A. N. Korsun Geographical discoveries. Arab travelers on the Great Silk Road Message about one of the Arab travelers

7th century n. e. the Arabs who lived on the Arabian Peninsula began to spread their power and their new, militant Mohammedan, or Muslim, religion - Islam (submission in Arabic) - over a vast territory. In the east, they conquered the entire Iranian Highlands and Turkestan, north of Arabia - Mesopotamia, the Armenian Highlands and part of the Caucasus, in the northwest - Syria and Palestine, in the west - all of North Africa. In 711, the Arabs crossed the strait, which from that time became known as the distorted Arabic name - Gibraltar, and within seven years (711-718) conquered almost the entire Iberian Peninsula. Thus, in the VIII century. n. e. Arabs owned the western, southern and eastern shores of the Mediterranean Sea, all the shores of the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf, the northern coast of the Arabian Sea. They settled on the most important land roads connecting Eastern Europe - through Central Asia or the Caucasus and the Iranian Highlands - with India, and on the western section of the Great Silk Road. Thanks to this, the Arabs became intermediaries in Europe's trade with all of South and Southeast Asia and with China. Even in antiquity and at the beginning of the Middle Ages, the Arabs played an important role in the trade of the countries adjacent to the Indian Ocean. Now they have taken key positions on the great trade routes in the eastern part of the Indian Ocean and have become complete masters in its western part.

Light, flat-bottomed Arab medieval ships were built from the trunks of coconut palms. “Their ships are bad, and many of them die, because they are not knocked together with iron nails, but sewn with ropes from the bark of Indian [coconut] nuts ... These ropes are durable and do not deteriorate from salt water. Vessels have one mast, one sail and one oar. Marco Polo). Arab sailors walked along the coast, and only the very experienced dared to cross the ocean.

The main Asian goods supplied by the Arabs to Europe through the Persian Gulf to Baghdad or across the Red Sea to the Isthmus of Suez were expensive fabrics, ivory, precious stones and pearls, black slaves, gold, but especially spices. The fact is that in medieval Europe the mass slaughter of cattle was in late autumn, when pasture began to disappear. The meat was salted for the future in whole barrels, and spices were widely used so that the meat did not lose its taste and did not deteriorate. And they were valued in the European market literally worth their weight in gold. Tropical spices grew at that time only in the south and southeast of Asia. In trade, the first place was occupied by pepper, common in almost all of tropical Asia. But the main place of his culture was the Malabar coast, from which ginger and cardamom also came. Indonesia supplied cloves and nutmeg, Sri Lanka supplied cinnamon. And this Indian trade with Europe was monopolized by the Arabs.

slave itinerant merchants and participants in various embassies collected from the 8th century. large geographical material on a number of European countries, including distant ones, excluding the Far North, trade with which was carried out through intermediaries. The Arab travelers partly processed this material themselves (there were many outstanding writers among them), partly handed it over to important officials (postmasters) and "armchair scientists", whose works played an enormous role in the history of medieval geography. The first reliable geographical information about Eastern Europe (except for the Black Sea region) came down to us thanks to Arab authors.

Spanish Jew who wrote Arabic Ibrahim Ibn Yaqub in 965 he participated in the Cordoba embassy to the German emperor Otto I. In the second half of the 10th century. the Slavic countries of Central Europe were "unknown lands" for the Arabs. Ibn Yakub is the only early medieval traveler to the Slavic Baltic whose personal observations have come down to us. Apparently, for trading purposes, he alone traveled through Magdeburg, on the middle Elbe, to “the fortress of Prince Nakon ... called Grad ... The [Baltic] Sea penetrates into the country of Nakon with great difficulty, for all its lands consist of meadows, thickets and swamps." Undoubtedly, Ibn Yakub visited the Slavic city of Mikilin, now Mecklenburg, south of the Baltic port of Wismar.

Ybn Yakub also describes the way from Magdeburg to the south, to the country of Buislav, the Czech prince Boleslav I the Terrible: through the river. Muldava (Mulde, left tributary of the Elbe), 50 km from it to the forest, which stretches “... for 40 miles along the impenetrable [Ore] mountains. After passing the forest, you find yourself in Prague. “The country of Buislava [Czech Republic] stretches from Prague to Krakow for a three-week journey. The city of Prague... the largest shopping center in those countries." Further, Ibn Yakub describes the country of Mieszko, i.e. Poland. It was then ruled by the prince Mieszko I. “This is the most extensive of those countries, and it is rich in grain, honey and fish ... The Russ border the country of Mieszko in the east, and the bars [Prussians] in the north. The beams settle on the shores of the World Ocean [Baltic Sea], they have their own special language, related to Lithuanian; they do not understand the language of their neighbors...” To the north-west of the country of Mieszko, in a swampy area, the Slavs live; they have a big city on the seashore... [Yumna-Volin, at the mouth of the Odra]. They are at war with Mieszko, and their army is numerous ... "

Ibn Rust about the Volga Bulgarians and Rus

first decade of the tenth century. Persian Abu Ali Ibn Ruste(or Rusta) compiled a great work in Arabic called "Dear Values". Only the part devoted to astronomy and geography has come down to us: it, by the way, contains information about the peoples of Eastern Europe. He begins with the Turkic-speaking Volga-Kama Bulgarians, among whom no later than the 9th century. Islam began to spread. Ibn Ruste was not in their country, and he collected information, undoubtedly, from wandering Muslim merchants. “Bulgaria borders on the country of the Burtases. The ethnicity of the Burtases is debatable; presumably - Finno-Ugric, related to the Mordovians. The Bulgarians live on the banks of the river, which flows into the Khazar Sea [Caspian] and is called Itil [Volga], flowing between the country of the Khazars and the Slavs. Their country is covered with swamps and dense forests, among which they live. The Khazars are bargaining with the Bulgarians, and in the same way the Rus bring their goods to them. All [peoples] who live on both banks of the mentioned river bring their goods to them [Bulgarians] ... sable, ermine, squirrel and other furs. The Bulgarians are an agricultural people... Most of them profess Islam... Between the Burtases and these Bulgarians there is a distance of three days' journey... The Bulgarians have horses, chain mail and full armament. Their main wealth is marten fur ... Marten fur is replaced by a voiced coin.

Further, Ibn Ruste reports on the Slavs and Russ. This confused story is probably borrowed from Muslimah al-Jarmi whose works have not come down to us. Ibn Ruste read or heard about the city of Kuyab (Kiev), located “near the border of the country of the Slavs... The path to their country goes through the steppes, through the lands without roads, through streams and dense forests. The country of the Slavs is flat and wooded; they live in the forests ... Yake Ruses live on an island, among lakes. This island ... occupies the space of three days' journey. It is covered with forests and swamps ... They raid the Slavs: they approach them on boats, land, take them prisoner, take them to Khazaria and Bulgaria and sell them there. They have no arable land, and they feed on what they bring from the land of the Slavs ... their only trade is the trade ... in furs. They dress untidy, their men wear gold bracelets. Slaves are treated well. They have many cities and live in open spaces. They are tall, prominent and courageous people, but they show this courage not on horseback - they make all their raids and campaigns on ships.

