Omani People: A Photo Essay

The people of Oman are possibly one of the more hospitable races on the planet. Apart from being very kind and friendly, their dress, head gear and demeanor gives them the ‘X factor’ look that appeals to all Oman visitors. Unfortunately, the women of Oman do not like their photos clicked and hence there are no women photos in this photo essay, but just so you know Omani women have some of the best eye features. I have tried to add a small story with some details about the local culture so that you connect better with each of these photographs.

Note: Please ask permission before clicking pictures of Omani people. In most cases, the women will decline and the men will happily pose. You might get into trouble if you do not ask for permission before hand.


The Omani men wear a traditional dress that is called the dis dasha and a traditional turban called the muzzar. Apparently, this dressing is an ideal way to beat the Oman heat.


An elderly Omani gentleman.in the traditional attire at Jabreen castle near Nizwa.


This was Syed, the captain of my boat from Al Sawadi to Damaniyat Islands. While the divers were still in the water, the captain decided to cool off by taking a dip in the waters.


He is not a Omani national, but nonetheless an important part of Oman. If such people from Kerala or the rest of India stop coming to Oman for work, Oman will not have any labor workforce. A lot of skilled manual labor work is done by people from the Indian sub continent. In this case, this guy from Kerala is designing ships to be sold as souvenirs.


Two Omani nationals (one originally from Pakistan and the other from Baluchistan) inside a traditional Bedouin house in the middle of Al Sharqiya Sands.


A shop keeper from Nizwa who sells the very juicy and succulent Khallas and Fard dates of Oman. Personally, I prefer the Khallas dates, but both of them are really top class.


Naser, my driver was also my model. Here, he is wearing a traditional head gear called the Kummar. The head gear is a great fashion accessory.


Another stylish looking Omani gentleman from Nizwa. He was working at the ticket counter and on my way out, I asked him for his permission to take his photograph and he happily obliged.


While the tourists went off to watch the sunset, this Omani man parked himself on the sand dune and seemed to be enjoying himself. This was taken at around sunset time at Wahiba Sands.


Generally, Omani people don’t like to get their pictures clicked. But, the guy on the right was super keen on me clicking his photograph. He was so keen that he modeled for me and got multiple pictures of himself and his friend.


Omani men take a break at Wahiba Sands after an exerting dune bashing session. These men are great drivers and find great thrill in dune bashing.


She is not a Omani national, but a tourist or an expat who came to visit the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque in Muscat.


This was a pretty Omani girl who belonged to a Bedouin family. While the family had requested that we not photograph the women and men of the family, they were okay with me taking pictures of their kids and their house. This kid seemed to be very friendly with our group.


My Omani friend, Naser in his white dish dasha and stylish Muzzar at the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque at Muscat.