Lecture 22: “Southernization” and the Indian Ocean Trade

Topics:Trade!

From 1000-1500 CE

Questions:What is the significance of “southernization”?

What conditions determined the patterns of trade in the Indian Ocean?

How did the Indian Ocean trade compare with the Silk Road?

Lecture 22: “Southernization” and the Indian Ocean Trade

Beyond the Empire = SOUTH

The Mongol Empire = NORTH

“Southernization”China: massive population shift south

Baghdad: Oriented toward Indian Ocean

Most sought-after goods coming from south:Spices, African gold, Chinese porcelain

Europe: Mediterranean cities (Venice, Genoa)

“Southern” products (cotton, rice, citrus) adopted elsewhere in Dar al-Islam

Southward spread of Buddhism and Islam

FROM LAND TO SEA

MonsoonsModerate, predictable winds

Easily navigable waters

One-way!Seasonal

Long waits in portTrade follows circuits

Indian Ocean

Ports of the Indian Ocean

No Empires

KilwaAden

HormuzCambayCalicutMalacca

(Hangzhou)(Guangzhou)

Local rulers:collected taxes & fees

defense vs. piracy

Ports often cut off from interior

Multicultural, multilingual merchant

communities

Some entirely dependent on trade:

import food

Everybody profits from smooth, peaceful network of trade

GoldFed the system with cash

SpicesMost profitable trade items

Black pepperCinnamon = Sri lankaFine spices = Moluccas

Cloves

Nutmeg

Aloe

Spice Islands = Moluccas

Malay “raft”

Cloves, nutmeg, maceEntirely dependent upon trade

Malacca

Kilwa Winter: bring silk, cotton, carpets, hardware, Persian pottery, Chinese porcelain Summer: leave with mangrove poles, rice, ivory, gold & copper

Chinese silk and porcelain; fine spices from Moluccas; sugar from Philippines Indian cotton, incense, dyes, copperware, opiumFinancial center

China at Sea

Song junk

“Treasure ship” (Giant junk)

Zheng He“Treasure Fleet”

1403-33 CE

Largest market

Export goods(silk, porcelain)

Abu ‘Abdullah ibn Battuta (1304-1368)

WIDERWORLD!

How do trading networks compare to empires in the production of written records?

Trade NetworksEmpires

Royal propagandaRecord-keepingAdministration

Trained scribesIntellectual elite

Scriptural ReligionsCommon Written

Language

Commercial Contracts ?

Travel accounts & Geographies

Religious Texts

Introduce Writing& Written intellectual culture

Eurasian Trade Zones