The Indian Ocean Basin Trade Routes

1. The Indian Ocean Basin Trade routes connected Southeast Asia, India, Arabia, and East Africa. Long distance sea trade moved across a web of routes linking all of those areas as well as East Asia (particularly China). On the other hand, Central Asia was the largest empire in the world history, controlling Tibet, Northern China, and Persia. Also, Islam would flourish in Central Asia/The Chinese transferred the skill of paper making. Through the Mongols, Islamic mathematics and astronomy spread from the “Dar la Islam” into China where they found a receptive audience. Perhaps the most important technological transfers were block printing and gunpowder.
2. Buddhism was one of the religions originated in India, but it spread throughout Asia rapidly