WORLD HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -During that time, the Swahili Coast comprised numerous city-states that traded across the Indian Ocean. The city-states were independent sultanates, although they shared a common language (Swahili) and religion (Islam). They traded across the Indian Ocean for items, such as pottery, silks, and glassware.

Detailed explanation-2: -The Swahili coast became the center of trade because it had sea ports where vessels from across the Indian Ocean could dock. The Swahili coast became the meeting place of traders from inland Africa, Middle East, and Asia.

Detailed explanation-3: -A major empire of the ancient world, the kingdom of Aksum arose in Ethiopia during the first century C.E. This wealthy African civilization thrived for centuries, controlling a large territorial state and access to vast trade routes linking the Roman Empire to the Middle East and India.

Detailed explanation-4: -At that time, residents of the Swahili city-states played a pivotal role as middlemen, selling gold, timber, ivory, resins, coconut oil, and slaves from the interior regions of Africa to traders arriving from throughout the Indian Ocean World.

Detailed explanation-5: -In return, Swahili elites bought imported glass, porcelain, silk, spices, and cloth. The seasonal monsoon winds allowed trade between the Swahili coast and southern Arabia, the Persian Gulf, and southeast Asia.