Book contents
- The Cambridge World HistoryVolume IV
- The Cambridge World History
- A World with States, Empires, and Networks, 1200 bce–900 ce
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Maps
- Tables
- Contributors
- Preface
- 1 Introduction: the world from 1200 bce to 900 ce
- Part I Global histories
- Part II Trans-regional and regional perspectives
- 10 Western and Central Eurasia
- 11 Regional study: Baktria – the crossroads of ancient Eurasia
- 12 The Mediterranean
- 13 Regional study: Athens in the fifth century bce
- 14 Late antiquity in Europe c. 300–900 ce
- 15 East Asia
- 16 Regional study: Confucianism and the state
- 17 Regional study: exchanges within the Silk Roads world system
- 18 South Asia
- 19 Regional study: Pataliputra
- 20 The Americas
- 21 Regional study: Chaco Canyon and the US Southwest
- 22 Australasia and the Pacific
- 23 Africa: states, empires, and connections
- 24 Regional study: trans-Saharan trade
- Index
- References
24 - Regional study: trans-Saharan trade
from Part II - Trans-regional and regional perspectives
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 May 2015
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Edited by
Book contents
- The Cambridge World HistoryVolume IV
- The Cambridge World History
- A World with States, Empires, and Networks, 1200 bce–900 ce
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Maps
- Tables
- Contributors
- Preface
- 1 Introduction: the world from 1200 bce to 900 ce
- Part I Global histories
- Part II Trans-regional and regional perspectives
- 10 Western and Central Eurasia
- 11 Regional study: Baktria – the crossroads of ancient Eurasia
- 12 The Mediterranean
- 13 Regional study: Athens in the fifth century bce
- 14 Late antiquity in Europe c. 300–900 ce
- 15 East Asia
- 16 Regional study: Confucianism and the state
- 17 Regional study: exchanges within the Silk Roads world system
- 18 South Asia
- 19 Regional study: Pataliputra
- 20 The Americas
- 21 Regional study: Chaco Canyon and the US Southwest
- 22 Australasia and the Pacific
- 23 Africa: states, empires, and connections
- 24 Regional study: trans-Saharan trade
- Index
- References
Summary
The Sahara Desert, became a major highway of trade along with political and cultural transformation by the eighth or ninth century CE through the introduction of Islamic camel caravans. The Sahara is the world's largest desert, covering some 3.5 million square miles of sand along with gravel, rocky plains, and plateaus. Urbanization and centralized state-building came late to this entire portion of Africa, in comparison with neighboring Mediterranean regions. The major attraction of Africa for these foreign ventures lay in the fertile regions near the coast, which produced significant quantities of wheat, olive oil, and wine for export. Sudanic goods have been purchased by Saharan peoples with their own products and then exchanged for Mediterranean commodities that never reached the Sudan. Widespread camel usage in North Africa was established by the early centuries CE yet was soon followed by a decline in Roman rule as well as general social order throughout the region.
Keywords
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- Information
- The Cambridge World History , pp. 662 - 686Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2015
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