Bahrain's role in Arabian Gulf trade during the Islamic era Historical study

Abstract

The Arabian Gulf has great geographical and commercial importance, which has made it the focus of attention of major powers since ancient times. Countries have fought over it in order to control this waterway. Trade in the Gulf ports was of great importance in ancient times, as ships used to leave the Arabian Gulf to the Indian Ocean, heading to the Indian Ocean. To China, it returns loaded with Chinese goods and unloads its cargo at the head of the Arabian Gulf. Some of it moves to Iraq and the other moves to Palestine and Egypt. Thus, controlling the Arabian Gulf means controlling global trade routes.

     Bahrain is one of the important commercial centers in the Gulf and has played a major role in enriching the commercial movement since ancient times. Some of its people owned ships that roamed the Arabian Gulf to Indian waters. At the beginning of Islam, Bahrain’s importance gradually began to decrease, until Oman took its place. Bahrain was famous for the trade in pearls that are extracted from Beaches, in addition to various goods that are famous for exporting to foreign countries.