I. The Silk Road * Silk Road—the trade route linking the lands of the Mediterranean with China by way of Mesopotamia, Iran, and C. Asia.
A. Origins of Operations * Parthians—named after homeland east of caspian sea—took over Iran and then Mesopotamia. They were a major force by 247 B.C.E. And had few written resources. There were several wars between the Parthians and the Seleucids, and later the Parthians and the Romans. * The Chinese General Zhang Jian is credited as originator of overland trade with the western lands. He made 18 expeditions across the dessert to the west; he 1st went to Ferghana river-valley. Helped introduce new plants and trees to China through the trade. * Long distance trade was made important by China's demand for western products Nomadic steppe people didn't trade very much but they controlled areas of the Silk Road and sold pack animals that were necessary for early traders * By 100 B.C.E. , China could trade with civilizations as far away as Greece * Everyone traded spices,fruits,seed crops, metals, medicines, animals, animal product, and art (pottery etc.) B. The Impact of Silk Road Trade * Helped spread ppl throughout the continent * Helped spread religions, cultures and languages * Helped spread technology and military technology like the stirrup—one of the most important inventions--1st a solid bar, then a loop of leather, and eventually a combination of leather and metal to create great stablility for riders on the saddle II. The Indian Ocean * a multilingual, multi-ethnic society of seafarers established the Indian Ocean Maritime System –trade network that centered around the Indian Ocean. It connected E. Africa, S. Arabia, the Persian Gulf, India, SE Asia and China. * Trade mainly took place 3 regions: 1. S. China Sea, Chinese and Malays dominated trade. 2. E. coast of India to island of