AP World 2.3 Exchange in the Indian Ocean

Indian Ocean Basin

The area that connected East Africa, the Middle East, South Asia, and Southeast Asia with China and Japan.

Why did locations in South Asia become wealthy?

They were located in the center of the Indian Ocean, where they could benefit from trade in the Indian Ocean Basin.

How did the spread of Islam influence trade and connection among cities?

Muslim Persians and Arabs were the dominant seafarers and traded many goods to port cities across the Indian Ocean, like Calicut and Cambay.

Calicut

A city on the West coast of India that became a thriving center of trade. Merchants sought spices from Southern India, and foreign merchants from Arabia and China met in Calicut. Rulers welcomed all people because they contributed to the city's wealth.

What regions traded specialized/luxury goods, and what goods did they trade?

India had cotton, steel, tanned leather, stonework, and pepper. The Spice Islands (Malaysia and Indonesia) had spices. Swahili costal cities had slaves, ivory, and gold. China had silk and porcelain. Southwest Asia had horses, figs, and dates.

Indian Ocean Slave Trade

The trade route that brought enslaved people from Eastern Africa to Northern Africa, the Middle East, and India. It peaked in the 18th and 19th century.

What happened to enslaved people in the Indian Ocean slave trade, and what was the result?

They provided forced labor in seaports or homes. In Islamic communities, slaves had certain rights, like marriage. The result was that aspects of African culture (words, music, customs) are still found in India and other locations.

Monsoon Winds

The seasonal winds in India that blow from the Northeast in the winter and from the Southwest in the summer.

How did monsoon winds impact trade and culture?

Merchants planned their voyages carefully and often stayed in port cities for a long time. Therefore, they often settled in these port cities permanently because they married women they met there.

Lateen Sails

Triangular sails that could catch winds coming from many directions.

Stern Rudder

A piece of wood attached to the back of a boat that gave ships stability and maneuverability.

Dhows

Small wooden boats used by Arab and Indian sailors.

Astrolabe

An instrument developed by Muslim navigators that allowed sailors to determine their geographical location.

Which advances in maritime technology allowed for increased trade and travel?

Lateen sails, stern rudder, dhows, and the astrolabe.

Malacca/Melaka

A Muslim city-state that became wealthy by building a navy and imposing fees on ships that traveled through the Strait of Malacca. The Sultan of Malacca expanded the state in the 1400s, but it ended in 1511 when the Portuguese invaded it in hopes that they could control the trade there.

Diaspora

Settlements of people away from their homeland.

How did Islam come to Southern Asia?

Arab merchants stayed in Indian port cities while waiting for favorable winds, but decided to stay there because they met women and married them.

What were the results of increased demand?

Trade expanded, and the role of the state increased so that it could oversee and increase the production of goods and collect taxes.

Gujarat

A Western Indian Rajput kingdom that became the go-between for trade between the East and the West. It became wealthy through taxes/customs.

Swahili City-States

Thriving city-states along the East coast of Africa, including Kilwa, Mombasa, and Zanzibar that sold ivory, gold, slaves, and exotic goods in exchange for porcelain, cotton, and ironwork. They were very grand, wealthy states and the homes there were made of stone or coral.

Zheng He

A Muslim admiral who led seven voyages of exploration during the Ming Dynasty. He had a large fleet and displayed the might of the Ming Dynasty to the rest of the world while collecting tribute from the people he encountered.

What were the effects of Zheng He's voyages?

They brought exotic goods and information about the world to China, inspired some people to immigrate to other locations, and ended pirate activities along the coast of China.

How did the Chinese government react to Zheng He's voyages?

They disapproved of them because they believed that greater interaction and trade with foreign cultures would threaten China's social order. Some critics looked down on other cultures. Others deemed the voyages too expensive.

What caused expanded exchange in the Indian Ocean?

The spread of Islam, increased demand for specialized products, environmental knowledge of monsoon winds, advances in maritime technology, and the growth of states.

Emperor Yongle

The Ming emperor who sent Zheng He on his voyages.

Zhu Gaozhi

The Ming emperor who ended Zheng He's voyages and discouraged the Chinese from sailing away from china by making ship building a punishable offense.