4.1 Globalizing Networks of Communication and Exchange

Period 4 – Global Interactions, c. 1450 CE to c. 1750 CE

The interconnection of the Eastern and Western Hemispheres made possible by transoceanic voyaging marked a key transformation of this period. Technological innovations helped make transoceanic connections possible. Changing patterns of long-distance trade included the global circulation of some commodities and the formation of new regional markets and financial centers. Increased interregional and global trade networks facilitated the spread of religion and other elements of culture as well as the migration of large numbers of people. Germs carried to the Americas ravaged the indigenous peoples, while the global exchange of crops and animals altered agriculture, diets, and populations around the planet.

Key Concept 4.1.VII references increased focus on innovation and scientific inquiry.

Illustrative examples, innovations in ship design:

• Caravel
• Carrack
• Fluyt

Illustrative examples, American foods:

• Potatoes
• Maize
• Manioc

Illustrative examples, cash crops:

• Sugar
• Tobacco

Illustrative examples, domesticated animals:

• Horses
• Pigs
• Cattle

Illustrative examples, foods brought by African slaves:

• Okra
• Rice

Illustrative examples, reform of existing religions and creation of syncretic belief systems and practices:

• The importance of sufism for the further spread of Islam in Afro– Eurasia.
• The intensification of Sunni-Shi'a split by the political rivalries between the Ottoman and the Safavid empires.
• The role of the Protestant and Catholic Reformations in spreading Christianity outside of Europe.
• The development of Vodun and other syncretic religions in the Americas as a result of interactions between Christianity and African religions.
• The development of Sikhism in the context of interactions between Hinduism and Islam.
• The development and spread of new Buddhist schools and practices in Northeast and Southeast Asia.