Indian Ocean trade network

E12764

historical trade network maritime trade network pre-modern global trade system

The Indian Ocean trade network was a vast, centuries-long maritime system connecting East Africa, the Middle East, South Asia, and Southeast Asia through the exchange of goods, cultures, and ideas driven by monsoon winds.

Aliases (8)

Statements (88)

Predicate	Object
instanceOf	historical trade network → maritime trade network → pre-modern global trade system →
basedOn	seasonal monsoon patterns →
characterizedBy	cosmopolitan port cities → multilingual crews → religiously diverse communities →
connectedRegion	Arabian Sea → Bay of Bengal → China → East Africa → East Asia → Indian subcontinent → Malay Archipelago → Middle East → Persian Gulf → Red Sea → South Asia → Southeast Asia → Swahili Coast →
culturalImpact	Indian cultural influence in Southeast Asia → formation of Swahili culture → spread of Arabic language → spread of Persian culture →
declinedDueTo	European colonial domination → shift of global trade to Atlantic routes →
economicRole	facilitated proto-globalization → integrated regional economies →
facilitated	cultural exchange → long-distance maritime trade → migration of peoples → religious diffusion → spread of Buddhism → spread of Hinduism → spread of Islam → spread of technologies →
flourishedDuring	c. 8th to 15th centuries CE →
involvedActor	Arab merchants → Chinese merchants → Gujarat traders → Indian merchants → Malay merchants → Omani traders → Persian merchants → Swahili merchants → Yemeni traders →
locatedIn	Indian Ocean →
majorPort	Aden → Calicut → Calicut (Kozhikode) → Cambay → Cochin → Hormuz → Kilwa Kisiwani → Malacca → Mombasa → Muscat → Quanzhou → Zanzibar →
paralleledBy	Silk Road →
precededBy	overland Silk Road trade →
religiousImpact	Islamization of coastal East Africa → Islamization of parts of Southeast Asia →
sawInterventionBy	British East India Company → Dutch East India Company → Portuguese Empire →
supportedBy	astrolabe navigation → compass navigation → dhow technology → lateen sails →
timePeriod	antiquity → early modern period → medieval period →
tradedGood	beads → cotton textiles → dates → gold → horses → incense → ivory → pepper → porcelain → rice → silk → slaves → spices → timber →
usedWindSystem	monsoon winds →

Referenced by (20)

Subject (surface form when different)	Predicate
Aden (until 1937, administratively linked) → Canton ("Silk Road maritime routes") →	linkedTo
Demak Sultanate ("Indian Ocean trade") → Great Zimbabwe →	tradeNetwork
Chinese Jews of Kaifeng ("Indian Ocean Jewish merchants") →	ancestralOrigin
Mapungubwe Cultural Landscape →	associatedTradeRoutes
Kushan Empire ("Indian Ocean trade") →	hasInfluenceOn
Debal ("Indian Ocean maritime networks") →	historicallyAssociatedWith
Tihamah coastal plain ("Indian Ocean trade") →	historicallyLinkedTo
Surat →	historicalTrade
Nagapattinam ("Indian Ocean trade") →	historicTrade
Old World →	includesTradeRoute
Indian Ocean trade network ("Swahili merchants") →	involvedActor
Debal ("Indian Ocean trade") →	knownFor
Mediterranean trade routes →	linked
Silk Road routes ("Maritime Silk Road") →	relatedConcept
China–Pakistan Economic Corridor ("Indian Ocean trade routes") →	relatedTo
Thatta →	tradeConnections
Chinese Jews of Kaifeng ("maritime Silk Road") →	tradeRoute
Khami Ruins →	tradingLinks