Ahmed Ibn Fadlan took part, probably, as a secretary in the embassy of the Baghdad caliph in the Volga-Kama Bulgaria: a Muslim khan Arslan then he headed the union of the Bulgarian tribes living in the basin of the lower Kama and the Volga (approximately to the river Samara), and looked for allies in the Arabs against the Khazars. Of course, the caliph expected to receive great trade privileges from such an alliance. The embassy left Baghdad on June 21, 921 and through the Iranian Highlands, the lower reaches of pp. Tejen and Murghab passed to Bukhara, from there it went down the Amu Darya to Khorezm and wintered in Dzhurdzhan (the capital of ancient Khorezm, the ruins are near the city of Kunya-Urgench). In February 922, the Arabs began to prepare for the journey: they acquired two-humped camels and "... travel bags made of camel skin for crossing rivers ..." Here and below, cit. according to A. Kovalevsky. On March 4, a huge caravan - 5 thousand people, including a convoy, 3 thousand horses (camels were not counted) - set off to the northwest. “... We rushed to the country of the Turks ... and we did not meet anyone ... in the desert without a single mountain [Ustyurt Plateau]. So we traveled along it for 10 days and met with disasters, difficulties, severe cold and continuous snowstorms ... we arrived at a big mountain with many stones. We are talking about the northern chink - a steep ledge of Ustyurt, behind which stretches a vast plain, where the Oghuz Turks then roamed. Arab and Iranian authors called them gooses, Russian Lvtoiis - bonds and torks. When we crossed the mountain, we went to the tribe of the Turks, known as the Guz. Ibn Fadlan gave a derogatory characterization of the Oghuz, as well as other pagans whom he met later. But at the same time, he notes that the Oguzes “do not know fornication”, because it is punishable by a cruel execution among them.

Ibn Fadlan described the way through the Caspian lowland and along the Trans-Volga region sparingly - he basically listed the river crossings after descending from the Ustyurt chink. The embassy crossed the river. Yaganda (Shagan), flowing from the southern spur of Mugodzhar, and crossed the Jam (Emba) in travel bags converted into leather canoes, which accommodated six people. Horses and camels were driven by swimming. Then they crossed the Dzhakhysh (Sagiz), Uzil (Wil), a number of other rivers and stopped at Lake Shalkar. The next stop was at the river. Jaikh (Yaik). "... This is the biggest river we have seen... and with the strongest current..."

Having crossed the Chagan (the right tributary of the Yaik), the embassy ended up "in the country of the people ... Bashgird" (Bashkirs). Ibn Fadlan calls them "the worst of the Turks ... more than others encroaching on life." Therefore, having entered their land, the Arabs sent forward an armed cavalry detachment. The path was crossed by the left tributaries of the Volga: the upper reaches of the Big Irgiz, the lower reaches of the Samara (and its tributary Kinel) and the Sok, the lower reaches of the Big Cheremshan. For all these rivers, Ibn Fadlan gives names that coincide or are very similar to the current ones. The choice of such a route can be explained by the fact that travelers avoided the left low bank of the Volga flooded in spring and stayed away from the river. But, perhaps, they deliberately avoided the city of Itil, the capital of Khazaria, from which Khan Arslan wanted to break away.

On May 11, 922, the embassy arrived at the new khan's headquarters - the city of Bolgar (or Bulgar); located on the left bank of the Volga, at 55 ° N. sh., near the mouth of the Kama. Together with Arslan, the Arabs wandered for some time, mainly to the south of the Bolgar, along the left bank of the Volga, approximately to Bolshoi Cheremshan. From the Bulgarians, Ibn Fadlan received the first information about the whole people. “... Many merchants go ... to a country called Visu, and bring sables and black foxes ... The king [khan] told me that beyond his country, at a distance of three months' journey, there is a people called Visu. [Summer] night is less than… an hour.” Historians, albeit with reservations, identify the “country of Vis” with the territory between the Ladoga and White lakes, which was occupied by all the people mentioned in The Tale of Bygone Years. From Khan, Ibn Fadlan first heard about the Suvaz (Chuvash) people, who lived next door to the Bulgarians, on the right bank of the Volga.

The embassy returned to its homeland in the spring of 923, probably going down the Volga: “... only [this] can explain the description of Khazaria, unusual in richness of details, preserved in the geographical dictionary Yakut"(B. Zakhoder).

In Baghdad, Ibn Fadlan compiled the "Risala" ("Note") - one of the most important sources on the medieval history of the peoples of the Volga, Trans-Volga and Central Asia. He, of course, was not a discoverer, as he was on the trade route, along which Arab and Persian products were delivered from Iraq, Iran and Khorezm to the basin of the lower and middle Volga in exchange for precious northern furs. But he was the first traveler whose clear, accurate reports about the northern Caspian regions and the Trans-Volga region have come down to us, and, moreover, he gave the first correct list of rivers crossing the Caspian lowland.

born in Baghdad Abu al-Hasan Ali al-Masudi(first half of the 10th century), historian and geographer, traveled most of his life, visited many countries of the Old World - all of Asia Minor and Central Asia, the Caucasus and Eastern Europe, North and East Africa. Not limited to personal observations, he collected an enormous survey material and made extensive use of earlier authors. In one of the two works that have come down to us, "Gold pans and gem mines", information about the countries and inhabitants of Eastern Europe, including the Slavs, is of particular interest. “In their country there are many rivers flowing from the north. None of their lakes is salty ... The country that is further north behind them is uninhabited because of the cold and the abundance of water. Most of their tribes are pagans ... they have many cities, there are churches where bells hang ... "

Masudi gave the first, but very obscure information about the route from the Volga to the Black Sea. True, he himself did not go this way and therefore was mistaken: listening to the stories of experienced people, he took the real drag for an imaginary channel connecting the Volga with the Don or directly with the Sea of ​​\u200b\u200bAzov. Masudi also reported on the campaign of the Rus to the Caspian Sea in 912-913. “... About 500 ships, each of which had a hundred people ... reached ... the Khazar [Caspian] sea ... [which] does not have a sleeve connecting with another sea, because it is small ... known from all sides." So, the Arabs, Russians and all the Caspian peoples in the X century. knew that the Caspian is a “small sea” closed on all sides, that is, a lake, and not part of the Black Sea - or the Northern Ocean, as Western European geographers believed for at least three more centuries, before G. Rubruk's travels.

