ‘a loving father
(Baba) to the nation’s citizens’

7. Tribes in the UAE

• Most Emirati nationals can tell you which tribe they belong to
• The name of the tribe may be part of their name. For example:

a. HH Sheikh Zayed as Zayed bin (‘’son of’’) Sultan (his father) Al Nahyan (family of Nahyan)

first name bin/bint father’s name family name

b. On marriage, women keep their father’s name so, for example, Sheikh Zayed’s wife was HH Fatima
bint (‘’daughter of’’) Mubarak (her father) Al Ketbi (her family name).
• The two main tribal groupings are the Qawasim and the Bani Yas.
• The Qawasim were land and sea traders and dominated the region of the Emirates of Ras Al Khaimah
and Sharjah
• The Bani Yas were agricultural and pastoral tribes based in what is now Abu Dhabi and Dubai
• In 1833, a large influential group of the Bani Yas moved to Dubai under the leadership of Maktoum bin
Buti Al Maktoum and this family continues to rule Dubai to this day.
• Sections of the Bani Yas tribe included:
• Al Rumaithat
• Al Bu Mahair
• Al Qubaisat
• Al Mazrouei
• Al Hawamil
• Al Maharbah
• Al Mishaghin
• Al Sudan