RELIGST 2FF3 Lecture 4: Trading Centres, Networks & Commodities

• School: McMaster University
• Department: Religious Studies
• Course: RELIGST 2FF3
• Professor: Megan Armstrong

Document Summary

Merchant colonies, set up a branch in another city to facilitate trade. Were the main trading groups linking the east and west. Raw foodstuffs: wheat (egypt), rye (baltic), oil, wine. Locus: barbary coast, 16-19thc (morocco, tunisia, algeria, western libya) Slaves purpose: the muscle of the galleys, domestic service, Merchant colonies in levantine ports (also in the european ports) Sephardic: expulsed from spain, 1492, syrian, egyptian jews: 1516 - albanian jews, is- Families were dispersed as they were a persecuted nation. The only group allowed to lend money, making them crucial to commerce. Were often multilingual, due to dispersed families, living in multilingual societies and trading. Currency was a right of state, there was no standard currency. Trade was done in a currency deemed as more stable". Networks critical to movement of monies: merchants, convents. Currency = symbol of sovereignty (metals: silver, gold, copper) Don"t take currency when you travel, you bring a paper with a credit of the amount.