The only Arab traveler who visited Russian lands in 1150-1153 was a native of Granada Abu Hamid al-Garnati. Having visited several countries of Asia Minor, in 1131 he reached Derbent, and from here he sailed across the Caspian Sea to the mouth of the Volga and here, in the large trading city of Saksin, he lived for 20 years, preaching Islam, but not missing an opportunity to profitably buy and sell. “They [the Khazars] have a cold winter. Their winter houses are made of large pine logs.” In 1135, al-Garnati went up the Volga to the city of Bulgar. The size of the river struck him: “... it is like a sea... And it freezes... [it] is so that it becomes [solid] like the earth... Bulgar is also a huge fool, all... of pine, and the city the wall is oak. And underground there are tusks of elephants [mammoths], white as snow, heavy as lead.” In Bulgar, al-Garnati heard about the region “which is called Aru, where beavers, ermines, and... squirrels are hunted. And the day there in the summer is 22 hours ... "He saw the inhabitants of this Arsk land of Russian chronicles, Al-Garnati mentioned the Arsk people 200 years earlier than the chronicle: the campaign of the Vyatichi in the Arsk land is reported under 1379. Here and further op. according to O. Bolshakov and A. Mongait. ancestors of modern Udmurts, and describes them, as well as the inhabitants of the Visu country, as red-cheeked, blue-eyed, blond people in linen clothes and fur skins.

In 1150, he again visited Bulgar and, having risen to the mouth of the Nahr-as-Sakalib (“Slavic River”, that is, the Oka), went along it to Rus'. "And the water... [Oki] is black... like ink, but... sweet, good, clean." The country of the Slavs “... is vast, abundant in honey and wheat, and barley, and large apples... They are calculated... with old squirrel skins... [without] wool... which are good for nothing. And for each they give excellent round bread ... ”(There was a princely sign on the skins, so no one had the right to refuse them.) Al-Garnati stayed in the land of the Slavs for some time and collected the first information about the Mordvin people: they live“.. .among the trees ... on the [banks] of the huge river [Oka] and they hunt beavers ... ”From the Oka, he crossed to the Desna and reached Kuyava (Kiev), but he does not say anything about the life of the city. Then he proceeded to Hungary, where he lived until 1153, and returned to Kyiv, and from there through the Polovtsian steppes, south of his first route, he arrived at Saksin, at the mouth of the Volga; this journey he passed over in silence.

Information about Asia of Arabic-speaking scientists

Zia, for the most part, became known to Western Europeans precisely through medieval Arab geographers. They extracted from the "darkness" the inner regions of the Arabian Peninsula, expanded the data of ancient authors about Iran, India, Sri Lanka and Central Asia. They knew about the great uplands of Central Asia and were the first to bring to the West relatively accurate information about Northern China (Khitai) and Southern China (Chin), about the peninsulas of Indochina and Malacca. They knew about Sumatra, Java and other more distant islands. Only most of Northern Asia remained for them the land of Darkness. Arab merchants sailed all the seas of the Old World, except for the northern ones.

The merit of describing the Arabian Peninsula belongs to the Tajik scientist and religious figure Nosir Ibn Khisrov, poet and traveler of the middle of the XI century. In the summer of 1051, he set off from Mecca to the southeast along a caravan road along the meridional ridge through the steppe, the inhabitants of which “all their lives have not eaten anything but camel’s milk [and meat], since nothing grows in this steppe, except for the brackish grass." Before turning to the east, Ibn Hisrow visited one of the districts of the historical region of Asir: “... in the midst of clefts and rocks ... mountains, round like domes. Their height ... is such that an arrow would not have reached the top. They are ... hard and smooth as an egg, no cracks, no bumps ... "

Traveling east for about 500 km, he arrived at the El-Aflaj oasis, located “... in the middle of the [Dehna] desert; it is a vast country, completely ruined as a result of internal strife. There was no money for the further journey, and Ibn Khisrov painted the local mosque and earned money for food and pay for the guides. In autumn he reached the Persian Gulf, having completed the crossing of Arabia, which he correctly considered a peninsula: “On three sides ... two regions [Yemen and Hijaz] are surrounded by the sea, and they thus constitute a peninsula. Length ... [its] about five hundred farsakhs from north to south; width from east to west ... about four hundred farsakhs. He noted that low-lying Tihama stretches along the coast of the Red Sea. “There are many cities and inhabited places ... All ... cities lie in valleys ...”; the Hijaz region (Arabic for "barrier") is sparsely populated; "... the mountainous region called Nejd [has]... many deserted and cold places, gorges and mighty castles." In the eastern part of the peninsula “... there are also many cities ... [and] regions, and each ... is ruled by its king and leader. The inhabitants there do not recognize any authorities - robbers, murderers and wicked. Returning to his homeland, Ibi Khisrov published the "Book of Travels", which we quoted.

Great Khorezm scientist-encyclopedist al-Biruni He was also the greatest geographer of the 11th century. During his long, often forced travels, he explored the Iranian Plateau and much of Central Asia. Accompanying the involuntary conqueror of Khorezm, the Afghan Sultan Mahmud Ghazni in his devastating campaign against the Punjab, Biruni collected vast materials about Indian culture there and put them, together with personal observations, into the basis of a great work on India.

The first Central Asian Turkologist-encyclopedist of the middle of the XII century. Mahmoud Kashgari was also a geographer and traveler: “Span by span I went all or, villages and steppes of the Turks. For many years I wandered around the Turkic, Oghuz... Kyrgyz cities, villages, camps, compiled dictionaries of their languages...” (cited by X. Khasanov). As a result, Kashgari explored a vast territory from the eastern coast of the Caspian Sea to the meridian of Lake Lobnor and from the latitude of the river. Ili to the southern border of Kashgaria and carried out the first zoning of Central and part of Central Asia, with great accuracy determining the boundaries of the settlement of Turkic peoples and tribes. The “Dictionary of Turkic dialects” compiled by him - the oldest summary of information about the tribes of the Turks - contains many names of mountains, rivers, lakes, countries and states. Tien Shan and Semirechye are characterized in the most detail; he marks Lake Issyk-Kul, the Balasagun mountains (Kyrgyz range), the Alai valley and the river. Or. He visited the basin of the upper Naryn and mentions the Chatyrköl and Sizich (Sonkel) lakes. He correctly represented and showed on the map he compiled the mountain system of the Western Tien Shan in the form of a series of parallel ridges separated by transverse valleys. Kashgari is familiar with the Mangyshlak peninsula - this name is found for the first time in it, from Mt. Altyntag and from the river. Tarim, "which flows ... to the Uighur lands [Kashgaria]. There it seeps into the sands”; he mentions two rivers "... on both sides of the city of Khotan" - Karakash and Yurunkash.

