ABSTRACT
The Sultanate of Oman is one of the six Arabian Gulf countries. It is located in the southwestern part of the Arabian Peninsula of the Asian continent, ranging from latitudes 16:40′ to 26:20′ north and longitudes 51:50′ to 59:40′. Oman has a roughly rectangular area of 309,500 square kilometers; it compares approximately in size with the United Kingdom and Ireland or the state of Colorado in the United States (Al-Awiad 2005:2). In area, Oman exceeds Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and UAE combined (Al-Ghafri 2002:19).
