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The discovery & use of monsoon winds in travel gave navigators the ability to sail the open water of the Indian Ocean. It was used by merchants who participated in maritime trade as early as 2000 BCE.
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Religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism were spread to Southeast Asia. Deities and storytelling materials were traded between India and Southeast Asia.
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Sailors and traders from Greece and Rome explored the Indian Ocean trade route.
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Darius, Ruler of Persia between 521 and 486 BCE, explored the Indian Ocean, an area stretching from The Indus River to the Red Sea.
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The major civilizations participating in trade on the Indian Ocean were the Archaememid Empire, Mauryan Empire, Han Dynasty, and the Roman Empire.
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Alexander the Great ruled Ancient Greece for 13 years. HIs conquests brought Greek art, culture to these foreign civilizations. This was an important beginning for later cultural exchange
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Ivory from elephant tusks in Africa were sent to Africa and Greece. African Ivory was preferred when compared to that from Asia, because African elephant tusks were bigger.
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First settled in 400 CE, the people of Madagascar, which is located off the coast of Africa, speak a language that is native to the area that is today Indonesia. Indonesian crops. Such as sugar cane and bananas are found in Madagascar.
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The Phoenicians had very advanced ships and navigation techniques, and are believed to ave circumvented Africa as early as 600 BCE.
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In the 7th century, Arab traders settled in the City of Calicut, which became a very important city on the Indian Ocean Trade Route. This city was one of the stops on Vasco de Gama’s voyage in 1498.
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Enslaved people were traded along the East African coast as early as the 9th century. Asia, Europe, and Arabia were all involved in this trade.
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In China, the Song Dynasty was an active participant in Indian Ocean maritime trade, especially the export of silks.
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Port cities on the eastern coast of Africa: Kilwa, Sofala, Mombasa, and Malindi, were founded and became important trade cities.
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The magnetic compass was first widely used to navigate the waters of the Indian Ocean, by the Sung Dynasty in China and then Arab travelers.
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The city of Malacca flourished as an important trade city as as result of its location in modern-day Malaysia. It was also located along the strait of Malacca, which was the shortest maritime route from Chine to India, and therefore a high-traffic area for trade.
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Porcelain produced in the 14th and 15th centuries found in the Philippines. There are also monuments, graves located in Africa that were made of porcelain, showing trade between the two civilizations,
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Zheng He, an explorer from China, made 7 Indian Ocean voyages during this time period.
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Portuguese captain Vasco de Gama discovered Africa’s port cities and then eventually India. He later returned to Portugal with trade goods and news of these impressive cities.
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After Vasco de Gama returned to Portugal with news of the Indian Ocean trade, Portugal sailed to the Eastern coast of Africa, destroying the major port cities there and taking goods for themselves.
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The Dutch East India Company entered the Indian Ocean. Their goal was to monopolize certain goods, and they did not seek to simply participate in the trade as it existed prior.