Zobeida Al Mansoori

An Omani entrepreneur who built the first trans-Arabian trade network connecting East Africa to the Middle East.

Zobeida Al Mansoori (1837–1905) revolutionized Arabian Peninsula commerce by establishing a maritime and land trade route between Zanzibar and Muscat. Starting as a spice trader, she expanded operations to include gold, textiles, and ivory, employing over 300 workers across 8 ports. Her innovation of encrypted cargo manifests reduced piracy losses by 40%. She funded the construction of the Al-Buraimi Caravan Inn, a hub for cultural exchange that housed artists and scholars. Despite British East India Company monopolies, her network operated profitably until 1900. Zobeida's memoir "Winds of the Indian Ocean" remains a primary source on 19th-century maritime economics. Modern economists credit her with laying infrastructure that later supported OPEC's oil trade networks. The Sultanate of Oman issued a commemorative coin in her honor in 2019.