639–709 the Arabs captured all of North Africa (the Maghreb) and took over its trade; the "winds of commerce" brought them to the countries south of the Sahara. Sahara is a slightly modified Arabic word "sahra" ("desert"). As a result of trade contacts, Arab merchants mastered well the six main caravan routes known since ancient times. "Breakthrough" through the Sahara into the country of the non-literate peoples of Western and Equatorial Africa meant a genuine discovery, in some cases, however, secondary - after the Carthaginians, Bilad as-Sudan ("Countries of the Blacks"), which, according to the ideas of medieval Arabs, stretched from the Atlantic Ocean to the Upper Nile. In the second half of the XI century. the Arabs knew that the Atlas Mountains stretched from the Green Ocean (Atlantic) to the Gulf of Gabes and consisted of a series of ranges, including the Azwar (High Atlas) mountains with silver mines: “These mountains are abundant in water flows; their length is a ten-day march ... Azwar is that mountain from under which Wadi Dara flows; [R. Dra]" (al-Bakri).Here and below, cit. on Sat. Ancient and medieval sources ... M - L., 1965, vol. 1–2.

In the 8th century Arab merchants, who did not disdain the slave trade, penetrated into the country of gold Aukar (Ghana), the middle reaches of the Niger, and in exchange for agricultural goods, silver and copper received slaves and gold. In the middle of the 9th century, passing to the south-west "... over sandy terrain and quicksand", they reached the upper Niger, at 11 ° N. sh., and delivered to Morocco the first news about the country of Mallal (Mali) and about the Malinka people (literal translation - “people of Mali”), who lived in the interfluve of the Niger and Senegal; Malinke were engaged in cattle breeding and hunting, cultivated cassava, cotton and durra (a plant from the genus sorghum). Almost simultaneously, Arab gold traders first reported "Jazirat al-Tibr" - "Island or peninsula of gold ore". Most likely, they meant the gold-bearing territory at 10 ° W. d. between pp. Bafing (Upper Senegal) and Bakoy. In a number of large centers in the Niger Valley, the Arabs founded several Muslim settlements, which played a significant role in the cultural development of the country.

The merchants, of course, in general terms got acquainted with the course of the Niger from 8 ° W. to 0 ° over 1200 km within its great northern arc. They reported on Ras al-Ma ("Head of Water") - the lake and swampy region of Masina: between 5 and 3 ° W. flowing through a wide swampy valley, the Niger forms the so-called inner delta - a series of small lakes and several branches, which turn into one huge lake during the rainy season. Under the name Turtle Lakes, this delta at the beginning of the 9th century. described by al-Khwarizmi. According to merchants, Niger comes from the southwest "...from the country of the blacks, and, having passed through the desert to the city of Gaogao [Gao], ... returns to the south [southeast] to the country of the blacks." The Arabs had no idea about the further course of the river. Al-Idrisi believed that she "... is lost in the quicksands of the desert." This misconception persisted until 1830.

Arabs came to Sudan not only by the way described above, but also by other routes. One started from the shopping center on Oued Ziz (Southern Morocco) and ran due south near 4° W. etc., through the sandy deserts of Erg Igidi, Erg Shesh (the hottest region of the Sahara) and a number of settlements, ending in Timbuktu, Niger. The other, from Tripoli southwest to Niger, was the ancient, Achaean route. Describing it, al-Bakri gave the first characteristic of the Adrar-Iforas plateau, among the mountains and gorges of which there was a large trading city of Tadmekka, at 19 ° N. sh., now defunct. The third trade road ran from the Mediterranean coast at about 13° E. through the Fezzan region and the Kawar group of oases, at 19 ° N. sh., in the region of Lake Chad. Another caravan route ran from Khartoum on the Nile through Kordofan and the Darfur plateau, crossed numerous wadis and reached the area of ​​Lake Chad.

Arab merchants who penetrated here reported about the state of Kanem, located to the north and northeast of Lake Chad. No later than 971 visited here al-Hasan Ibn Amr- a sea captain sailing from Siraf (a port on the Persian Gulf) along the east coast of Africa. It is not clear how he reached Central Africa, probably from the shores of the Indian Ocean. Although many Arab geographers described Kanem from the words of merchants, they stubbornly keep silent about Lake Chad. Perhaps the only exception was the sailor and traveler Ibn Fatima who visited the lake, probably in the 12th century. Then Chad occupied a much larger area than now. This can be judged by the following instruction of Ibn Fatima: "[From] the northern side of the lake... the Nile flows out..." -east along the dry channel of the river. El Ghazal (Nile basin). Ibn Fatima noted a number of tribes inhabiting the lakeside regions, including "on the western side ... ankazar, and on the eastern side [the people] kura, after which the lake [is] named." Navigation in Chad was carried out on boats and rafts made of reeds, which grow in abundance along 6 ranges. The fleet of the sovereign Kanem dominated the lake.

With repeated crossings of the Sahara, the Arabs became well acquainted with the dry savannah, stretching along the southern borders of the desert from about 10 ° N. sh., and called it Sahel, that is, "shore", or rather, "shore of the desert."

along the east coast of Africa, the Arabs advanced much further than their predecessors - the Greeks and Romans, reaching up to 10 ° 30 "S. captured the island of Kanbalu (Zanzibar), where they laid a trading post.They got quite well acquainted with the coast of the mainland from Cape Kafun (Guardafui) to 8 ° S. On this "segment" 3000 km long, according to their reports, there were several The northernmost (from Guardafui to the Juba River) was the land of the Berbers, on the coast of which they marked one cape - Khafun and had a number of trading posts.Further south, to Kilva, at 9 ° S washed by the sea of ​​the same name, with a large number of mountains and desert savannahs, rich in wild animals.Arab hunters were especially attracted to elephants.In addition to ivory, the country gave leopard skins, gold and slaves.Arab merchants reported that Zinji (Bantu-speaking tribes) eat bananas, etc. urra, coconuts; they make their ornaments of iron.

From about. Zanzibar Arabs launched an offensive to the south, which lasted about three centuries. Navigation was hampered by numerous sandy islets and coral reefs that accompanied the shore - sailors' reports of them are summarized on the al-Idrisi map of the 12th century. On a flat, low-lying, swampy coast at 9 ° S. sh. - the country of Sofala - the Arabs founded a number of new trading posts, including Milbanunu (Mozambique), at 15 ° S. sh., Shinde, at 18 ° S sh., near the mouth of a large river (Zambezi); up it, the Arabs climbed 600 km, probably to the rapids of Kebrabas, 100 km long, and marked the river. The Shire is a major left tributary of the Zambezi. The southernmost point - Daguta (Maputo at 26 ° S. Lat.) - was located on the shore of a large bay. It was the last settlement in the country of Sofala, the land of gold and iron, also inhabited by Zinjs - cattle breeders and farmers. Around 1130, Sofala came under the control of Kilwa, which by 1314 had become the leading power on the entire east coast.

