“Age of Exploration”
Why Europe?
II. Why Not Arabs?
• Arabs dominated
Mediterranean and
Indian Ocean since
9CE
Arab dhow
Why Not Arabs?
•Arab ships weren’t as big as the Chinese, but they
dominated spice islands of Malaysia, gold-rich
Africa, and cotton/silk-producing Asia!
Indian Ocean Trade
•Arab merchants were ordained by the Prophet. “I
commend the merchants to you, for they are the
courtiers of the horizons and God’s trusted
servants on earth.” ~Mohammed
Why Not Arabs?
•Arabs had developed sophisticated
methods of determining latitude
Astrolabe & Quadrant
When a sailor loses sight of land, he
must have a method of determining
his direction. Determining latitude
could be done by using the astrolabe
(a simple wooden or brass stick with
degrees marked around its edge), or by
using the quadrant, (a quarter circle
measuring 0 to 90 degrees marked
around its curved edge).
quadrants and
astrolabes
Ibn Battuta
th
(14
•Arabs traveled for
discovery. Ibn Battuta, an
Islamic historian traveled
over 75,000 miles, making
him one of most traveled
men of his age. He visited
India, China, Sri Lanka,
Sumatra, and the African
interior as far south as the
Niger River.
century)
Ibn Battuta
th
(14
century)
Because he was
only a passenger
aboard ships he
was never an
explorer in the true
sense, but this did
not make his
achievements any
less important
The End!