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Historical documents by foreign explorers who lived in or visited Qatar in the 18th and 19th centuries reveal much of the socio-economic transformation that the country has gone through over the years.
“The View of Qatar in Western Travellers’ Writings” symposium was launched yesterday in Doha with experts from different countries, such as Morocco and France, delivering lectures on the topic.
The issues addressed include the role of travel literature in documenting identity and heritage, the east of the Arab Peninsula in the writings of Western travellers, Qatar in the writings of French travellers and sailors, and the image of Qatar in French historical writings and the study of historical transformations in Qatar.
“I am sure we will find a lot of history and heritage under the sands of Qatar,” said Dr Prince Xavier Beguin Billecocq from France.
The historian and writer pointed out that in France, there are many seaports with libraries that contain a large number of travellers’ documents and that he has worked on the archives of Paris and Marseilles, besides the diplomatic reports of Vatican delegates and monks in the region during the 18th and 19th centuries.
Further, he said such documents contain a lot of details about life in that period and some of them point to the business transactions of a French arms and ammunition dealer who used to trade in English-made weapons in Qatar and Oman.
Dr Billecocq said he also met the grandsons of some travellers who used to live and work in Qatar in the past. “All of them are very old people, yet they remember the things that used to be here at that time,” he added.
Various documents and reports of such explorers indicate that Qatar was a very active business hub in the region, linking other spots in the Arab Peninsula, especially in terms of marine trade.
He, however, noted that the study of such documents involves many challenges, such as language, where word usage and script have changed considerably, and a huge volume of documents that is not easily accessible at times.
“Qatar Heritage and Identity Centre (QHIC) is looking forward to documenting the activities of this seminar in a publication that preserves for us the content of these papers and contributions, so that they become sources for the history of Qatar,” said Dr Khalid Yousef al-Mulla, general manager of QHIC.
The book is expected to be distributed among school and university students as well as public libraries. It is also hoped that a lyrical drama will be produced, based on the information and documents mentioned in the book, to educate youngsters about the heritage and history of the country in an interesting manner.
The forum organised by QHIC will conclude today with more open discussions among experts on related issues.
