11SPICE TRADE OF BAGHDAD UNDER OTTOMAN 1534–1704 S

Ottoman Iraq

Ottoman Iraq refers to the period of the history of Iraq when the region was ruled by the Ottoman Empire (1534–1704 and 1831–1920).

The spice trade refers to the trade between historical civilizations in Asia,Northeast Africa and Europe. Spices such as cinnamon, cassia, cardamom,ginger, pepper, and turmeric were known, and used for commerce, in theEastern World well into antiquity.^[1] These spices found their way into the Middle East before the beginning of the Christian era, where the true sources of these spices were withheld by the traders and associated with fantastic tales.^[1]Prehistoric writings and stone age carvings of neolithic age obtained indicates that India's southwest coastal port Muziris, in Kerala, had established itself as a major spice trade centre from as early as 3000 B.C, which marked the beginning of the spice trade. Kerala, referred to as the land of spices or as the "Spice Garden of India", was the place traders and explorers wanted to reach, including Christopher Columbus, Vasco da Gama, and others.^[2]

The Greco-Roman world followed by trading along the Incense route and theRoman-India routes.^[3] During the first millennium, the sea routes to India andSri Lanka (the Roman - Taprobane) were controlled by the Indians andEthiopians that became the maritime trading power of the Red Sea. The Kingdom of Axum (ca 5th-century BC–AD 11th century) had pioneered the Red Sea route before the 1st century AD. By mid-7th century AD after the rise of Islam, Arab traders started dominating the maritime routes.

Arab traders eventually took over conveying goods via the Levant and Venetian merchants to Europe until the rise of theOttoman Turks cut the route again by 1453. Overland routes helped the spice trade initially, but maritime trade routes led to tremendous growth in commercial activities.^[1] During the high and late medieval periods Muslim traders dominated maritime spice trading routes throughout the Indian Ocean, tapping source regions in the Far East and shipping spices from trading emporiums in India westward to the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea, from which overland routes led to Europe.

The trade was changed by the European Age of Discovery,^[4] during which the spice trade, particularly in black pepper, became an influential activity for European traders.^[5] The 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.^[6]

This trade — driving the world economy from the end of the Middle Ages well into the modern times —^[5] ushered in an age of European domination in the East.^[6] Channels, such as the Bay of Bengal, served as bridges for cultural and commercial exchanges between diverse cultures^[4] as nations struggled to gain control of the trade along the many spice routes.^[1]European dominance was slow to develop. The Portuguese trade routes were mainly restricted and limited by the use of ancient routes, ports, and nations that were difficult to dominate. The Dutch were later able to bypass many of these problems by pioneering a direct ocean route from the Cape of Good Hope to the Sunda Strait in Indonesia

MALUKU ISLANDS  

The Maluku Islands or the Moluccas (/məˈlʌkəz/) are an archipelago withinIndonesia. Tectonically they are located on the Halmahera Plate within theMolucca Sea Collision Zone. Geographically they are located east of Sulawesi, west of New Guinea, and north and east of Timor. The islands were also the historical core of the Spice Islands known to the Chinese and Europeans, but this term usually included other adjacent areas such as Sulawesi.

They have been known as the Spice Islands due to the nutmeg, mace andcloves that were originally found only there, and the presence of these sparked colonial interest from Europe in the 16th century.^[1]

Though originally Melanesian,^[2] many island populations, especially in theBanda Islands, were exterminated in the 17th century during the spice wars. A second influx of Austronesian immigrants began in the early twentieth century under the Dutch and continues in the Indonesian era.

The Maluku Islands formed a single province since Indonesian independence until 1999, when it was split into two provinces. A new province, North Maluku, incorporates the area between Morotai and Sula, with the arc of islands fromBuru and Seram to Wetar remaining within the existing Maluku Province. North Maluku is predominantly Muslim and its capital is Sofifi on Halmahera island. Maluku province has a larger Christian population and its capital is Ambon.

Between 1999 and 2002, conflict between Muslims and Christians killed thousands and displaced half a million people.

Spread of Islam

The expansion of the Arab Empire in the years following the Prophet Muhammad's death led to the creation of caliphates, occupying a vast geographical area and conversion to Islam was boosted by missionary activities particularly those of Imams, who easily intermingled with local populace to propagate the religious teachings.^[1] These early caliphates, coupled with Muslim economics and trading and the later expansion of theOttoman Empire, resulted in Islam's spread outwards from Mecca towards both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and the creation of the Muslim world. Tradingplayed an important role in the spread of Islam in several parts of the world, notably southeast Asia.^[2][3]

Muslim dynasties were soon established and subsequent empires such as those of the Abbasids, Fatimids, Almoravids, Seljukids, Ajuran, Adal andWarsangali in Somalia, Mughals in India and Safavids in Persia and Ottomansin Anatolia were among the largest and most powerful in the world. The people of the Islamic world created numerous sophisticated centers of culture and science with far-reaching mercantile networks, travelers, scientists, hunters, mathematicians, doctors and philosophers, all contributing to the Golden Age of Islam. Islamic expansion in South and East Asia fostered cosmopolitan and eclectic Muslim cultures in the Indian subcontinent, Malaysia, Indonesia andChina.^[4]

As of January 2011, there were 1.62 billion Muslims,^[5][6] with one out five people in the world being Muslim,^[7] making Islam the second-largest religion in the world.^[8]