By the end of this section, you will be able to:
- Explain how geography and climate contributed to the growth of trade along the Swahili coast
- Identify the major commodities traded along the Swahili coast
- Analyze the role of the slave trade in city-states along the Swahili coast
- Describe the significance of Kilwa and Zanzibar to Indian Ocean trade
Not all of Africa’s trade traversed the Sahara. The east coast of Africa was home to wealthy city-states that engaged in oceanic trade with the Arabian Peninsula, India, and places farther east. Just as the cities of Songhai linked sub-Saharan Africa to North Africa and the Mediterranean by means of trade, the African ports on the Indian Ocean connected Africa to South and East Asia. These city-states were important hubs in the trade between East and West and made some of the world’s most desirable products available to people on three continents.
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The content of this course has been taken from the free World History, Volume 2: from 1400 textbook by Openstax