HIST101A PO

This course explores the histories of people scattered, settled, lost and found around the Indian Ocean. The course approaches the history of the Indian Ocean as a global maritime space, an economic route and cultural crossroads connecting the Middle East, Africa, South Asia, Southeast Asia and Europe. Ranging from the spice trade and the culture of dhows, the times of the advent of Islam and the traditional Middle Eastern vessels that sailed with the monsoon winds, to the exploration and discovery of the "Indies" and the age of European imperialism and colonialism, the course examines the Indian Ocean world through the framework of transnational and global history. Readings include travel writing and works of literature. (Africa/African Diaspora, South Asia, and Middle East). Previously offered as HIST100AIPO.