The Mongol Empire and Its Impact on Eurasia

The Mongol Empire and its Influence on Eurasian Trade and Cultural Integration

The Mongol kingdom was an empire that at its pinnacle affected the destiny of almost all of Eurasia. The Mongols influenced Eurasian trade and cultural integration as follows. First, The Mongols under the leadership of Genghis offered protection and security to merchants who came from both the west and east. The protection provided was significant since the Mongols dominated a vast chunk of land. The protection offered also assured merchants of their safety, and as a consequence, areas that were separated by vast distances, for example, China and Western Europe came to develop direct links for trade.

Development of the Great Silk Road Trade

Secondly, the Mongol rulers invested heavily in the development of roads and bridges that were to be used by the traders. As a result, they developed the Great Silk Road trade which is famous for its trade activities. The Mongols also conquered their neighbors and expanded their kingdoms to the point where they bordered others while pacifying vast stretches of North Africa and Eurasia. As a result, merchants did not face security risks as in the previous era, and there was an upsurge in the number of long-distance traders and missionaries.

Cultural Integration through Trade and Missionary Work

Lastly, because of the exchange of goods over long distances, there was cultural integration between the long-distance traders, missionaries, and the inhabitants. Whenever there is a trade, there is an exchange of ideas. Cultural integration occurred through casual contact among the traders and their host population. Cultural integration also occurred through missionary work undertaken by both Christian and Muslim missionaries during Mongol times and resettlement efforts done after the conquest. The Mongols could resettle individuals from their homelands and put them in places they felt they could be of help. All these actions led to intercultural integration.

The Spread of Islam and Christianity through Eurasian Trade

One of the major cultural influences of the Eurasian trade was the spread of religions-including Islam and Christianity to other places. Within a decade of its original inception, Islam had successfully penetrated Sub-Saharan Africa peacefully through the agency of trade and immigration. Islam was later solidified when the migrant community became integrated into the political structure. As a result, the ruling elite embraced the faith.

In contrast, however, Islam arrived in India majorly by Muslim merchants and military conquest. Conquered coastal states in India were subjected to high taxes if they did not convert to the Islamic religion. Merchants who also traded along the coastal regions formed small Islamic communities along the coastal cities of India. In Sub-Saharan Africa, Christianity had arrived many years earlier during the classical era of the Roman Empire.

Sub-Saharan Africa had been a very integral part of the classical world. Earlier on during the Roman Empire, the areas have been exposed to Christianity. During the year 313, Emperor Constantine recognized Christianity as the official religion and stopped subsequent prosecution of Christians. Christianity then started to spread to areas that Rome had conquered. In the following years between the 6th and 7th centuries, most of the Sub-Saharan Africa fell to Muslim armies during the first expansion of Islam. Much of the upper Sub-Saharan Africa converted to Islam, and later it spread southwards of the Saharan region. Islam appealed to the African rulers because of the Islamic doctrine of equality and respect for the rule of law.

Later on, during the 19th century, European missionaries and colonial masters brought Christianity and literacy to the Sub-Saharan communities and forced the individual communities to accept Christianity. Despite Christianity and Islam having a majority of individuals in Sub-Saharan Africa, individuals still retained their individual beliefs, while others integrated the religions with their personal beliefs. Traditional African beliefs like belief in ancestral spirits, witchcraft, and reincarnation were still maintained. Also, practices such as owning sacred objects for religious and protective functions remained.