65 Facts About Oman

1.

Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia.

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2.

Formerly a maritime empire, Oman is the oldest continuously independent state in the Arab world.

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3.

Oman is categorized as a high-income economy and, as of 2022, ranks as the 64th most peaceful country in the world according to the Global Peace Index.

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4.

Central Oman has its own indigenous Samad Late Iron Age cultural assemblage named eponymously from Samad al-Shan.

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5.

Arab migration to Oman started from northern-western and south-western Arabia and those who chose to settle had to compete with the indigenous population for the best arable land.

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6.

Azd settlers in Oman are descendants of Nasr bin Azd, a branch of Nabataeans, and were later known as "the Al-Azd of Oman".

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7.

Alhajjaj made an attempt to subjugate Oman, which was ruled by Suleiman and Said, the sons of Abbad bin Julanda.

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8.

Later in the 17th century using is bases in Oman, Portugal took on the biggest battle ever taken in the Persian Gulf .

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9.

The treaty granted autonomous rule to the Imamate in the interior of Oman and recognized the sovereignty of the coast of Oman, the Sultanate of Muscat.

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10.

The exiled partisans of the now abolished Imamate of Oman presented the case of Oman to the Arab League and the United Nations.

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11.

In 1981, Oman became a founding member of the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council.

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12.

Oman's was appointed to the post of National Authority for Industrial Craftsmanship, an office that attempts to preserve and promote Oman's traditional crafts and stimulate industry.

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13.

Oman's climate is hot and dry in the interior and humid along the coast.

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14.

Central desert of Oman is an important source of meteorites for scientific analysis.

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15.

In 2001, Oman had nine endangered species of mammals, five endangered types of birds, and nineteen threatened plant species.

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16.

The Oman government has refused to implement a spay and neuter programme or create any animal shelters in the country.

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17.

In recent years, Oman has become one of the newer hot spots for whale watching, highlighting the critically endangered Arabian humpback whale, the most isolated and only non-migratory population in the world, sperm whales and pygmy blue whales.

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18.

Oman is a unitary state and an absolute monarchy, in which all legislative, executive and judiciary power ultimately rests in the hands of the hereditary Sultan.

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19.

Oman is an absolute monarchy, with the Sultan's word having the force of law.

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20.

Since 1970, Oman has pursued a moderate foreign policy, and has expanded its diplomatic relations dramatically.

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21.

Oman is among the very few Arab countries that have maintained friendly ties with Iran.

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22.

WikiLeaks disclosed US diplomatic cables which state that Oman helped free British sailors captured by Iran's navy in 2007.

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23.

Torture methods in use in Oman include mock execution, beating, hooding, solitary confinement, subjection to extremes of temperature and to constant noise, abuse and humiliation.

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24.

Oman's police do not need search warrants to enter people's homes.

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25.

On 17 July 2015, Alfazari left Oman seeking political asylum in UK after a travel ban was issued against him without providing any reasons and after his official documents including his national ID and passport were confiscated for more than 8 months.

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26.

Plight of domestic workers in Oman is a taboo subject.

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27.

Oman was one of the last countries to abolish slavery, in 1970.

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28.

Since a slump in oil prices in 1998, Oman has made active plans to diversify its economy and is placing a greater emphasis on other areas of industry, namely tourism and infrastructure.

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29.

Oman had a 2020 Vision to diversify the economy established in 1995, which targeted a decrease in oil's share to less than 10 percent of GDP by 2020, but it was rendered obsolete in 2011.

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30.

Oman's military spending to GDP between 2016 and 2018 averaged 10 percent, while the world's average during the same period was 2.

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31.

Oman's health spending to GDP between 2015 and 2016 averaged 4.

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32.

Oman's government spending on education to GDP in 2016 was 6.

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33.

Oil is extracted and processed by Petroleum Development Oman, with proven oil reserves holding approximately steady, although oil production has been declining.

