Introduction

Summary

The history of commercial traffic in the Indian Ocean goes back to at least the early centuries of the Christian era. Networks of trade covering different segments of the Ocean have a history of remarkable resilience without being resistant to innovation. In other words, without disrupting the rhythm of the overall flow, variables such as the share in total trade of different communities of merchants engaged in a given network, the goods carried, and the relative volume of trade carried on at the ports called at, were fully reflective of evolving situations. Over the centuries, India has played a key role in the successful functioning of these trading networks. This undoubtedly was related in part to her location at midpoint geographically, but it also had a good deal to do with her capacity to put on the market large quantities of relatively inexpensive and highly competitive manufactured goods in addition to a whole range of other goods. In return, she provided an important outlet for the specialized agricultural, mineral and other products offered by her trading partners. Trade thus satisfied different kinds of needs for India as compared with her major trading partners, and this by itself provided an excellent basis for a significant and growing level of trade. The key role of India can thus be conceptualized essentially as one of contributing significantly to the expansion of the basis of trade in the Indian Ocean.