The land of Vak-Vak adjoins the country of Sofala from the south, the inhabitants of which “... are black, their appearance is disgusting, their appearance is ugly. They are naked and do not hide behind anything. They feed on fish, [meat] of shells and turtles. No goods are exported from them, and they have no ships, no horses, no beasts of burden” (al-Idrisi). This is the first ethnographic description of the oldest indigenous population of South Africa - Bushmen, itinerant hunters, plant collectors and artists.

The Arabs penetrated further south. According to information received from the navigator Ibn Fatima (around the 12th century), a geographer and traveler in the middle of the 13th century. Ibn Said reports that south of Daguta, the An-Nadama mountains begin, a 20-day journey (about 800 km) - the first mention of the Dragon Mountains, the eastern slope of which ends in steep steps to the Indian Ocean. Acquaintance of the Arabs with the shores of Southeast Africa by the XIII century. limited, as shown by the Soviet historian M. A. Tolmacheva, 33 ° S. sh. (now the Port of East London). Thus, they discovered, though for the second time, about 3500 km of the coast with two small unnamed bays, as well as the mouths of the Zambezi and Limpopo. But even at the beginning of the XI century. Arab sailors already knew about the possibility of bypassing Africa from the south: “... the sea [Indian Ocean] connects with the Western sea-ocean [Atlantic] ... [and] there is no barrier to reaching it ... from the south side ... although [the Arabs]... and did not see it with their own eyes...” (al-Biruni). And only four centuries later (about 1420) an unknown Arab navigator circled South Africa, following from the Indian Ocean to the Sea of ​​​​Darkness, that is, the Atlantic Ocean. Information about this voyage is placed in the legend to the map of the Venetian monk cartographer Fra Mauro, compiled in 1457-1459. It is not clear from the message how far north the Arab ship moved, and yet, as R. Hennig notes, “... not only the southern cape of Africa, but also its coastline approximately to the latitude of the Orange River are shown in general terms [on this map) ... amazingly true. After 70 days, the ship returned to the South African cape, named Diab (“On two waters, that is, the ocean, looking”?).

In the middle of the VIII century. the Arabs discovered at least two of the six volcanic Comoros, a little later they stumbled upon the uninhabited Seychelles (Ar-Ramm), and not later than the 9th century. some land was found southeast of Comoros - the northwestern coast of about. Madagascar. They established trade relations with its inhabitants and began to move slowly along the coast to the north and south. By the beginning of the XI century. the Arabs already had a number of strongholds on both banks, and probably by the middle of the XII and. they established that the land they discovered was an island and called it al-Kumr, for the first time this name of Madagascar is found in al-Idrisi. By the middle of the XIII century. Arab sailors already knew that all the space south of the mountains of an-Nadam at the longitude of al-Kumr was "filled with the sea." And by the end of the XV century. they had a relatively good idea of ​​both shores of the northern half of the island. By this time, they obviously crossed the strait separating Madagascar from the mainland more than once, without further ado, called it the al-Kumr Strait (Strait of Mozambique) and noted a strong current near the African coast.

Moroccan traveling merchant Abu Abdullah Ibn Battuta, a Berber by origin, was one of the greatest travelers. He began his wanderings in 1325 from Tangier, visited Egypt, Western Arabia, Yemen, Syria and Iran, reached Mozambique by sea, and visited the Bahrain Islands on his way back. Then Ibn Battuta reached the Crimea, was in the lower reaches of the Volga and in its middle reaches, crossed the Caspian lowland and the Ustyurt plateau and proceeded to Central Asia. From there, through the Hindu Kush, he went to the Indus Valley and lived in Delhi for several years. In 1342 he passed through Hindustan to the south, visited the Maldives, Sri Lanka and arrived in China by sea. Ibn Battuta returned to Tangier in 1349, again visiting Sri Lanka, Arabia, Syria and Egypt. In 1352–1353 he went on his last journey and crossed the Western and Central Sahara; in 25 years, he traveled by land and by sea about 130 thousand km. In retirement, Ibn Battuta dictated the book, as commentators note, "entirely relying on his memory." The book "Travels of Ibn Battuta" has been translated into a number of European languages. Saturated with huge geographical, historical and ethnographic material, it is of great interest to the present day for studying the medieval history of the countries he visited, including vast areas of your homeland. Where Ibn Battuta speaks of what he personally saw, that is, in most of his work, his reports are, as a rule, quite reliable. But the interrogative information he collected about individual countries, despite the elements of fantasy, deservedly attracted the attention of historians, for example, about the Land of Darkness - Northern Europe and Asia.

According to Arabic sources, merchants from Arabia reached the Philippines in the 1st century BC. n. e. But only in 1380 Islam penetrated there: a Muslim missionary-scientist (mukdum, that is, “one who serves”) arrived on one of the islands of arch. Sulu, between 4 and 6°N. sh. His work was continued Abu Bakr al-Hashimi. He married the daughter of the Raja Fr. Jolo, and after the death of his father-in-law became the ruler. From o. Jolo Arab missionaries moved to Fr. Mindanao, and soon the Arabs controlled the entire island, except for a small northeast corner. Gradually moving further north, they got acquainted with the islands of Bohol, Cebu, Leyte, Negros, Panay, Samar, Mindoro and numerous small islands in inland seas. However, then the process of Islamization and exploration of the Philippines stalled. Although the Arabs penetrated Luzon, they could not advance beyond 15 ° N. sh. - to the central plain of the island.

ancestral navigator, whose father and grandfather were Muallims, Muallim is a captain who knows astronomy and is familiar with the conditions of navigation along the coast, literally a teacher, a mentor.Ahmed Ibn Majid Shikhabuddin from Oman, as a boy, he went with his father along the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. In the second half of the 15th century, when he began to sail independently, the power of the Mamluks in Egypt, the Timurids in Persia, the Delhi sultans in India, and the Indonesian rulers noticeably weakened. And the era of Arab domination in the Indian Ocean began, a long period of "peak" Arab maritime trade. Arab sailors became well acquainted with the southern half of the Red Sea up to the latitude of Jeddah, 21 ° 30 "N, and the Gulf of Aden, the Arabian Sea, the Bay of Bengal and the seas of Southeast Asia up to the meridian of the island of Timor, 124 ° E.

Summarizing the many years of experience of his predecessors, including his grandfather and father, using the information of his contemporaries-sailors and mainly his own observations, Ibn Majid in 1462 created "Haviyat al-Ihtisar ..." ("Collection of results on the main principles of knowledge about the seas ”), and in 1489–1490. finished twice (1475 and 1478) the altered poem "Kitab al-fawaid ..." ("The Book of Benefits on the Basics and Rules of Marine Science"). These navigational works contain information that allows one to get some idea of ​​the nature of the coasts of the Indian Ocean, its marginal seas and the largest islands. Ibn Majid also gave some information about a number of points in the South China Sea (Pacific Ocean basin). True, this information cannot be called an inventory - the distances between the points he mentions fluctuate greatly, and their characteristics are sparse.