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34.

In September 2019, Oman was confirmed to become the first Middle Eastern country to host the International Gas Union Research Conference .

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35.

Tourism in Oman has grown considerably recently, and it is expected to be one of the largest industries in the country.

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36.

Oman has one of the most diverse environments in the Middle East with various tourist attractions and is particularly well known for adventure and cultural tourism.

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37.

Muscat, the capital of Oman, was named the second best city to visit in the world in 2012 by the travel guide publisher Lonely Planet.

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38.

In November 2019, Oman made the rule of visa on arrival an exception and introduced the concept of e-visa for tourists from all nationalities.

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39.

In industry, innovation and infrastructure, Oman is still faced with "significant challenges", as per United Nations Sustainable Development Goals index, as of 2019.

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40.

Oman has scored high on the rates of internet use, mobile broadband subscriptions, logistics performance and on the average of top 3 university rankings.

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41.

The majority of firms in Oman operate in the oil and gas, construction and trade sectors.

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42.

Oman is refurbishing and expanding the ports infrastructure in Muscat, Duqm, Sohar and Salalah to expand tourism, local production and export shares.

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43.

The majority of industrial activity in Oman takes place in 8 industrial states and 4 free-zones.

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44.

Oman was ranked 76th in the Global Innovation Index in 2021.

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45.

Oman is considered to have good infrastructure for date production and support provision to cultivation and marketing, but lacks innovation in farming and cultivation, industrial coordination in the supply chain and encounter high losses of unused dates.

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46.

Endangered indigenous languages in Oman include Kumzari, Bathari, Harsusi, Hobyot, Jibbali and Mehri.

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47.

Oman was the first Arab country in the Persian Gulf to have German taught as a second language.

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48.

Accreditation standards and mechanisms with a quality control that focuses on input assessments, rather than output, are areas of improvement in Oman, according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development 2014 report.

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49.

The transformation Index BTI 2018 report on Oman recommends that the education curriculum should focus more on the "promotion of personal initiative and critical perspective".

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50.

Oman was ranked 84th in the Global Innovation Index in 2020, down from 80th in 2019.

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51.

Oman's health spending to GDP between 2015 and 2016 averaged 4.

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52.

Oman has been making strides in health research too recently.

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53.

The relatively recent and artificial nature of the state in Oman makes it difficult to describe a national culture; however, sufficient cultural heterogeneity exists within its national boundaries to make Oman distinct from other Arab States of the Persian Gulf.

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54.

Oman TV is the only state-owned national television channel broadcaster in Oman.

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55.

Oman Radio is the first and only state-owned radio channel.

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56.

Oman has nine main newspapers, five in Arabic and four in English.

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57.

Media landscape in Oman has been continuously described as restrictive, censored, and subdued.

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58.

Art movements in the 20th century reveal that the art scene in Oman began with early practices that included a range of tribal handicrafts and self-portraiture in painting since the 1960s.

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59.

Sultanate's flagship cultural institution, the National Museum of Oman, opened on 30 July 2016 with 14 permanent galleries.

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60.

The 23rd Arabian Gulf Cup that took place in Kuwait, from 22 December 2017 until 5 January 2018 with Oman winning their second title, defeating the United Arab Emirates in the final on penalties following a goalless draw.

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61.

Oman hosted the Asian 2011 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup qualifiers, where 11 teams competed for three spots at the FIFA World Cup.

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62.

Oman hosted the Men's and Women's 2012 Beach Handball World Championships at the Millennium Resort in Mussanah, from 8 to 13 July.

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63.

Oman has competed repeatedly for a position in the FIFA World Cup, but have yet qualified to compete in the tournament.

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64.

The origins of bull-butting in Oman remain unknown, but many locals believe it was brought to Oman by the Moors of Spanish origin.

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65.

Oman was chosen as the venue to decide on the grouping of teams for the 2021 ICC Men's T20 World Cup.

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