Melissa Kay Nguyen WHAP CCOT Essays Changes and Continuities in the Silk Road from 200 BCE to 1450 CE Throughout time, the world is always changing. The Silk Road is no exception to the change; however, time also gives room for continuities. The Silk Roads were created by Han China during the 2nd century BCE to trade with Europe. During the period of time between 200 BCE and 1450 CE, the Silk Roads underwent many changes, while at the same time, keeping its same purpose. As time progressed, there were changes on the Silk Roads such the materials being traded and the national identities of the two countries, however, the purpose of the Silk Roads remained the same.
Buddhism was also spread from India to China due to the interaction on the Silk Road. Other products traded were porcelain, spices, and rice. Europeans traded wine, gold, and silver. Goods were limited to luxury goods such as gold and silver because they didn’t have the technology to carry heavy loads on the narrow roads of the Silk Road. Trade
Also, due to the large amount of political changes that occurred during this expanse of time, the Silk Road also traveled through the new countries that began when the Roman Empire collapsed. This created the cultures of these nations along the Silk Road. In conclusion, the Silk Road’s basic purpose remained intact from 200 B.C.E. to 1450 C.E., but the important interactions that occurred on it did not. Empires collapsed, causing new nations to form, which in turn brought countless changes to the cultures and the interactions between the merchants and peoples along the Silk
Many things changed and new goods, even human ones, were traded across the globe from 1450 to 1914. But while many things changed some stayed the same. Two changes were the shift in world dominance from East Asia to Western Europe and China closing itself off from the world. Two continuities are that China remained a major exporter of several invaluable goods and that China stuck to its agricultural roots and never industrialized, even while the world around them was doing so. Even though China was in a rapidly changing time, it still tried to stay to its roots.
When examining continuities and changes in the Indian Ocean region from 650 C.E. to 1250 C.E., there were many. A continuity was the use of the same trade routes because the traders of the region continued using the Indian Ocean to export and import goods. A change would have been the increase of European trade involvement because they began colonizing and having economic ambitions. A continuity was the same trade routes because the traders of the region continued using the Indian Ocean region to import and export goods.
Trade between India and Europe had begun long before the rise of the Roman Empire, but it extended during the first century when sailors figured out patterns of monsoon winds. Commerce between the Mediterranean and the Indian Ocean was widespread and often lucrative. It resulted in the organization of quite a few small trading settlements along the Indian coast. Rome imported ivory, indigo, textiles, precious stones, and pepper from India and silk from China. The Romans occasionally paid cash for these items but also exported silver, wine, perfume, slaves, and glass and cloth from Egypt.
In this way, the Chinese people learnt about Buddhism so that by the middle of the first century C.E., a community of Chinese Buddhists was already in existence. As interest in Buddhism grew, there was a great demand for Buddhist texts to be translated from Indian languages into Chinese. 5. How did the silk roads facilitate the spread of Hinduism and
Through research it is noticeable that the Jews had important contributions in the Silk Road in many areas such as the business activities, and also spread the Jewish religion and culture throughout the areas involved. When researching many of the sources and materials point the Chinese as the key influence of the Silk Road, and this can be argued because it was named after the silk coming out of china which was extremely profitable, and desired. Through research it was also pointed out specifically in Trudy Ring, Robert M. Salkin, Noelle Watson, Sharon La Boda, & Paul Schellinger who showed that while it was the Chinese merchants that carry silk and other items from the east, “they sold or bartered their goods to the Asian middlemen who in turn traded the merchandise to Persians, Syrians, and Jewish merchants” which then sold the good throughout the Roman Empire. This is the
Change over time: Silk Road During the period between 200 BC and 1450 CE the Silk Road underwent many changes and continuities. First established as a trade route from Asia to Europe by the Han Dynasty, it was initially developed as a way for trade to flourish. Despite its changes in connections with different civilizations, trading terms, and the spread of different diseases and religions, its sole purpose of trading goods and ideas remained the same. The ride and fall of dynasties, such as Rome, changed which societies used the Silk Road and which did not, affecting the efficiency of goods and trade. With the fall of the Roman and Han Dynasties, this caused the end of this eras Silk Road usage until the Mongols came and reopened it, also making it safer.
This change brought about more benefit for both regions. It allowed both regions to thrive as it relates to the process of trading, and to help their respective region to advance and gain more resources to aid them in military events as well as their everyday lives. Inversely, this extension of areas of trade benefited the new area they were trading with, by aiding them in the advancement and industrialization of their country. So, this change really was beneficial (much like it was for the Silk Road in China), not only for the Mediterranean region and West Africa, but also for the region that they were now trading