For the fifth day in a row, the Sharjah Heritage Days activities continued in the heritage area of KhorFakkan. A variety of heritage activities and performances took place with attractive folk groups, such as the Liwa Folk Troupe of the KhorFakkan Society for Culture and Folklore Arts that presented artistic performances and traditional folk dances to traditional songs and folk chants. Jabaliya, as the Dibba War Band, presented the art of Al-Razif Al-Harbi, and the Egyptian Layali Al-Mahfouz Ensemble displayed the Egyptian folk art and the Egyptian Zaffa, as well as the incense segment and the popular Tanooradance.

The activities, programs and activities on the fifth day were attended by His Excellency Khamis bin Salem Al Suwaidi, Chairman of the Districts and Villages Affairs Department, Dr Rashid Al Naqbi, Chairman of the KhorFakkanMunicipal Council, and Khaled Al Shehhi, Director of Sharjah Institute for Heritage, KhorFakkan Branch. A large gathering of heritage lovers, residents, and visitors of KhorFakkan and the region Eastern Province attended the activities and committed to all precautionary and preventive measures that were put in place for the safety and health of everyone.

Taking care of all necessary arrangements

Saqr Muhammad, Director of the Institutional Communication Department of the Sharjah Institute for Heritage, Chairman of the Coordination Committee for the Openings of External Areas, said: “We are working under the sublime directions of His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah so that Sharjah Heritage Days and its various activities are present in all the cities and regions of the emirate. KhorFakkan was the city chosen to host this year and has done so, with the many activities decorating this city, with handicrafts, traditional folklore and various arts rich in heritage and originality, not to mention the beautiful public presence. Sharjah Heritage Days have been organized with everyone’s interest, and there will be close follow-ups with all workers and participants from these days.”

He pointed out that all arrangements were made in advance of the start of these activities, with coordination of all events, and communication with all committees, especially the Crisis and Disaster Management (ECDMT) in Sharjah. In addition to taking care of all the necessary arrangements to ensure commitment to the implementation of the special protocol and precautionary measures, in light of these current exceptional circumstances concerning the new Coronavirus (Covid-19), two entry and exit gates were installed along with thermal detectors to measure the temperature of the audience. In coordination with the Municipal Council of KhorFakkan, social distancing signs were installed to remind the audience to leave a distance of two metres and determine breaks between seats to preserve the safety of the participants in all events.

A remarkable and vital presence of the technical committee of the days

AzharKubba, Chairman of the Artistic Committee for Sharjah Heritage Days, said: “The committee supervised the opening ceremony of the Sharjah Heritage Days, with all the various artistic performances, local, Arab and international, in the presence of around 50 people.”

He added: “The Heritage Area Theatre in KhorFakkan hosted many important events, and many popular artistic groups gave their performances on the stage. Labuan art and Habban art were on display, and teams from Arab and foreign communities, such as Iraq, Egypt and India, also participated and presented a range of interesting art. We invited Macedonia to present its artistic performances, in addition to the various other segments of the colours of Emirati and Gulf art. It was all followed and appreciated by the wide audience who attended this great festival and enjoyed these distinctive heritage days, with all their content and organization.”

Folk tales in the Al Mawrouth Library

Stories have a great impact on children. So, who among us did not listen as his mother or grandmother told a bedtime story? Who among us did not like stories and legends of school age? Who among us did not visit the school library to borrow stories to read them? Perhaps we read them more than once, and we may summarize them for it to be fixed in our memory. Stories develop the imagination of children and open their perceptions to many images and ideas, entertaining them in a beautiful world depicted in their imagination.

So, what do we think about popular stories that tell our reality and tell stories from our environment?

As part of the Sharjah Heritage Days, Al Mawrouth Library in KhorFakken organized an initiative entitled (Baraem the Heritage), which was presented by Professor Mahra Al Ghafli. In this, she presented a narrative story entitled (BadihaBadihouh), a story inspired by Emirati heritage. Suitable for children from the age of 6 to 12 years/adolescents, this story comes within the framework of preserving the popular heritage and it contains many traditional colloquial expressions so that children can get acquainted with it, to instil a love of reading in them on the one hand, and the other hand for the sake of access to heritage books because of their importance in preserving the folklore from extinction.

Al-Mutawa: The museum was the dream of my life

Ahmed Al-Mutawa expressed his happiness at the opening of his museum within the Sharjah Heritage Days in KhorFakkan, saying: “Praise be to God, this museum has been opened, which narrates the memories of the United Arab Emirates and lists part of its ancient history in several fields.”

Adding: “We display in the museum the currencies that were used in the country in the eighties of the seventeenth century, up to the other currencies that were used until the establishment of the Union State, which we now display for the first time. The nineteenth, and its circulation in the lands of the Qawasim in Sharjah, Ras al-Khaimah, Kalba, KhorFakkan and Dibba, and it is considered one of the rare currencies due to the shortage of its circulation and the limited geographical area where it was traded.”

He pointed out that through the museum, we list the official documents that were issued by the state before the Union, which talk about space, space travel and the future of space, as well as through stamps and cards, and also through the old holdings that were used in the state.

The “Al Sanaa” initiative to support Emirati families and people of determination

Within the participation of the Ministry of Community Development’s “Al-Sanaa” initiative in the Sharjah Heritage Days in KhorFakkan, the corner displays products for some Emirati families and people of determination. Most notably, hand-embroidered clothes with traditional inscriptions and heritage gifts carrying pictures and models of historical landmarks in KhorFakkan.

Moza Ali Abdullah Abdul-Rahman, one of the children of productive families affiliated with the Ministry of Community Development. The supervisor of the co-initiative corner expressed her happiness and appreciation towards Sharjah Institute for Heritage, for their support of productive families and people of determination.