Globalization is best defined as the global interaction of distant people influenced by cultural exchange. Globalization can be traced back to the early 500’s and is still dominant in today’s society. Early civilizations were never isolated from their neighbors, leaving a door open for cross-cultural exchanges. Through empire expansion, trade, revolutions, ideologies, and technology, globalization has played a major role in history and also in shaping the world today, making it one of history’s most significant phenomena.
The expansion of large empires, like the Arab Empire, which covered a mass amount of territory from Spain to India, can be viewed as the first glimpse at globalization. Through empire expansion people were often integrated in cross-cultural society with religion playing a key role. The Arab Empire can be credited with the spread of Islam to Africa and southern
Europe, Buddhism which originated in India spread to Asia, Christianity became dominant in
Europe and in some parts of Russia, and Hinduism became popular in Southeast Asia. All four religions would have not had the global impact without the expansion of large empires.
However, empire expansion had only a minimal effect on globalization.
The use of trade in the early 500’s was the beginning of a global phenomenon. The Silk
Roads expanded across Europe and Asia for centuries. Through the Silk Trade, consumers were offered a variety of goods that were not available in their native country (Strayer, 319).
Merchants who traveled the Silk Roads found themselves engaging in more cross-cultural exchanges than that of goods. The spread of Buddhism from India to Asia is in large part due to the merchants spreading their religious views while on tr...
... middle of paper ...
... evident that globalization can be traced back to over 1,000 years ago.
Global empires, global trade, global revolutions, global ideologies, a global economy, and global technological advances have all shaped the webs of communication and exchange since as early as 500. Through globalization the world has shaped into what it is today both geographically, religiously, economically, politically, and technologically. By the end of the twentieth century few people lived in a world not affected by globalization, thus making it one of the greatest phenomenon in history.
Works Cited
Gandhi, Mahatama “Indian Home Rule.” In Ways of the World: A Brief Global History with Sources, ed. Robert W. Strayer. Boston: Bedford: St. Martin’s, 2013: 964-965.
Strayer, Robert W. Ways of the World: A Brief Global History with Sources. Boston: Bedford: St. Martin’s, 2013.
European colonialism laid the groundwork for the emergence of the Modern Middle East by influencing almost every Middle Eastern country through mandates and protectorates. The French and British greatly influenced the Middle East by using their power to help set the borders and create the Middle East we know today. Saudi Arabia was one of the only countries that was barely influenced by European colonialism. The Middle East was a crucial place throughout ancient history and continued to be important in modern times. Many great civilizations existed in the Middle East. The most prominent was the Ottoman Empire.
... had control various territories. Many merchants learned the Islamic language and became custom to their traditions. This allowed for its culture to spread and Islam had received converts. The trading industry has a major effect on the economy and allows the spread of one’s culture.
The Muslim empire expanded vastly from 622 CE to 750 CE. This empire could be compared to the Holy Roman Empire, one of the greatest in the world. There are three main reasons to explain how the Muslim empire reached its height; battling for land, signing peace treaties, and granting stipends. Every Muslim who were in the military fought against other civilizations for land. After that, they made an agreement, or a peace treaty, to the people of the land they conquered. The Muslims would also give gifts called stipends to conquered people who helped the Islam’s. The next paragraph will be explaining how Muslims fought for land and how that was important.
European influence was most prominent in Egypt, beginning with the dynasty of Muhammad Ali who initiated the reforms that would lay the groundwork for future rulers. Ali sought to achieve a degree of autonomy from the Ottoman Empire and expand the rule of Egypt, both of which required military reform. In order to finance his efforts, he had to expand the Egyptian economy.
Wink (1990, 7) states that, “up to the 11th century, the Muslims penetrated the countless kingdoms of al-Hind only as traders”. A century after the prophet’s death, the Islamic rule had expanded from Spain to India and the Far East. I believe an expansion of that size would most certainly have had an effect on trade and exchange of ideas. Moreover, Chaudhuri (1985, 36) is confident that the Arab conquests politically integrating Egypt, Syria, Iran, and North Africa established a zone of economic consumption, creating new market demands. Not only did the Islamic expansion form a commercial boost, but also provided safer trade routes, an outcome of the commercial law protection and judicial rights which were governed Islamic leaders.
