Ahmad bin Na’aman Al Kaabi’s biography, fact, career, awards, net worth and life story

Ahmad bin Na’aman Al Kaabi (Arabic: أحمد بن نعمان الكعبي‎‎; born between 1784-1790) was the first Arab emissary to visit the United States. To open trade with New York, Sayyid Said bin Sultan, Ruler of Muscat and Oman selected his new Bombay-built ship, al-Sultanah, to carry out the voyage and settled on his confidential private secretary, Ahmad bin Na’aman, as his emissary.

Voyage to the United States

Sayyid Said bin Sultan had long flirted with the idea of sending one of his vessels to the US. In 1839, several senior members of the New York firm Scoville and Britton arrived in Zanzibar and sought to persuade Sayyid Said to open direct trade with New York. Sayyid Said selected his private secretary Ahmad bin Na’aman on his royal ship, Al-Sultanah for the voyage to New York. The ship was navigated by an English captain, but was replaced by an American sailing master upon its return to Zanzibar. After loading some cargo in Muscat, al-Sultanah took on additional cargo in Zanzibar and set sail for America, stopping only in St. Helena. The ship was well received on its arrival in New York in early May 1840 and its officers were invited to visit the Navy Yard, take a train ride, and attend a reception for the governor of New York and vice-president of the United States. The US Navy undertook repairs to al-Sultanah, as a gesture of gratitude for al-Sultanah’s assistance to the American vessel Peacock, which had been damaged when it went aground on a coral reef off Masirah Island in 1835. The trip was primarily a commercial venture and al-Sultanah’s cargo of Persian carpets, coffee, dates, ivory tusks, gum copal, cloves, and salted hides was offloaded in New York. The proceeds were used to purchase American goods including general merchandise, personal items for Sayyid Said and his brother, and some chandeliers and mirrors for several Zanzibar merchants.