How Did European Influence Indian Ocean Trade

In the Arabian peninsula, Islam had started. After Muhammad died, the Muslim community embarked on a series of military conquests that extended their control over much of Eurasia and north Africa. Muslim merchants also became a prominent figure in trade during this time. The Islamic empire extended to the Arabian Peninsula and many areas around it. These places were central in the Mediterranean sea, Indian Ocean, and silk road trade routes. The Muslim merchants became a very big part of trade because of their location at the center of many trade routes from Eurasia to Africa. They were also a prominent part of trade because the camel saddle started to be used frequently in 600 CE. Camels were more equipped to walk through the desert, and so the ability to control them made the Muslims a major part of silk road trade. In addition to this, the Muslim agricultural revolution occurred around 600 CE. This caused more crops like cotton to be cultivated and traded, causing a greater income and virtually more trade between Africa and Eurasia. In the Indian Ocean basin, the Gupta empire had declined and there was no centralized rule in India. However, there were still major trading cities and new technologies caused trade to increase. An example of the new technologies would be the dhows and junks that were used at around 800 CE.

“ Headed north on the way from Yemen to the markets and headed east from the Red Sea across the desert to Iraq” ( document A paragraph 1). This quote shows how far the trade routes went, because of the easy access to the trade routes the Muslims were able to spread their religious ideas. The Muslims would pilgrimage to Mecca to worship an ancient shrine called the kaaba, because that was part of their religion, so Mecca was important to the Muslims and to the Muslim religion. They worshipped in religious place call the mosque. In Mecca the Muslims were able to spread Islam, not only because of the trade routes , but also because of the geography.

Thus they didn’t find any difficulty in preaching their faiths, beliefs and practices to the people. With the contribution of Muslim traders and merchants Islam positioned in India and spread to South East Asia through it. The accommodation of Islam stabilized by traders with their tolerant attitude as well as their teachings and preaching.

Changes and continuities in commerce in the Indian ocean region from 650 to 1750 C.E.

In the “Arabian Peninsula Trade Routes” (Doc. A) it shows how Mecca was very busy with all kinds of trade. Since Mecca is where Islam would start in the upcoming years, traders would come and go taking the teachings of Muhammad with them. Mecca was both the center of trade and the center of Islam which leads to the quick spread of faith through the many traders and merchants that

Although key elements of the trade between Africa and Eurasia changed during the era of 300-1450, a few factors stayed the same. In 300 C.E., trade routes were primarily between Europe and North Africa. The way that they changed by the time of 1450 was that they expanded southward and westward. By 1450, these trade routes went through West Africa, sub-Saharan Africa, and the Indian Ocean. One factor that stayed the same during this time period was that the northern coast of Africa was always involved in the trade between Africa and the rest of Eurasia.

The trade between Islam and many other countries helped spread Islam. Trade leads to a good economy meaning more jobs (less unemployment). As people move around to trade they sometimes stay they traded to causing the spread of

Throughout early history, civilizations often sought to receive resources from afar to sustain their societies and keep themselves thriving, and to this end trade relations and eventually trade routes began to emerge. This aided civilizations in their discovery of foreign items that they may use to better their societies. These items traded ranged from complex technology to something as simple as nutmeg. The main trade routes that were utilized in East and South Asia were the silk road and the Indian Ocean Trade Network. In the 7th- 12th centuries, both the silk road and Indian ocean trade route had affected east and south Asia by the introduction of religions such as Buddhism changing government forms and altering the belief systems of society and changing how individuals live their daily lives, however differences were present in the impact that these routes had on daily lives, such as the Indian Ocean Trade Route giving rise to an entire new culture in Africa known as the Swahili and leading to the innovation of the sailing boat known as the Dhow, and the silk road led to the transmission of religion and resources throughout Eurasia and it led to utilization of caravans and animals as a means of trade.

Migration and trade both played a crucial role in the spread of Islam. In Anatolia and India, Muslims invaded and, although the Islamic population was the minority in India due to a lack of trade, it quickly became the majority in Anatolia, resulting in that area becoming the

Trade was a large part in why Islam spread so quickly. Mecca had several trading routes. “By the middle of the sixth century… Mecca was … prosperous and important (Doc A).” They were trading through the two main empires: Byzantine and Persian. East Africa, Spain, India, and China also traded with them. Mecca being at the center of the trading system, they brought in many tourists to see the famous holy shrine. With the help of communication people interested in Islam were also drawn because goods were not just traded, but the Islamic culture as well.

While the Indian Ocean and Silk Road were different as trade networks with respect to the spread of Religion and the process of travel, they were similar in terms of the spread of disease through trade.

During the period of 600- 1450, the eastern hemisphere was connected through many trading routes. Although both the IOT and SR resulted in immense wealth being created, the IOT promoted islam through its ocean voyages and the SR supported Christianity through the overland routes, and it had more drastic effects on society.

Economics, religion, and politics shaped European and Native American contact in a positive way for the Europeans, and a negative way for the Native Americans. The Europeans brought materials such as horses and wheat, which the Native Americans used and circulated into their economy. The Europeans got grains and maize in return. Diseases brought by the Europeans killed up to 90% of Native Americans, which brought trade and other economic activities down. Before the Native Americans met with the Europeans they only believed in animism and spirits as their religion, after the Europeans came, they tried to convert the Native Americans by force. Many Christian leaders such as Pope Paul III rejected the harsh treatment of Native Americans, but still supported the conversion of them en masse. Christianity in the Americas developed into a mix of Christianity and animism, in Europe people solely believed in Jesus as their lord.

Islam soon acquired vast amounts of territory in Afro-Eurasia, and according to the map, “The Growing Worlds of Islam (900-1500),” it occupied an area from parts of central Asia to West Africa and Eastern Europe by the start of the sixteenth century. This map documents the phases of the growth of Islam for six hundred years, which combined with further analysis will reveal each step in the conquest of each new phase of territory. Controlling all of these nations created standardized trade and common business practices throughout the empire. Using already intact trade routes, such as the Silk Roads, documented in the map provided as document 1, the Islamic empire built an economic system that was unified by common religious beliefs. Comparing the trade routes mapped on both the Silk Roads map and the “The Growing Worlds of Islam (900-1500)” map, one can see that they are very similar, suggesting that they remained the same and that the Islamic empire just took over the control of each. Yet it was not just the Silk Roads that saw a revival at the hands of Muslim commercial excursions. The Mediterranean and Indian Ocean sea routes, as well as the trans-Saharan routes were given new life as well due to the Islamic empire. These routes not only produced trade, but they also opened up opportunities for new agricultural products and a sharing of ideas and innovations. These

While goods were the core focus of merchants, the items that transmitted the Indian Ocean were arguably the least important. More importantly, it transmitted new cultures, especially religion. For instance, Buddhism was able to gain a major foothold in East and Southeast Asia from its home in India while Islam flourished in Africa. Like how religion prospered through trade in the Post-Classical Era, in the 20th century the world underwent a globalization of popular culture through commerce, such as in the dominance of global brands — like Apple and Coca-Cola — throughout the world. Both of these occurrences represented a step forward in globalization, bringing the world together under similar