CH. 13 TROPICAL AFRICA AND ASIA

Tropical Lands and Peoples

Afro-Asian tropics have cycle of rainy & dry seasons = caused by winds

Africa: west coast rainfall, except in Dec/JanIndian Ocean Monsoons: Dec-March is southern

Asia’s dry season; April-Aug is wet seasonEnvironmental variations from wind, rain,

altitudeRivers redistribute rainfall

Human Ecosystems

• Adaptation essential• Hunting (C.

Africa/Himalyas), fishing (E. Africa/SE Asia), pastoralism (NE Africa/Arabia)

• Farming dominant way of life b/t 1200-1500

• Bananas, yams, coffee to the tropics

• Extensive vs. intensive agriculture: ext = soil exhaustion moved farmers; slash and burn

Water Systems & Irrigation• Uneven distribution of rainfall • Farmers moved water to crops

via conservation• Terraced hillsides; water

storage & irrigation• Largest irrigation systems

were gov’t public works• Crops grown throughout year• Delhi, Ceylon, Angkor • Disruption when gov’ts faltered• Village-based vs. gov’t systems• Iron most abundant; copper/gold in

Africa;

Ibn Battuta• Moroccan Muslim scholar

(1304-1369)• Visited Islamic lands: Dar al

Islam from China to Spain and Western Sudan

• Traveled 73,000 miles; Islam provided safe passage

• Details of the cosmopolitan nature of 14th century Islam

NEW ISLAMIC EMPIRES

Mali and the Delhi Sultanate

Mali

• Islam not forced into western AfricaIslam in Sub-Saharan Africa thru gradual &

peaceful conversion; commercial contactsSundiata established Mali empire 1230sBased on agriculture and trans-Sahara trade,

fostered by IslamGold & Copper trade controlled; prosperity

and power for rulers

Mansa Kankan Musa

• Ruled from 1312-1337• Pilgrimage to Mecca showed Mali’s wealth• Traveled with huge entourage:

Wife and “other ladies” and slaves 60,000 porters and tons of gold

So much gold to Cairo that it depressed its value there for years

The Delhi Sultanate of IndiaCompare Islam in India vs. Islam in West Africa… Turkish dynasty from Central Asia captured Lahore

and Delhi Hindu gods/temples replaced w/ Muslim mosques1206-1236: northern India controlled by Muslim

invaders; looting, enslavement, destruction of Hindus

Brutal conquest turned into benign rulershipHindus protected if paid a tax

The Sultans of Delhiڻ Iltutmish: 1211-1236; recognized by caliph of Baghdad;

consolidated northern Indiaڻ Raziya: Iltut’s daughter; 1236-1240; killed for being a woman,

though more able than anyone to ruleڻ Ala-ud-din Khalji: 1296-1316; frontier raids & high taxes;

seized Gujarat, extended to south Indiaڻ ibn Tughluq: 1325-1351 expansion; religious toleration to win

loyalty of Hindus; ڻ Firuz Shah: 1351-1388; taxed Brahmins and alienated HindusSultanate ruled thru terror & high taxes; conflicts b/t Muslims &

with Hindus led to its downfall

INDIAN OCEAN TRADE

AfricaThe Swahili Coast• Sawahil al-sudan; East

African portion of Indian Ocean trade network

• Mogadishu-Kilwa• Commercial expansion w/

arrival of Arab & Iranian merchants

• Gold in Kilwa passed thru Great Zimbabwe

Great Zimbabwe• 1250-1450 peak• Mixed farming & cattle

herding• Gold trade brought great

wealth = had to pass thru GZ to get to Swahili coast and beyond

• Depletion of nearby forests & overgrazing led to decline

Arabia: Aden and the Red Sea• Location ideal for monsoons

and trade w/ India, Persian Gulf, East Africa, Egypt

• Merchants very wealthy• Generally good relations

among diff’t religions and cultures

• Commercial interests above all else

Goods from… India: cotton cloth, beadsSoutheast Asia: spicesArabia/Ethiopia: horses,

slaves, gold,ivoryRed Sea: pearlsCairo: luxury manufacturesHinterland: grain, opium,

dyes

IndiaGujarat: Cambay• Increased trade after land

trade disrupted• Export of cotton

textiles/indigo; gold/silver in return

• Spread Islam to Malacca• Manufacturing: large

markets in Eur, Africa, MEMalabar Coast: Calicut• Rulers tolerant; location key

to trade prosperity• Clearing-houses in long

distance trade; locally grown grains and spices

Southeast Asia: the Rise of Malacca

Geography: eastern end of Indian Ocean & main passage to South China Sea

• Commercial Choke Point!!! Meeting point for tradersPolitical: Malacca became important thru alliances• Subject to Siam (Thailand) and China• Conversion from H to I promoted trade w/ Muslim

merchants• Emporium for SE Asian trade• Cosmopolitan residents; 1500 peak

SOCIAL AND CULTURAL CHANGE

TIMBUKTU

Architecture, Learning, & Religion

• Islam the major force for change in tropics; most change noticed in urban areas

• Islam blended w/ local styles and resources for mosques• Mosques, churches, temples centers of education; Sub-

Saharan Africa: Islam & literacy together• Timbuktu and Malacca: 1500s major centers of Islamic

learning• Spread of Islam thru example & persuasion; Long-distance

trade/markets• Marriage: merchants were single men who married local

women, thus conversions increased• Rural conversions: some saw forced inequalities of Hinduism

as hopeless; variations in diff’t areas

Social and Gender DistinctionsSlaverySlaveryIndia: product of wars of

expansion (Hindus)Africa: wars of expansion &

export of slavesMost slaves trained in skilled

trades & militarySlaves as servants for wealthy

WomenWomenHindu Sati optional• Status based on male

master- dad, husband, owner

• Not active in commerce, admin, religion

• Food preparation key; brewing for rituals

• Much of farm work; pottery; spinning; selling work in local markets