Spice trade
The spice trade involved historical civilizations in
The maritime aspect of the trade was dominated by the
Within specific regions, the
Arab traders eventually took over conveying goods via the
The trade was changed by the Crusades and later the European Age of Discovery,[4] during which the spice trade, particularly in black pepper, became an influential activity for European traders.[5] From the 11th to the 15th centuries, the Italian maritime republics of Venice and Genoa monopolized the trade between Europe and Asia.[6] The Cape Route from Europe to the Indian Ocean via the Cape of Good Hope was pioneered by the Portuguese explorer navigator Vasco da Gama in 1498, resulting in new maritime routes for trade.[7]
This trade, which drove world trade from the end of the
Origins
People from the
The spice trade was associated with overland routes early on, but maritime routes proved to be the factor which helped the trade grow.
In the first millennium BC the
In the second half of the first millennium BC the
Spices are discussed in biblical narratives, and there is literary evidence for their use in ancient Greek and Roman society. There is a record from
Arab trade and medieval Europe
Rome played a part in the spice trade during the 5th century, but this role did not last through the Middle Ages.[1] The rise of Islam brought a significant change to the trade as Radhanite Jewish and Arab merchants, particularly from Egypt, eventually took over conveying goods via the Levant to Europe. At times, Jews enjoyed a virtual monopoly on the spice trade in large parts of Western Europe.[17]
The spice trade had brought great riches to the Abbasid Caliphate and inspired famous legends such as that of Sinbad the Sailor. These early sailors and merchants would often set sail from the port city of Basra and, after many ports of call, would return to sell their goods, including spices, in Baghdad. The fame of many spices such as nutmeg and cinnamon are attributed to these early spice merchants.[18][failed verification]
The Indian commercial connection with South East Asia proved vital to the merchants of Arabia and
Moluccan products were shipped to trading emporiums in India, passing through ports like
Indian spice exports find mention in the works of Ibn Khurdadhbeh (850), al-Ghafiqi (1150), Ishak bin Imaran (907) and Al Kalkashandi (14th century).[21] Chinese traveler Xuanzang mentions the town of Puri where "merchants depart for distant countries."[23]
From there, overland routes led to the Mediterranean coasts. From the 8th until the 15th century, maritime republics (Republic of Venice, Republic of Pisa, Republic of Genoa, Duchy of Amalfi, Duchy of Gaeta, Republic of Ancona and Republic of Ragusa[24]) held a monopoly on European trade with the Middle East. The silk and spice trade, involving spices, incense, herbs, drugs and opium, made these Mediterranean city-states extremely wealthy. Spices were among the most expensive and in-demand products of the Middle Ages, used in medicine as well as in the kitchen. They were all imported from Asia and Africa. Venetian and other navigators of maritime republics then distributed the goods through Europe.
The Ottoman Empire, after the fall of Constantinople in 1453, barred Europeans from important combined land-sea routes.[25]
Age of Discovery: a new route and a New World
The Republic of Venice had become a formidable power and a key player in the Eastern spice trade.[26] Other powers, in an attempt to break the Venetian hold on spice trade, began to build up maritime capability.[1] Until the mid-15th century, trade with the East was achieved through the Silk Road, with the Byzantine Empire and the Italian city-states of Venice and Genoa acting as middlemen.
In 1453, however, the
The first country to attempt to circumnavigate Africa was Portugal, which had, since the early 15th century, begun to explore northern Africa under
In 1511,
From 1507 to 1515 Albuquerque tried to completely block Arab and other traditional routes that stretched from the shores of Western Pacific to the Mediterranean Sea, through the conquest of strategic bases in the Persian Gulf and at the entry of the Red Sea.[citation needed]
By the early 16th century the Portuguese had complete control of the African sea route, which extended through a long network of routes that linked three oceans, from the Moluccas (the Spice Islands) in the Pacific Ocean limits, through Malacca, Kerala and Sri Lanka, to Lisbon in Portugal.[citation needed]
The
Cultural diffusion
One of the most important technological exchanges of the spice trade network was the early introduction of maritime technologies to India, the Middle East, East Africa, and China by the
Austronesians also introduced many
The Portuguese colonial settlements saw traders such as the Gujarati
Indian merchants involved in spice trade took Indian cuisine to Southeast Asia, notably present day Malaysia and Indonesia, where spice mixtures and black pepper became popular.[49] Conversely, Southeast Asian cuisine and crops was also introduced to India and Sri Lanka, where rice cakes and coconut milk-based dishes are still dominant.[29][31][30][37][50]
European people intermarried with Indians and popularized valuable culinary skills, such as baking, in India.[51] Indian food, adapted to the European palate, became visible in England by 1811 as exclusive establishments began catering to the tastes of both the curious and those returning from India.[52] Opium was a part of the spice trade, and some people involved in the spice trade were driven by opium addiction.[53][54]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f g "Spice Trade". Encyclopædia Britannica. 2016. Retrieved 25 April 2016.
- .
- ^ Fage 1975: 164
- ^ a b c Donkin 2003
- ^ a b Corn & Glasserman 1999: Prologue
- ^ "Brainy IAS - Online & Offline Classes". Brainy IAS. 2018-03-03. Retrieved 2021-09-22.
- ^ a b c d Gama, Vasco da. The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. Columbia University Press.
- ^ Simson Najovits, Egypt, trunk of the tree, Volume 2, (Algora Publishing: 2004), p. 258.
