The Indian Ocean Littoral

The Indian Ocean: Cradle of Globalization

The Indian Ocean Littoral: Cartography and Port Cities

The following sites, developed by Fellows in the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) 2002 Summer Institute at the University of Pennsylvania, examine the historical role of port cities in the creation of the Indian Ocean world. The sites aim to engage students in thinking about the roles of these Indian Ocean littoral cities. Topics include:

the way cartography shaped the development of the region
port cities as principle sites of social, economic, and cultural interaction

During the pre-colonial era, the Indian Ocean's ports largely remained subordinate to hinterland political authorities. Port cities took on greater significance during the eighteenth century as European powers utilized ports as bridgeheads to territorial empire. Local populations flocked to these growing littoral centers in search of colonial-era opportunities, and there developed dynamic coastal cultural forms that proved resilient to colonial control and often formed the basis of nationalist politics.

Port Cities: The Western Indian Ocean
James Brennan
Northwestern University

Charting the Indian Ocean from Zanzibar to Sumatra
Penelope Campbell
Agnes Scott College

Spice Ports: The Nutmeg and Pepper Trade
Carol Daeley
Austin College

Port Cities: Mapping Commerce and Trade
Cymone Fourshey
Susquehanna University

The Coromandel Coast: Madras (Chennai), A Case Study
Carol A. Keller
San Antonio College

Cape Town: Slavery in a Port City
&
Trading Marriage: Women and Men in the Indian Ocean
Laura J. Mitchell
University of California, Irvine

Port Cities and the Picturesque
Elizabeth Mjelde
De Anza College

Port Cities of the Horn: Barawa, Marka, Mogadishu, & Zayla
Mohamed Mukhtar
Savannah State University

Assemblies ( Maqâmât ) of al-Harîrî: Abu Zayd asks to be taken aboard a Ship (Thirty-ninth Maqâma), Bagdad, c.1225-1235
Oriental Institute ~ Academy of Sciences
Leningrad

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Maintained and updated by the authors, the initial development of this website is made possible by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) 2002 Summer Institute at the University of Pennsylvania. The website contents are reviewed regularly for accuracy and timeliness. Efforts are made to update material as the need arises in order to make this information accessible through the Internet. As with many Web Pages, these pages are often "under construction" to reflect the continuous changes in the web and in current information. Therefore, these pages may be incomplete or have missing links. Your patience is appreciated.

The web sites include links to sites outside the control of the authors. The authors are not responsible for information on these or other such linked sites. Please respect the copyright notices attached to the Web Sites you view.