WHI-Chap22-Obj2
Long-distant travel of all kinds encouraged cultural exchanges between peoples. From 1000 to 1500, large number of travelers facilitated agricultural and technological diffusions. The magnetic compass from China spread throughout the Indian Ocean basin which created a boon to maritime trade because it allowed mariners to sail over long stretches of deep water.
Long-distance journeys enabled Muslim travelers to introduce new food and commercial crops to sub-Saharan Africa. Muslims introduced cotton to west Africa, and by 1100 cotton fabrics had become popular with the ruling elite and wealthy merchants. By 1500, cotton was the principal textile in the savannas.
Muslim merchants began large scale cultivations of sugarcane in southwest Asia and north Africa during the Abbasid caliphate. They had limited success because of adverse environmental conditions. Muslims facilitated the westward spread of sugarcane by acquainting European crusaders. with crystalized sugar. Italian entrepreneurs began to organize sugarcane plantations on the Mediterranean islands. High demand for sugar encouraged investors to seek suitable locations. The cultivation had deep social and economic implications. Sugarcane influenced local economic development as well as distant societies.
Mongols contributed to the process of spreading gunpowder west from China. By the mid-thirteenth century gunpowder had reached Europe. By the early fourteenth century, armies from China to Europe possessed primitive cannons.
Exchanges occurred widely when people of different societies interacted with one another. Agricultural and technological diffusion profoundly influenced lives of peoples throughout the eastern hemisphere. The spread of food crops enriched diets and supported increasing populations, and the spread of industrial crops such as cotton promoted economic development. The diffusion of the magnetic compass enabled mariners to sail the seas more safely and effectively, and the spread of gunpowder technology changed the nature of war forever .