- ^ Rawlinson 2001: 11-12
- ^ ISBN 9783319338224.
- ^ a b Doran, Edwin Jr. (1974). "Outrigger Ages". The Journal of the Polynesian Society. 83 (2): 130–140.
- ^ ISBN 0415100542.[dead link]
- ^ ISBN 9780890961070.
- ^ Blench, Roger (2004). "Fruits and arboriculture in the Indo-Pacific region". Bulletin of the Indo-Pacific Prehistory Association. 24 (The Taipei Papers (Volume 2)): 31–50.
- ^ Shaw 2003: 426
- ^ The Medieval Spice Trade and the Diffusion of the Chile Gastronomica Spring 2007 Vol. 7 Issue 2
- ^ Rabinowitz, Louis (1948). Jewish Merchant Adventurers: A Study of the Radanites. London: Edward Goldston. pp. 150–212.
- ^ "The Third Voyage of Sindbad the Seaman – The Arabian Nights – The Thousand and One Nights – Sir Richard Burton translator". Classiclit.about.com. 2009-11-02. Retrieved 2011-09-16.
- ^ Donkin 2003: 59
- ^ Donkin 2003: 88
- ^ a b Donkin 2003: 92
- ^ a b Donkin 2003: 91–92
- ^ Donkin 2003: 65
- ^ Armando Lodolini, Le repubbliche del mare, Roma, Biblioteca di storia patria, 1967.
- ^ "International School History - MYP History". www.internationalschoolhistory.net. Retrieved 2020-05-25.
- ^ Pollmer, Priv.Doz. Dr. Udo. "The spice trade and its importance for European expansion". Migration and Diffusion. Retrieved 27 June 2016.
- ^ Catholic Encyclopedia: Bartolomeu Dias Retrieved November 29, 2007
- ^ Nathaniel's Nutmeg: How One Man's Courage Changed the Course of History, Milton, Giles (1999), pp. 5–7
- ^ ISBN 9788173049866.
- ^ ISBN 9781439085202.
- ^ PMID 21731660.
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- ^ Spennemann, Dirk H.R. (1994). "Traditional Arrowroot Production and Utilization in the Marshall Islands". Journal of Ethnobiology. 14 (2): 211–234.
- ^ ISBN 9780811849654.
- ISBN 9781780643151.
- ^ a b Zumbroich, Thomas J. (2007–2008). "The origin and diffusion of betel chewing: a synthesis of evidence from South Asia, Southeast Asia and beyond". eJournal of Indian Medicine. 1: 87–140.
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- ^ Donkin 2003: 67
- ^ Donkin 2003: 69
- ^ a b c Corn & Glasserman 1999
- ^ Corn & Glasserman 1999: 105
- ^ Collingham 56: 2006
- ^ Corn & Glasserman 1999: 203
- ^ Vinod Kottayil Kalidasan, 'The Routes of Pepper: Colonial Discourses around the Spice Trade in Malabar', Kerala Modernity: Ideasa, Spaces and Practices in Transition, Ed. Shiju Sam Varughese and Satheese Chandra Bose, New Delhi: Orient Blackswan, 2015. For the link: "Orient Blackswan PVT. LTD". Archived from the original on 2015-04-13. Retrieved 2015-04-13.
- ^ Collingham 245: 2006
- ISBN 9780520236745.
- ^ Collingham 61: 2006
- ^ Collingham 129: 2006
- ^ "Opium Throughout History | The Opium Kings | FRONTLINE | PBS". www.pbs.org. Retrieved 2018-04-13.
- ^ Burger, M. (2003), The Forgotten Gold? The Importance of the Dutch opium trade in the Seventeenth Century
Bibliography
- Collingham, Lizzie (December 2005). Curry: A Tale of Cooks and Conquerors. ISBN 978-0195172416.
- Corn, Charles; Debbie Glasserman (March 1999). The Scents of Eden: A History of the Spice Trade. Kodansha America. ISBN 978-1568362496.
- ISBN 978-0871692481.
- ISBN 978-0521215923.
- Rawlinson, Hugh George (2001). Intercourse Between India and the Western World: From the Earliest Times of the Fall of Rome. Asian Educational Services. ISBN 978-8120615496.
- ISBN 978-0192804587.
- Kalidasan, Vinod Kottayil (2015). "Routes of Pepper: Colonial Discourses around Spice Trade in Malabar" in Kerala Modernity: Ideas, Spaces and Practices in Transition, Shiju Sam Varughese and Sathese Chandra Bose (Eds). Orient Blackswan, New Delhi. ISBN 978-81-250-5722-2.
Further reading
- Borschberg, Peter (2017), 'The Value of Admiral Matelieff's Writings for Studying the History of Southeast Asia, c. 1600–1620,'. Journal of Southeast Asian Studies 48(3): 414–435. doi:10.1017/S002246341700056X
- Keay, John (2006). The Spice Route : A History. University of California Press.
- Nabhan, Gary Paul: Cumin, Camels, and Caravans: A Spice Odyssey. [History of Spice Trade] University of California Press, 2014. ISBN 978-0-520-95695-7[eBook]
- Pavo López, Marcos: Spices in maps. Fifth centenary of the first circumnavigation of the world. [History of the spice trade through old maps] e-Perimetron, vol 15, no.2 (2020)
External links
Media related to Spice trade at Wikimedia Commons