The Yarubid dynasty (also Ya'ariba or Ya'arubi; Arabic: أسرة آل يعرب) were rulers of Oman between 1624 and 1742, holding the title of Imam. They expelled the Portuguese from coastal strongholds in Muscat and united the country. They improved agriculture, expanded trade and built up Oman into a major maritime power. Their forces expelled the Portuguese from East Africa and established long-lasting settlements on Zanzibar, Mombasa and other parts of the coast. The dynasty lost power during a succession struggle that started in 1712 and fell after a prolonged period of civil war.

Oman has traditionally been divided between the relatively barren and sparsely populated interior and the more populous coastal region. There was often little or no overall government in the interior, and the tribes often fought amongst each other. They shared belief in the Ibadi branch of Islam, distinct from the main Sunni and Shia schools. The coastal region, particularly the northeast coast around Muscat, was more outward looking, with longstanding connections to Mesopotamia and Persia.

After the early days of Islam, the interior tribes were led by Imams, who held both spiritual and temporal power. The Yahmad branch of Azd tribes gained power in the 9th century. They established a system where the ulama of the Banu Sama, the largest of the Ibadi tribes of the interior, would select the Imam. The authority of the Imams declined due to power struggles, and in 1154 the Nabhani dynasty came to power as muluk, or kings, while the Imams were reduced to largely symbolic significance. The Imam had little moral authority since the title came to be treated as the property of the dominant tribe at any time. In 1507 the Portuguese captured the coastal city of Muscat, and gradually extended their control along the coast up to Sohar in the north and down to Sur in the southeast.

The Al-Ya'ariba trace their descent from Ya'arab bin Kahtan, whom some date to about 800 BC. The family originated in Yemen and belonged to the Ghafiri faction. Nasir bin Murshid bin Sultan al Ya'Aruba (r. 1624-1649) was the first Imam of the Yaruba dynasty, elected in 1624. He moved the capital to Nizwa, the former capital of the Ibadhi Imamate. Nasir bin Murshid was able to unify the tribes with a common goal of expelling the Portuguese. He built up the Omani army and took the main towns as well as the forts of Rustaq and Nakhal. His forces threw the Portuguese out of Julfar (now Ras al-Khaimah) in 1633. In 1643 they took the fort at Sohar.

Nasir bin Murshid was succeeded by Sultan bin Saif (r. 1649-1688), his cousin. Sultan bin Saif completed the task of expelling the Portuguese. He captured Sur, Qurayyat and Muscat, expanded the fleet and attacked the Portuguese on the Gujarat coast. Under Sultan bin Seif and his successors Oman developed into a strong maritime power. In 1660 Omani forces attacked Mombasa, forcing the Portuguese to take refuge in Fort Jesus. There was continued fighting between the forces of Portugal and Oman in the East African coast in the years that followed.

Bil'arab bin Sultan (r. 1679-1692) succeeded as Imam in 1679 after the death of his father, Sultan bin Saif. This confirmed that the succession was now hereditary, since his father had also succeeded dynastically, while in the Ibadi tradition the Imam was elected. Most of his reign was occupied in a struggle with his brother, Saif bin Sultan, who succeeded Bil'arab bin Sultan when he died at Jabrin in 1692.

Saif bin Sultan (r. 1692-1711) invested in improving agriculture. He built aflaj in many parts of the interior to provide water, and planted date palms in the Al Batinah Region to encourage Arabs to move from the interior and settle along the coast. A large falaj was built to provide water for the town of Al Hamra, and it seems that the Ya'ariba supported major investment in settlement and agricultural works such as terracing along the Wadi Bani Awf. Saif bin Sultan built new schools. He made the castle of Rustaq his residence, adding the Burj al Riah wind tower.

In 1696 the Omanis again attacked Mombasa, besieging 2,500 people who had taken refuge in Fort Jesus. The Siege of Fort Jesus ended after 33 months when the thirteen survivors of famine and smallpox surrendered to the Omanis, who now became the dominant power on the coast. The expansion of Omani power included the first large-scale settlement of Zanzibar by Omani migrants. The Omanis became known to the Europeans as pirates, and attacked Portuguese bases in western India. The Omanis also moved into the Persian Gulf, taking Bahrain from the Persians and holding it for several years.