Classroom lesson · Sport · 🇴🇲 Oman

Dhow Sailing

Ancient wooden sailing ships that connected Oman to the world

Photo · Wikimedia Commons

What is it?

For thousands of years, Omani sailors built and sailed dhows — traditional wooden ships with distinctive triangular sails called lateen sails. These ships carried Omani traders, explorers, and goods all the way to East Africa, India, China, and the Persian Gulf. The dhow is one of the most important symbols of Omani history and pride.

Tell me more

A dhow is built using ancient carpentry techniques passed from shipbuilder to shipbuilder. The wooden planks of the hull are stitched together using rope — not nails — in the traditional method, though modern dhows may use nails. The triangular lateen sail is designed to catch wind from the side, which allows the ship to sail at an angle to the wind, not just with it directly behind.

Omani sailors used the seasonal monsoon winds — called the khareef in the south and the shamal in the Gulf — to time their voyages. They sailed south-west to Africa with one season's winds and came back north-east with the winds reversed months later. This required incredible knowledge of the sky, stars, waves, and weather patterns.

Oman's famous explorer and sailor, known as Ibn Majid, was one of the greatest navigators of the medieval world. He wrote detailed guides to the stars and sea routes. Omani navigation knowledge and dhow-building expertise made Oman one of the great maritime powers of the ancient world.

Today, dhow sailing is celebrated as a living craft. Craftsmen in Sur, a coastal town in Oman, still build dhows using traditional methods. The sight of a large dhow under sail, its triangular sail catching the wind, is one of the most beautiful images of the Omani coast.

In the classroom

Walk your class through this in 15 minutes.

Talk together

Discussion prompts

01Omani sailors navigated by stars, waves, and wind patterns. What skills would you need to become a master navigator without GPS?
02Dhows connected Oman to Africa, India, and China. What goods do you think were traded along those routes?
03Why might it be important to keep traditional crafts like dhow-building alive, even if modern ships exist?

Try this

Classroom activity

Trace the dhow trade routes on a world map. Starting from Oman, draw lines to East Africa, India, and the Persian Gulf. Research one thing that might have been traded along each route. Write it beside the arrow. Decorate with small drawings of the goods.

Dhow Sailing

Walk your class through this in 15 minutes.

Discussion prompts

Classroom activity

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