Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 14.djvu/941

* OMAN. 805 OMAR KHAYYAM. island of Socotra. The present ruling family originated in Yemen and was first establislied in the imaraatc in the person of Ahmed ibn Said in 1741. The rise of the U'ahabi power in Nedjed (see Akawa) resulted in considerable loss of territory. In 1850, on the death of Sultan Said, his possessions were divided between his two sons, one reeeiving the African territories and the other Muscat with the Persian possessions. These last were lost in 1875. Sultan Thuwany, who succeeded in Muscat, was assassinated in 18G8 by his son Selim, who reigned but a short time, and was driven out liy his uncle, Seyyid Turki ibn Said. In 188S the latter was succeeded by his son, Seyyid Feisal ibn Turki. The relations of Oman with Great Britain have been most friendly. The power of the Sultan is exercised very little beyond the capital, Muscat, the name of which is therefore probably better known in popular usage than that of the whole State. Consult Sahiljibn-Razik, History of the Iinaiiis and 8ei/u!s of Oman, from the Arabic by Badger (London, 17S1). O'MAN, C'H.iELES William Chadwick ( 1800 — ). A British historian, born at Mozuflferpore. India. He was educated at Winchester and at New College, Oxford, in 1883 became a fellow of All Souls' College, Oxford, and in 1900 deputy professor of modern historj- in the uni- versity. Among his published works are: A Eisioty of Greece ( 1888 ) ; J_ Short Bistory of the Byzantine Empire (1802) ; A Hif'lory of Europe 476-OlS (1893), in the "Periods of European History Series"; A Short History of England ( 1895)" ; A History of the Art of War in the Mid- dle Ages (1898) ; and Seren Roman Statesmen (1902). O'MAB (Ar. 'Umar ibn al-Khaftal)) . The second ilohammedan Caliph. He was born about 581. Before the year 617 he opposed the Prophet, but in that year he was won over to the new faith and became one of its ablest supporters. He was associated with Abu-bekr as one of his principal advisers, and on the death of Abu-bekr in 634 succeeded as Caliph, and pushed on the wars of conquest which had been undertaken by his advice, with increased vigor. Tle beginning of his reign was signalized by the victory of Cadesia (635) over the Persians. By 637 Omar had completed the conquest of Syria and Pales- tine. In 639 he sent Amru to invade Egypt. In 641 Alexandria fell, and the country passed from the Greeks to the Saracens. He was summoned to .Jerusalem in 637 to receive the keys of that city. Barca and Tripoli were next subdued by Amru. Armenia was overrun in 041. and about the same time the victory of Nchavend brought Persia under the sway of the Arabs. In 044 Omar was assassinated in the mosque of Jlodina by a Persian slave from motives of revenge. He lin- gered five days after receiving the wound, but re- fused to appoint a successor, and named six com- missioners who were to choose one from among themselves. He was buried in the mosque of jIi- dina, near the Propliet and Abu-bekr, and his tomb is still visited by pilgrims. Omar may be called the organizer of the Mohammedan power, as from a mere sect he raised the followers of Islam to the rank of a conquering nation, and left to liis successor an empire. He was the founder of many excellent institutions: he as- signed a regular pay to his soldiers, and made some excellent regulations for the more lenient treatment of slaves. He originated the practice of dating from the era of the Hejira (q.v.). See references under Caliphs and Moiiamiiedanism. OMAK,. Mo.SQUE OF. A structure on the site of the ancient temple on Mount Moriah at Jerusalem (q.v. for illustration), said to have been built by the Caliph Omar. It is octagonal and construct- ed of colored marbles and tiles. It contains the 'Sacred Kock,' formerly looked upon liy the .Tews as the site of the intended sacritice of Isaac and of the altar on which the sacrifices of the temple were oflered. In Mohammedan belief, the rock was the scene of the Propliet's ascension to heaven and bears the imprint of his feet. OMAR KHAYYAM, 6'mar Ki-yam' ( 7- ?I123). A Persian poet and astronomer. He was a native of the city of Nishapur in Khorasan. The date of his birth is not known, but it was probably before the middle of the eleventh cen- tury. His full name is given as Ghiyath ad-Din Abul-Fath Umar ibn Ibrahim-al-Kluiyyami. The name Khayyam, 'tent-maker,' seems to have been derived from his father's occupation. There are a few general points known about his life. He had a good education for his time, and the excellence of his memory is proved by a report that he could recite by heart, without a mistake, a book when he had read it over seven times. His special training was acquired from an aged teacher of Nishapur. the Imam Jluaffak. There is a persistent tradition that two of Omar Khayyam's fellow-students were Nizam ul-Mulk and Hassan ben Sabbah: the former of these was destined to become famous as the Grand Vizier of Alp Arslan, the latter infamous as the founder of the order of 'Assassins.' There are chronologi- cal difficulties in the way of making these thi-ee persons contemporaries in their youth, and this has led generally to a rejection of the story. The tale runs thus: The three collegians entered into a compact that whichever should first attain to fortune should aid the other two likewise to suc- cess. Nizam ul-Mulk"s talents and skill elevated him to tin- position of Grand Vizier to Alp Arslan. Not forgetful of the pledge, he raised Hassan to a position at Court which the latter soon abused. On Omar Khayyam, apparently by Omar's own preference. Nizam ul-Mulk arranged to bestow an annual stipend of 1200 mitlikals, or about ,$3000 a year, to enable him to follow his chosen pursuits. On the death of Alp Arslan and the accession of Jalal ad-Din Malik Shah, Omar Khayyam repaired from Nishapur to the new Sul- tan's capital, which was then at Jlerv, and re- ceived the appointment of Astronomer-Royal to the Court. He was engaged Avith seven other scientists to reform the calendar, which resulted in the adoption of a new era. the Jalalian, or in Persian Tarikh-i-JaU'il. or Malilc-HhiVu. This mode of reckoning dated from March 15. 1079 (tenth Ramazan, A.u. 471). His work on this commission was doubtless in large iiart only through collaboration, but the results of it are embodied in a series of < astronomical tables known as Ziji-i Malik-Hhahi. Besides this work three other mathematical contributions bear Omar Khayyam's name: an unedited monograph on extracting the square and cube roots, and another on 'Some Dilllculties of Euclid's Defini- tions,' while his Algebra, translated by Woepke in 1851, was important in the histoij' of mathe-