Ahmed bin Majid Salon from Cairo, the capital of Arab culture. The salon is an idea and sponsorship of His Excellency, the intellectual Dr. Abdullah Al-Rahbi, Ambassador of the Sultanate of Oman in Cairo and Permanent Representative to the League of Arab States, in order to care for intellectuals and support them to preserve the legacy of Arab civilization in which scholars enjoyed great interest and appreciation, and that the basis of the renaissance Nations is interested in science and its people and culture in its broadest sense.
His Excellency Abdullah bin Nasser Al-Rahbi, Ambassador of the Sultanate of Oman to Egypt and its permanent representative to the League of Arab States, inaugurated the “Ahmed bin Majid” cultural salon in a cultural evening that was held at the headquarters of the Omani embassy in Cairo on the evening of “Monday” corresponding to December 26, 2022, in the presence of a group of senior thinkers. Politicians, intellectuals and media professionals; This coincided with the Sultanate of Oman’s celebrations of the fifty-second glorious National Day, which the Sultanate celebrates on November 18 of each year.
The ceremony was attended by a group of intellectuals, politicians, and distinguished attendees. Mr. Amr Mousi, the former Egyptian Foreign Minister, Dr. Gouda Abdel Khalek, the famous economist Dr. Ahmed Taymour, and Dr. Ahmed Darwish spoke at the ceremony.
His Excellency explained that the Omani Sea Lion Cultural Salon, Ahmed bin Majid, seeks to achieve many goals, the most important of which is highlighting the depth of Egyptian-Omani relations throughout the ages, highlighting the Omani maritime civilizational role throughout the ages and caring for Arab culture and its people in general.
On the reasons for naming the salon by this name, His Excellency the Ambassador explained that it came to commemorate the Omani sailor Ahmed bin Majid and his global maritime efforts and coincided with placing his name on the UNESCO list of the most influential personalities. His Excellency explained Oman’s connection with the sea and the navy, so Oman’s leadership in the seas constituted an extended civilizational history, and the Omanis are at the forefront The nations that sent their children across the sea to communicate through the ages of history with ancient civilizations such as the Pharaonic and the Greeks, and they were called the masters of the seas, and the peoples loved them for their tolerance, Islam, and upholding the values of dialogue and understanding with the people of other civilizations.
Al-Rahbi considered that the “Ahmed bin Majid Cultural Salon” commemorates all the glories in the history of the Sultanate of Oman. Several names of Ibn Majid also appeared in the salon, reflecting his multiple cultural and scientific roles, such as the Lion of the Seas and Omani giving in the field of science and civilization and the spread of Islam. On the evening of the salon’s opening, Dr. Salem Al-Busaidi presented his paper in front of the salon, talking about Ibn Majid. He proved that even the ninth grandfather was one of those who transported goods at sea.
The third cultural event of the salon was the celebration of Her Majesty the Arabic language at the headquarters of the Sultanate of Oman’s embassy in Cairo on Muhammad Mazhar Street in Zamalek, where the salon was crowded with poets, academics and people of the Arabic language in a beautiful evening in which the beauty of the Arabic language appeared.
The audience delivered speeches ranging between reciting poetry, supplications, and singing from different Arab nationalities, Egypt, Oman, Iraq, Syria and Yemen. Some called for initiatives to advance the Arabic language and enrich its bases in Arab societies and countries of the world as well. His Excellency the Ambassador promised to publish all the works presented in the Salon for publication and to hold the Salon periodically. This initiative is an embodiment of the Omani role in spreading Arab culture and, with it, the message of tolerance, the most important characteristic of the Omani people. The launch of this salon was an essential addition to Arab culture.