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Now that I have established the photo gallery, I have been sufficiently distracted to implement a long-held ambition. This was to put a selection of my photos of Omani aflaj, online. Even now there are shortcomings, in that I haven't provided a location map for the sites on display, nor have I managed to produce diagrams of the concept of ghaily, and ayni aflaj, although I have found an old diagram of a dawoodifalaj which I was able to annotate.

Aflaj (singular: falaj) are a fundamental Omani heritage, which have supported villages and communities for centuries. The village falaj was its lifeblood, literally bringing water right into the community for religious, domestic and agricultural uses. If the water supply to the falaj failed, so did the community.

The advent of pumps and the drilling of groundwater wells has affected the supply of water to many aflaj, by lowering the groundwater table. Several government ministries have had responsibilities in the past for rejuvenating aflaj which have gone dry. For various reasons, this has been a costly and not altogether successful exercise, not least because working and lifestyle patterns have also been changing. But many villages in rural Oman still depend on their falaj water supply. So important is it, that Oman has submitted a proposal to Unesco that its aflaj should be considered a world heritage site.

The following description is taken from a piece written originally for the Ministry of Water Resources website. Neither the ministry nor its website, survive.

Aflaj are an essential component of water resources management and community water supply in Oman. The falaj is a channel above or below ground surface and extends from the water source to the village and beyond to irrigated lands.

A falaj consist of the following:

* a source of water known as the mother well
* transportation channel(s)
* the first opening to the surface known as the Sharia
* distribution of water system
* a finance and administration system which administers distribution of the water to the community

Three types of aflaj are found in Oman, dawoodi or iddi, ghayli and ayni.

Dawoodi, or iddi, aflaj are underground water channels which intercept the groundwater table, eventually emerging at the surface to carry water to the community for domestic and agricultural water supply. These aflaj may be many kilometres in length and are usually constructed by digging a series of vertical shafts to groundwater level and then tunneling to link up the shafts at a slight gradient. 26% of aflaj in Oman are of the dawoodi type. They are the same as the Iranian qanat.

Ghayli aflaj divert flow from wadi baseflow and occur in many areas at the foothills of the mountains. Examples in the gallery include Wadi Dayqah and Wadi Mistal. 47% of all aflaj in Oman are of the ghaili type

Ayni aflaj are fed directly from springs (ayn). Many such springs occur along the northern flank of the Hajar Al Gharbi mountains. The water can be hot, reaching temperatures as high as 60 degrees centigrade. Most of the springs arise out of limestone in the mountains and yield good quality and reliable sources. Ophiolite spring water is usually strongly alkaline. 27% of Omani aflaj are ayni.

The distribution of water from aflaj is regulated within the community by long established traditions. Drinking water is taken from the point where the channel first emerges to the surface (Sharia). The mosque is built just downstream of this point where water may be used for washing before prayers. Then come the washing points and finally the water is distributed amongst the smallholdings and date plantations of the village. The main channel divides into several different channels for distribution. Each landowner with water rights is entitled to take a strictly timed portion of water at an allocated hour before the water is rediverted.