Trans-saharan trade.
Definition
Trans-Saharan trade was the network of trade routes crossing the Sahara Desert that connected West Africa to North Africa and the Mediterranean world. For over a thousand years, merchants exchanged gold, salt, enslaved people, and other goods, spreading Islam and cultural practices across the region.
Examples
Real-world.
- 1 The Ghana Empire (c. 300-1200 CE) grew wealthy by taxing gold and salt that passed through its territory
- 2 Mansa Musa of the Mali Empire made a famous pilgrimage to Mecca in 1324, distributing enormous amounts of gold along the way
- 3 Timbuktu became a major center of Islamic learning and trade on the trans-Saharan routes
Key Fact
Gold moved north from West Africa while salt moved south from Saharan mines—these two commodities drove the trans-Saharan trade for centuries.