The Red Sea is described from Jeddah to the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait, that is, half the length. Ibn Majid does not give the features of its shores, so the general shape of this area, compared to other parts of the Indian Ocean, looks much rougher. Based on the materials of Ibn Majid and Suleiman al-Mahri (more on this in the chapter “Suleiman and the inventory of the shores of the Indian Ocean”), already today, D. Tibbetts compiled maps of the Indian Ocean and gave detailed comments on them in his work (in English) “Arabic navigation in the Indian Ocean before the arrival of the Portuguese ”(London, 1971). It marks numerous banks, reefs, islets of the Arabian coast of the sea and the Farasan Islands; on the African coast, mentions the Habt mountains (the northern part of the Ethiopian highlands with the peak of Khambet, 2780 m), the islands of Suakin and Dahlak and small islets at 14 ° N. sh. Ibn Majid knows the African shores of the Gulf of Aden much worse, noting only their latitudinal direction, and at the end of the Horn of Africa - Cape Guardafui. To the east of the cape, he places four islands, including about. Socotra, doubling its length. On the east coast of Africa, he mentioned only a number of cities, about. Zanzibar, mouth pp. Zambezi, Sofala, at 20° S. sh., as well as islets at the mouth of the river. Sabie and the southernmost point, at 24° S. sh., - several coastal villages. He reports that the length of Madagascar is about 20° in latitude (actually 14°) and that there are banks and islands in the Mozambique Channel, including Grand Comore and Moheli of the Comorian group.

Ibn Majid describes the southern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, its native places, starting from the southernmost cape of Arabia, at 12 ° 40 "N and 44 ° E, further to the east Cape Imran, the port of Aden and immediately far to the northwest is Cape Fartak, 52°20"E. which played an important role in navigation; further marked are the islands of Kuria-Muria, the entrance cape of the Gulf of Saukira, about. Masirah and the high rocky cape of El Hadd, the most important point for Arab sailors on the western shores of the Indian Ocean, at 22 ° 30 "N; on the coast of Oman, the port of Muscat and the Musandam Peninsula are mentioned.

The only Arab navigator, Ibn Majid, compiled a description of the Persian Gulf. On the Arabian side, he noted the low-lying coast of El-Khas, the Bahrain Islands with numerous "subordinate" islets and pearl banks, the Qatar Peninsula, and in the Strait of Hormuz - about. Qeshm. The Asian coast of the Gulf of Oman and the inhospitable shores of the Arabian Sea are described by him very sparingly. It indicates only their almost latitudinal direction.

India proper for the Arabs began at the western tip of the Kathiyawar Peninsula, 69° E. e. From this point, Ibn Majid proceeds to describe its western coast up to Cape Kumari, characterizing in detail the Gulf of Cambay, the Konkan and the Malabar coast with the estuaries of numerous short rivers and the only deep bay at 10 ° S. sh. - Lake Vembanad. The shores "under the wind" - the east coast of India - are described in detail up to 18 ° N. sh. A narrow peninsula was noted at 9° 40" N and its continuation of Adam's Bridge, the entrance cape of the Polk Strait and the entire Coromandel coast with the deltas of pp. Kaveri, Krishna and Pulikat Lake, at 14° N, as well as the delta of the river. Godavari: Ibn Majid knows much less about the coast beyond 18° N. This should be explained by the fact that the northern part of the Bay of Bengal was visited less often by the Arabs, mainly Bengali or Burmese sailors “worked” there.

The Laccadive Islands, located on the sea route Socotra - South India, are well known to the Arabs, but Ibn Majid did not leave a description of them. Ceylon (Sri Lanka), according to his information, is an almost round island, which can be circumnavigated in about 10 days. He knows the entire coast of this pearl of the Indian Ocean, with the exception of part of the eastern coast. Four days south (more correctly, west-southwest) of Sri Lanka, he places the Maldives and calls them "islands of gold" or "islands of betel nuts." Seeds (“nuts”) of betel, or areca, palms are part of betel - a chewing mixture that excites the nervous system. Noting the southernmost of the group - Adhava (O. Gan), he hints that further south the Arabs know other islands (arch. Chagos). The Andaman Islands, according to Ibn Majid, consist of two large islands - Big and Small, separated by a strait (Duncan), and several small ones. In fact, the single "Big" is divided by narrow straits into three parts: North, Middle and South Andaman. Of the Nicobar Islands, he is familiar with only one - at 8 ° N. sh. The coasts of Burma are known to Ibn Majid from about 16°N. sh. and south. It quite correctly represents the shape of the Moutama Bay, notes the estuary of the river. Salween and al-Takwa Islands (Erkh. Myey). It correctly shows the almost meridional direction of the coastline of the Malay Peninsula (the Arabs called its western coast Siam), marks the isthmus of Kra and about. Singapore.

The western and northern shores of the Barni Sea (South China), which already belongs to the Pacific Ocean basin, are poorly known to Ibn Majid: that is why the shape of the Malay Peninsula and the Gulf of Thailand is distorted. He is relatively well acquainted with the northern and part of the western coast of about. Sumatra, marking the rest of the coast with a number of names. About Java, separated from Sumatra by the Sunda (Sonda) Strait, he has less clear ideas. To the east of Java he knows about. Lombok, as well as Sumbawa and Sumba, taking them for a single island. He is also familiar with Fr. Makassar (Sulawesi), considering it a large island. All islands to the east of Sumba Ibn Majid unites under the name Timor and distinguishes in it the northern and southern groups. He gives "... such a detailed description of the southern group that it seems almost unbelievable" (D. Tibbetts). However, the modern names of the eight islands he described could not be established. When meeting with V. da Gamay, "a good helmsman, a Guzerat Moor", Ibn Majid showed the admiral "a map of the entire Indian coast ... very detailed," the Portuguese historian testifies J. da Barros.

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Arab travelers of the Middle AgesAlexandrovich Maria, 190-11 baGD/17
18.12.2017
History of Hospitality
Lepeshkin.V.A

The journey he made in the 14th century was a real miracle at that time. Ibn Battuta visited a huge territory - from the Balkans to China, from the Crimea to Central Africa.

Ibn Battuta embarked on a journey as a young man of 22 years of age. First of all, he went on a pilgrimage to Mecca. However, the matter was not limited to this, and Ibn Battuta visited Syria, Anatolia, the Arabian Peninsula, Iraq, Iran, Central Asia, China, Crimea, India, Bulgaria, and a number of regions of Africa. You can imagine how difficult this was in the 14th century. However, Ibn Battuta was an outstanding personality who commanded respect wherever he went. It is Ibn Battuta who is considered the discoverer of such countries as Sudan and Nigeria. In the essays of Ibn Battuta, a large place is given to Anatolia. In the 14th century, the Turks had small principalities (beyliks) in Anatolia. At that time, the Byzantine Empire still existed.

