Indian Ocean Trade Developments and Networks

Affects of the Trade Now

1900 BCE

Governments invested in explorations, and either lost or gained large amounts of money or trade as a result. Some merchants became rich due to an ability to now reach their demand with supply. Peasants could now become rich off of silk, textiles, porcelain, etc. Economy in countries with high-demand products in previously remote parts of the world could now vastly improve, since networks of exchange allowed supply to now reach the demand. Countries could now profit off their goods.

Africa Slave Trade

1850 BCE

Arab traders began to settle among the Africans of the coast, resulting in the emergence of a people and culture known as Swahili. In the second half of the 18th century, the slave trade expanded and became more organized. There was also a huge demand for ivory, and slaves were used as porters to carry it.

Control of Trade Routes

1680 BCE

The British joined in with their British East India Company, which challenged the Dutch East India Company for control of the trade routes. Goods moved increasingly to Europe, while the former Asian trading empires grew poorer and collapsed. The two-thousand-year-old Indian Ocean trade network was crippled, if not completely destroyed.

Interconnection

1500 BCE

By 1500 CE, discoveries in Europe allowed for further travel which caused a major increase in global interconnectedness, since the regions were previously isolated.

Global Interconnectedness

1500 BCE

The main effect was the connection between Europe and Asia and between the existing world and the Americas. These connections allowed for trade, exchanges of ideas, and the formation of colonies.

Vasco da Gama

1498 BCE

Heavily-armed caravels rode the monsoon trade winds up from Africa to the west coast of India. They blasted through the defenses of local princes to commandeer their share of the lucrative spice trade. Successive expeditions pushed further toward the point of origin of this valuable commodity, eventually setting up ports on the Spice Islands. With control of the source, they had a monopoly on the spice trade.

Portuguese Sailors

1498 BCE

The Portuguese were eager to join in the Indian Ocean trade since European demand for Asian luxury goods was extremely high. Since Europe had nothing to trade, the Portuguese entered the Indian Ocean trade as pirates rather than traders. Using a combination of bravado and cannons, they seized port cities like Calicut on India's west coast and Macau, in southern China. The Portuguese began to rob and extort local producers and foreign merchant ships alike.

China Trade

1453 BCE

Goods traded consisted of silks, porcelain, tea, salt, sugar, and spices.

Affects of Southeast Asia

1450 BCE

Trade stimulated political change as ambitious rulers use well derived from commerce to construct larger and more centrally governed states or cities; experienced cultural change as local people were attracted to foreign religious ideas from Hindu, Buddhist, or Islamic sources.

Central Asia Trade

1328 BCE

Rome received spices, fragrances, jewels, ivory, and sugar and sent European pictures and luxury goods. Eastern Europe imported rice, cotton, woolen and silk fabrics from Central Asia and exported considerable volumes of skins, furs, fur animals, bark for skin processing, cattle and slaves to Khoresm.

East Africa Trade

1324 BCE

Goods consisted of ivory, gold, and iron.

Technology Developments

960 BCE

The development of the compass and plotted wind patterns gave travelers better sailing abilities and confidence to make longer routes. Multiple masts, larger sails, better rudders, and thicker hulls all gave the ships more sailing power and increased storage.

Diseases

900 BCE

Continuing a phenomenon from the classical age, trade routes would also spread communicable diseases by the intermingling of people. People would come to a trade post for foreign goods, where they would contract a disease not native to their region, and take it back with them. Since these diseases were going to regions they weren't native to, they were spread to people who hadn't developed immunities to them, thus making them even more widespread and epic than before.

Key Advantage - Monsoon Winds

800 BCE

Use of the monsoon wind in the Indian Ocean for maritime trade was a boon to sailing ships to reach overseas countries. Sailing straight out into the open waters of the Arabian Sea during the late spring, ships were whisked by the monsoon winds on a steady northeast course, arriving on India's west coast by mid-summer. With this development came the ability to reach new places with new goods, and increased trade.

Srivijaya

670 BCE

Srivijaya's plentiful supply of gold-it's access to the source of highly sought after spices, such as cloves, nutmeg, and mace-provided resources to attract supporters, to find an embryonic bureaucracy, and to create the military and naval forces that brought some security to the area. They also spoke Bantu written in Arabic.

Indian Ocean Trade vs. Silk Road Transportation

650 BCE

Indian Ocean trade networks used ships and therefore could ship more cargo, sold less expensive, necessity products, traded with more locations, more efficient travel times, centered in India.

Indian Ocean Network

600 BCE

Southeast Asia, Islamic people, East Africa, India, and China were all part of the Indian Ocean trade network. Monsoon trade network was also a part of the Indian Ocean network.

Transportation

600 BCE

Shipping in the Indian Ocean can be divided into three components: dhows, sailboats, dry-cargo carriers, and tankers. For more than two millennia the small, lateen-rigged sailing vessels called dhows were predominant.

Significant People

600 BCE

Harappans were the first mariners
from India who had maritime trade relations
with countries outside India. They
sailed up to the coast of Bahrain, Meluhha,
Oman Peninsula and Mesopotamia using
monsoon winds and currents, but no evidence
is available in this regard. Greek
and Roman mariners were able to reach
the Indian coast to carry out extensive
maritime trade with the help of monsoon
winds.

Religion

500 BCE

Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism spread from India to Southeast Asia, brought by merchants rather than by missionaries. Christianity followed the trade routes and expanded east throughout Mesopotamia, Iran, and as far as India. Hinduism and Buddhism spread along the Silk Roads. Arabs were brought into the network, so with them, Swahili people converted to Islam.