[Oman-L] AlSultanah voyage to USA. Ahmed bin Namaan Sultan's envoy.

[Joachim Duester]

If I may add to what Ralph wrote below: for more information on the Sultana voyage, have a look at the following article:

Eilts, Hermann Frederick, 1922-2006:
"Ahmad bin Na'aman's Mission to the United States in 1840: the voyage of al-Sultanah to New York City"; in: Essex Institute Historical Collections, Vol. 98, No. 4 (October 1962), pp. 219-277

(also exists as a reprint by PDO Petroleum Development Oman, Muscat, done around 1974).

The envoy, al-Hajj Ahmad bin Na'aman bin Muhsin bin Abdallah al-Ka'abi, was Sayyid Said bin Sultan's personal secretary. It seems Sayyid Sa'id wanted to entrust a relative with the mission, but the relative declined. 

I must admit that it had completely escaped my notice that Ahmad bin Na'aman hailed from Basrah. I more or less associated the nisba "al-Ka'abi" with the only Bani Ka'ab I know, i.e. a prominent Omani tribe with headquarters in Mahadha (north of al-Buraimi). They also occur in other towns of Oman, both in the sultanate and the emirates. Of course, there may be connections between this tribe and the Ka'aban of Baharin/Qatar and Arabistan.

Best wishes,
Joachim

--- On Sat, 11/29/08, Ralph <ralphmct at omantel.net.om> wrote:

From: Ralph <ralphmct at omantel.net.om>
Subject: [Oman-L] AlSultanah voyage to USA. Ahmed bin Namaan Sultan's envoy.
To: oman-l at oman.org
Date: Saturday, November 29, 2008, 5:28 AM
For kind ttention of Abdul Aziz Ali Elkabi                  
            "Ahmed, or to cite his full name, AL HAJ
Ahmed bin Na aman bin Muhain bin Abdullah al-Bahrani was
born in 1784 in Basra, where he recieved a rudimentary,
classical Islamic education. Patrilineally, he was Arab,
descended from the renowned Bani Ka'ab (pronounced
Cha'ab) tribe of the Persian Gulf littoral. His mother
was Persian. Ahmed's early history is obscure. He is
said to have started as a lowly cabin boy, and, by dint of
sheer ability made his way upward. Ample evidence exists
attestng to his Muslim piety, though his detractors
sometimes attributed Sabean origins to him. At a later date
they were to pillory him with the sobriquet Wajhain, or two
faces."   
Hope this helps    
Regards Ralph