The trading has been conventional between the countries since several thousand years ago, however, the people were not enlightened regarding the distinct cultures and backgrounds. The
There are many strengths and weaknesses of empires for various reasons. An empire is a group of countries or state that are controlled by a foreign power or government. Empires will shape a society economic, political, and cultural development. There are two different types of empires by dominance or empires by hegemony. The benefits of an empire by dominance are dominating the productive farmlands and trade routes. Farming also known as agricultural began, “in West Asia around 9000 B.C.E”( Judge, Edward H., and John W. Langdon 25). Be able to dominate the productive farmlands and trade routes in West Asia could make an empire very wealthy and profitable.
From its origins in north eastern India, Buddhism has already spread to lands that are now Pakistan and Afghanistan by 1st century BCE. Buddhist merchants build temples and shrines along the Silk Road, spreading the faith rapidly. The essential message of Buddhism was the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth. When China defeated the nomadic Xiongu and pushed Chinese military control northwest, Buddhism was known in Central Asia but was not yet widespread in China nor had it reached elsewhere in East Asia. Buddhism became an influential religion for the Chinese brought from India along the Silk Roads. The arrival of Buddhism was officially noted by the imperial court in the mid 1st century CE. The religion mostly appealed to the people from the lower class because Buddhism rejected social hierarchies. Buddhist missionaries began program of translating sacred texts into Chinese, and a number of Chinese priests and monks travelled the Silk Road in search of doctrinal instruction in India. Buddhism eventually spread from China to Japan by the 6th century CE. The religion retained a dominant position in China until the decline of the Tang dynasty in the 9th century. Buddhism also interacted in China with Daoism in 3rd century CE. Daoism offered believers immortality or reincarnation. Daoism spread westward into Central Asia along the Silk Road, providing just as Buddhism had
During the Post-Classical Era, many inter-reigonal networks were created, and many other trade networks that became gateways for the spread of religion, as well as the development of cultures, were expanded. With these expansions came the development of economic integration and a market economy. Increased agricultural production helped facilitate the development of trade. Along with the expansion of the Tang and Song dynasties in China, the influence of Chinese goods, inventions and religion became evident in many distinct parts of the Indian Ocean Basin. Contacts were thus created, as a result of increased trade and state expansion. These Chinese goods often influenced the cultures that they reached. They also brought along ideas, as well as things that would revolutionize cultures.
It was Europe, through the middle east, and through the north coast of Africa. Controlling the sacred cities of Mecca, Medina, and Jerusalem. The spread was through "Islāmic holy warriors," known for their speed and attacks. The empire was remembered for its cultivation of art & architecture. It was also remembered for its development of illegal comb. The empire's history still continues to shape our world today.
Today, scholars often study globalization; the term that describes a modern phenomenon of interconnected trade, global markets, and high-speed exchanges of culture. Globalization began after World War II, though began at modern rates after the fall of the USSR and the end of the Cold War (What). However, is globalization truly a modern invention? Many today argue no; that globalization began thousands of years ago. The Silk Road, the famous network of trade roads that ran from China to Europe, was the first truly global exchange (What). These trails spread thousands of miles, through new lands and with new people, and ended in faraway nations first believed to be on the edge of fantasy. In this paper the author argues that the Silk Road began
...ntries that were not yet developed or industrialized. Therefore, was one more factor which contributed on the process of globalization.
Islamic civilization began in Arabia, but it spread to many areas in the proximity of the peninsula. It spread as far as Spain, as well as many areas between the two locations. The civilization reached the Eastern Roman Empire, Persia, Egypt, and Africa. The Muslim warriors were extremely courageous, and their religious zeal aided in the conquests of many empires surrounding Arabia. However, the weakn...
Besides its economic ups and downs globalization has a tremendous effect on cultural values. World has a cultural diversity in itself. Every nation every country has its own traditions values practices of cultural activities. These create a diversity which every part of the world can be pointed out by their own characteristics. By the beginning 20th century with the effects of industrialization and common usage of communication devices and transpotation becoming faster and more comfortable economy started to play the most important role in a state's political policies. Trade became one of the main incomes of the countries and trade required close interaction between countries and decisions were started to be taken to ease traders by governments.
Globalization was derived from colonialism to control over previously colonized nations, and the way it did so was through the creation of the World Bank in 1945. Globalization is defined in Steger's book as, "the expansion and intensification of social relations and consciousness across world-time and world-space" (Steger 15). Globalization included numerous aspects but one that had heavily influence countries across the world was the World Bank, previously known as The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development. The World Bank was created during the Bretton Woods Conference, a t...