We had heard and read many intriguing descriptions of the Shihuh: a mountain community with a distinctive dialect, strong traditions and a long history in the rugged northern Hajar Mountains.
Those stories made us curious, but we did not want to understand the community only through old travel accounts and second-hand descriptions. We wanted to listen to people speak about their own history and traditions.
A note on terminology
“Shihuh” is a commonly used English spelling. “Al Shuhooh” and the family name “Al Shehhi” are also widely encountered. This article describes a personal visit in 2011 and should be read as a record of that meeting, not as a complete account of every family or community tradition.
The journey to Ras Al Khaimah
One day in May 2011, accompanied by a good friend who helped us with translation, we travelled to Ras Al Khaimah and visited the Al Shuhooh Cultural and Heritage Association.
We arrived with many questions. We had read of mountain homesteads, seasonal movement between the highlands and the coast, distinctive building techniques, traditional foods and a dialect that had fascinated travellers and scholars.
A welcome in the majlis
We were welcomed into a spacious majlis by Sheikh Humaidi Saeed Salem Al Shehhi and other representatives of the association.
The atmosphere was generous and open. The men were clearly proud to share their history and traditions, including practices that had survived the rapid modernisation of Ras Al Khaimah and the wider UAE.
What first appeared to us as a story about a remote mountain people became a conversation about living heritage, family memory and adaptation.
We quickly understood that Shihuh identity could not be reduced to images of isolated stone houses. Many Shihuh families were already fully involved in the everyday life of modern Ras Al Khaimah while continuing to value their mountain roots.
Life between mountain and coast
Traditionally, many Shihuh families followed a seasonal pattern of life. Stone houses in the mountains were associated with the cooler season, farming and livestock, while lighter palm-frond dwellings near the coast were used during warmer months and supported fishing, date harvesting and coastal activity.
Their diet reflected what could be cultivated, raised or traded in a harsh landscape. Dates, barley and wheat were important, together with milk, cheese and meat from goats.
This was not aimless wandering. It was a practical rhythm shaped by temperature, water, grazing, agriculture and access to the sea.
- Mountain stone houses
- Coastal palm-frond dwellings
- Terraced agriculture
- Date cultivation
- Goat herding
- Fishing and coastal work
- Seasonal movement
- Family-based land use
The family tree
During the visit, we were shown what was described to us as the tribe's family tree. Its lineage began with Adam and continued through generations to present-day Shihuh families.
The display communicated more than genealogy. It showed the importance of ancestry, continuity and belonging in the way community history was remembered and presented.
At the time, we were told that an estimated 250 Shihuh families lived in Ras Al Khaimah and that others had settled across the Emirates. The mountainous Musandam Peninsula in Oman was described as home to a much larger Shihuh population.
Historical estimate
The figure of 250 families reflects what was shared with us during the 2011 visit. It should not be treated as a current population count.
Roots that remain in the hills
Most families now live in modern, air-conditioned homes in towns and cities. Yet many retain powerful connections with the mountains, particularly older people who experienced the remarkable changes of recent decades.
Some families still have mountain dwellings or land associated with stone houses, carefully constructed dry-stone walls, terraced fields, date palms and goats.
Many settlements are no longer occupied throughout the year. Migration to cities, road access, schooling, employment and changing water availability all contributed to this shift. Some places, however, continue to be maintained or visited.
Apparently empty does not mean abandoned
Hikers should never assume that a house, field, terrace or water system has no owner. Respect buildings and cultivated land, avoid entering structures without permission and leave all objects where they are.
A room filled with everyday history
In front of us, a collection of characteristic artefacts, utensils and weapons had been arranged for display. We noticed bags made from goat skin, a drum, a bow and arrows, firearms, pottery, kitchen tools, jewellery and the distinctive long-handled axe known as the jirz.
Seen together, these objects illustrated daily life rather than a single ceremonial tradition. They related to food, farming, travel, protection, music, clothing and work in difficult terrain.
We were also shown skilfully fabricated knives made with wood, metal and horn. A distinctive feature was a raised thumb rest along the top of the handle.
The jirz
The jirz is one of the most recognisable objects associated with the mountain communities of Musandam and northern Ras Al Khaimah. It is a small axe head mounted on a long, narrow wooden shaft.
We were told that in earlier times it could serve many purposes: as a walking stick on steep ground, a practical tool around the house or farm, and a means of protection against animals or an intruder.
Today, the jirz is also carried as an expression of identity and formal heritage. Its shape is distinctive, and its presence immediately connects the wearer with the mountain traditions of the north.
Builders of the mountain landscape
The Shihuh adapted their architecture to the limited materials and severe conditions of the Ru'us Al Jibal. From a distance, many walls and houses merge almost completely with the ochre and grey mountains.
High dry-stone retaining walls created agricultural terraces on slopes where cultivation would otherwise have been impossible. Low stone houses had thick walls and roofs assembled from timber, palm material, mud and stones.
Storehouses, zigzag stairways, field walls and tombs reveal a detailed understanding of gravity, drainage, shade, temperature and scarce usable land.
- Stone selected from the immediate mountain environment
- Thick walls for strength and temperature control
- Terraces supported by dry-stone retaining walls
- Roofs made from layered natural materials
- Narrow paths and stairways adapted to steep slopes
- Storage spaces designed to protect valuable supplies
The mysterious fire stone
One object especially surprised us: a black stone packed together with tinder and an elegant metal striker. During the visit it was described to us as a meteorite that had once been used to start a fire.
Nobody present could explain how the stone had been identified as a meteorite, and we were left with more questions than answers. Was it truly meteoritic? Was it another iron-rich rock? Was this method widely used, or was this object unusual?
We knew of no readily available flint in the surrounding Hajar terrain, but that alone did not prove the stone's origin. Flint or other suitable materials could also have arrived through trade.
An unresolved observation
The “meteorite” identification was part of the explanation given during our visit. We have not independently verified the stone's composition, and it is presented here as an intriguing recollection rather than a confirmed scientific finding.
Memories of the Arabian leopard
The conversation also touched on the Arabian leopard, known locally as the nimr. We were told that Shihuh mountain people were among the last generations in the region to remember leopards roaming the Hajar Mountains.
Such memories matter because they connect cultural history with the ecological history of the mountains. They remind us that the landscape experienced by earlier generations held wildlife that is now extremely rare or absent from much of its former range.
Oral accounts cannot by themselves establish the date or location of a final confirmed sighting, but they preserve how the animal remained part of mountain memory.
Looking back on the visit
Our 2011 visit began with curiosity about a community often described by outsiders as secluded or mysterious. It ended with a much more grounded appreciation of people who had adapted to extraordinary terrain while carrying their identity into modern life.
The most lasting impression was not any single object. It was the pride with which stories, skills and family history were shared in the majlis.
The mountains preserve walls, terraces and houses. Living heritage is preserved when people are given the space to tell their own story.
Further reading
Ras Al Khaimah's Department of Antiquities and Museums provides additional historical context on the Shihuh, their distinctive dialect and the wider tribal heritage of the emirate. Historical records concerning Musandam and the Shihuh are also preserved by the Qatar Digital Library.
- Ras Al Khaimah Department of Antiquities and Museums
- Qatar Digital Library: historical notes on the Shihuh and Musandam
DubaiHiking.org Editorial Team
DubaiHiking.org shares hiking stories, cultural encounters and practical outdoor knowledge from Ras Al Khaimah, the Hajar Mountains and the wider UAE.