Ibn Battuta's journey to Anatolia began with boarding a ship that sailed from Lazkia, in Syria. The beauty of Anatolia struck a traveler who had experience of visiting many countries:

“In Lazkia, I boarded the ship of a Genoese and went to Anatolia. Thanks to a fair wind, we were in Anatolia 10 days later. The first city I saw in Anatolia was Alanya. These edges are extremely beautiful. The inhabitants of these places are friendly and hospitable. They live prosperously. The cuisine in these places is excellent.”

Ibn Battuta often notes the hospitality of the Anatolians in his notes. He also writes about representatives of handicraft workshops who vied with each other inviting him to visit. These workshops were called “akhi” (as well as their members). Here is what an Arab traveler writes:

“On the second day of my stay in the city, one of the Ahi approached my friend Shekhabeddin and spoke to him in Turkish. This man was dressed in old worn out clothes. He had a felt hat on his head. I could not understand what he said because I did not speak Turkish. Shekhabeddin asked me: “Do you understand what this worthy person is saying? “I answered in the negative. And then my friend said that the man in rags invites us all to dinner. I objected that it was hardly necessary to go, because this person would hardly be able to treat our entire group. To which Shekhabeddin, smiling, said that a person has plenty of opportunities, because he stands above two hundred artisans and is the head of the ahi workshop, in connection with which our visit will not cause him any damage.

A similar story happened in Ladik. Here, two groups of Ahi literally entered into single combat with each other, trying to invite Arab travelers to their place. Here is how Ibn Battuta describes this situation:

“When we drove past the market, some people jumped out from there, grabbing our horses by the bridle. Another group tried to interfere with the first group in their endeavor, because a fight broke out. I thought that these people were highway robbers. Luckily, a man who spoke Arabic passed by. He then explained to us that the matter was completely different: these people belonged to various groups of artisans who competed for the right to welcome us.

Mehmet Aydinoglu was one of the beys who ruled in those days in Anatolia. He also considered it an honor to receive such an enlightened person as Ibn Battuta. Here is what the latter writes about the visit to Mehmet Aydinoglu:

“Under the walnut tree a splendid banquet table was laid. We had lunch together with the bey. The latter, seeing that there were no vegetables and spices on the table, ordered to punish his treasurer and change the food. After the meal, we went up the high stairs with the bey and found ourselves in a large beautiful hall with a pool in the middle. At each corner of the pool were installed figures of bronze lions, from whose mouths water flowed. All four walls of the hall had ottomans upholstered in brocade. Despite the presence of the Bey's throne in the hall, he sat down with us on mattresses laid out on ottomans. Following this, they brought us here gold, silver and ceramic vessels with sherbet.”

Ibn Battuta succeeded in what many Muslim travelers failed to do: visit Istanbul. One of the beys, whom Ibn Battuta visited before visiting Istanbul, was married to the daughter of the Byzantine emperor. Our hero managed to be in the delegation, with which the daughter was going to visit her father. So the trip turned out to be comfortable. Here is what an Arab traveler writes in this regard:

“We entered Istanbul shortly before sunset. Bells rang everywhere. There were many servants in front of the gate to the imperial palace. They began to shout: “Saracens, Saracens” (that is, “Muslims, Muslims”) and prevented our passage to the palace. However, after Bilon Khatun explained to the emperor that we were her escorts, we were allowed into the palace. We were given a room. In addition, it was announced throughout the city that we can visit any part of it.”

Ibn Battuta was received by the emperor, on whom the traveler made a good impression. As a result, our hero was given the opportunity to visit any place he chose. And this despite the fact that in those days foreigners could not walk around the city as they please. Here is what the traveler himself writes in this regard:

“The emperor began to ask us questions about the places we had visited – about Jerusalem, sacred places, Egypt, Iraq, and so on…. In view of the fact that what we told him was to his taste, the emperor gave the order to give us guards and good quarters. I was also given a fine horse and one of the Emperor's personal bodyguards. In addition, my request for a guide was also granted.”

Among other attractions of Istanbul, Ibn Battuta visited Aya Sofya. True, he was not allowed inside. Nevertheless, the traveler managed to describe what he saw around the church:

“ Aya Sophia - the largest temple, walled. A river flows past the temple, the banks of which are lined with trees. There are about a thousand nuns in the temple - virgins who have dedicated themselves to the service of the Almighty. And in other churches of the city there are many monks and nuns. Among them is the father of the current emperor. It is alleged that some of the clergy come from the line of the apostles. Dad comes here every year to visit Aya Sofya.”

As we said above, the personality of Ibn Battuta everywhere aroused great respect for him. The emperor's daughter was no exception, giving generous gifts to the Arab traveler at the moment of parting. Here is what Ibn Battuta writes about this:

“She called me to her place and handed me three hundred gold, two thousand Venetian dirhams, fabrics woven by Byzantine girls, robes woven from silk, linen, wool, as well as two horses sent by her father. After wishing us a good journey, she gave us guards.”

In the era of the Middle Ages (5th-15th centuries), geography successfully developed in all directions in the Arab East, in India, and China. An important role in the development of geography was played not only by scientists and travelers, but also by merchants who became discoverers of new lands.

Arabic East

As a result of the aggressive campaigns of the Arabs in the 7th century, a huge state arose - the Arab Caliphate. In addition, it included the territories of Iran, Palestine, the Iberian Peninsula and some others. As a result of the cultural interaction of the Arabs and the peoples they conquered, a special Arab culture developed. In the 8th-9th centuries, many works of scientists of the Ancient World, including ancient Greek, Persian, and Indian, were translated into Arabic. This contributed to the development of mathematics, astronomy, chemistry, medicine and geography.

The Arabs were excellent navigators, they were excellent in the stars and were quite accurate. The country details contained not only descriptions, but also the exact location of cities and other important objects.

Arab travel

Actively engaged in trade, the Arabs laid ancient caravan routes through and discovered its southern edge, calling it the Sahel (“desert coast”). Experienced sailors, they reached the island of Madagascar along the eastern coast of Africa in the 9th century, along the southern coast of Asia - India and China. Only the Atlantic Ocean became an obstacle for Arab travelers, except for voyages to.

The most famous of the Arab travelers is Abu Abdallah Ibn Battuta. In the 14th century, he traveled and explored almost all the countries of Asia and North Africa, crossed the Sahara. The result of his travels was a great work, which describes cities and countries in detail, provides information about.

Exploration of Asia

In Asia, the geographical knowledge of new territories proceeded by sea and land. Buddhist monks, merchants and travelers moved by land from India and China. Their path lay through the deserts of Central Asia, Tibet and. Traveling to different parts of Asia, they collected geographical information about the nature and peoples of the countries they saw. An important role in the development of the vast expanses of Asia was played by nomadic pastoralists.

The development of Asia by sea led to the settlement of Big and Small. Starting from the 10th century, Chinese ships (junks) approached Kalimantan, Java, Sumatra. China has established extensive trade relations with and.

In the 14-15 centuries, for trade with the countries of the East, the Russians used the route along, then along, and then overland to Persia and India. It was this way that the Tver merchant Afanasy set off for India in 1468. He was the first European to describe this country in detail in his travel notes "Journey Beyond the Three Seas".

Europe

At the beginning of the Middle Ages in Europe, there was a decline in scientific knowledge, which was reflected in the development of geography. However, by the middle of the Middle Ages, the geographical horizons expanded. There was a re-acquaintance of Europeans with distant ones, the development of the northern regions of Europe and the northern, western coast of Africa.

State of Geography

The geographical knowledge accumulated by the civilizations of the Ancient World was forgotten in medieval Europe. Travels were most often random in nature, and pilgrims to holy places became the main travelers. Geographical representations expanded during the Crusades (11-13 centuries). These were military campaigns of Europeans in order to liberate the Holy Land (Palestine) and the Holy Sepulcher from Muslims. The crusaders sailed to Palestine along the coasts of southern and southeastern Europe, specifying on the maps the outlines of the islands and bays of the Mediterranean Sea.

Viking campaigns

Since the end of the 8th century, the Vikings, the inhabitants of the Scandinavian Peninsula, have played an important role in the discovery and development of new lands. In Russian chronicles, the Vikings are called Varangians, and in European sources they are called Normans ("northern people"). The main occupations of the Vikings were fishing, trade, and often sea robbery. On their reliable ships - drakars, they made sea voyages both under sail and on oars.

The Varangians sailed along, which in Rus' was called Varangian. Their path to Byzantium passed through the Gulf of Finland, then along the rivers and portages to the Black and Mediterranean Seas. This path in Russian chronicles is called the path "from the Varangians to the Greeks." The Vikings were in England and went to through the Strait of Gibraltar. In the 9th century they settled on the island, in the 10th century they reached the shores and islands off the east coast of North America.

Travels of Marco Polo

In the 12th-13th centuries, trade relations between and Asian states expanded. Traveling to distant countries for merchants became regular, although they were not safe. This contributed to the accumulation of geographical knowledge. The Venetian merchant Marco Polo was the first European to visit China, as well as other Asian countries. Returning to his homeland, he published The Book of the Diversity of the World.

The book of Marco Polo contains descriptions of the nature and life of the population of countries unknown at that time to Europeans. It provides detailed information about China, Persia, India, Japan, the islands of Java and Sumatra and other richest territories. Europeans first learned about paper money, the sago palm, combustible "black stones" (coal) and, most importantly, about the areas where spices were grown, worth their weight in gold. For several centuries, Marco Polo's book was a huge success, including among such great navigators as Magellan.

Portuguese sailors

In the 15th century, it became a powerful maritime power. To travel to distant countries, the Portuguese brought to the sea a new type of sailboats - three-masted caravels. They could easily move not only with a side wind, but also with a head wind. The inspirer and organizer of sea voyages was Prince Enrique of Portugal. He was nicknamed the Navigator, although he himself rarely went to sea. Enrique conceived a grandiose geographical - to reach India by sea. In 1434-1460, in search of such a path, numerous expeditions organized by him set off to the islands of the central part. The development of the Portuguese in Africa continued. An observatory was created in the country, a nautical school was opened. Portugal, and then for a long time were the main centers of navigation and nautical science in Europe.

Dzhumanaliev T.D., candidate of historical sciences, associate professor of KSNU.

The emergence of Islam, and then the subsequent Arab conquests in the West and in the East, led to the formation of the Arab Caliphate. However, the conquests continued in the northeast in the first quarter of the 8th century, where Maverannahr and a number of other adjacent regions were annexed. 1

With the growth and strengthening of the caliphate in the VIII-IX.v.v. a number of government tasks arose, especially in the financial and tax system. Of course, the Arabs could borrow the economic and financial system of the conquered peoples, in principle they took it as a basis, but the changed conditions also required newly verified accurate information about the distribution of provinces, settlements, about agricultural and industrial products, about the amount of taxation in kind and money.

In addition, a centralized control system required good communications and accurate information about them, listing routes, postal stations, indicating distances and conditions of movement. 2

The interests of the state, being the world power of its time, did not allow it to be limited to knowing only its territory; it was necessary to have an accurate idea of ​​the others, primarily the neighbors and the alleged enemy. Both war and peace contributed to this: both embassies and captives returning home delivered information.

Travel from the first centuries of the caliphate acquired a very lively character. As you know, one of the requirements of Islam was the pilgrimage to Mecca, a mandatory once in a lifetime for a Muslim in the presence of a certain income and free means of communication. Therefore, the existence of the latter had a religious side, as well as trade by land routes, not only united the most remote areas of the caliphate, but went far beyond its borders, involving the center of Africa, and northeast Europe, and southeast Asia into the orbit of its influence. In short, both religion and trade expanded the scope of travel; so did the educational system, which regarded travel in search of science as the completion of the circle of learning and was considered obligatory. 3

Until the 9th century the Arabs did not have an independent geographical work, but in the ninth century, acquaintance with the geographical works of Ptolemy as Almagest and Geography in translations of Syrian authors and other works of the ancient Greeks begins. At the same time, subjecting them to processing, the design of the scientific and descriptive geography of the Arabs is completed. The main significance of Arabic geographical literature was based on new facts, information reported by it without particularly going into theory. The Arabs, in their geographical descriptions, covered all of Europe with the exception of the far north, the southern half of Asia, North Africa, the coast of East Africa. The Arabs gave a complete description of all countries from Spain to Turkestan and the mouth of the Indus with a detailed enumeration of settlements, with characteristics of cultural spaces and deserts, indicating the area of ​​distribution of cultivated plants, locations of minerals. They were interested not only in physical-geographical or climatic conditions, but to the same extent in life, industry, culture, language, and religious teachings. Their information was not limited to the regions of the Caliphate and went far beyond the boundaries of the world known to the Greeks. The latter knew little of the countries to the east of the Caspian Sea, had almost no idea of ​​the eastern coast of Asia north of Indochina. The Arabs, on the other hand, report information about the overland route to the upper reaches of the Irtysh and Yenisei, about the sea coast of Asia right up to Korea. 4

Thus, the above-mentioned objective and subjective factors gave impetus to the emergence of proper Arabic geographical literature, which left a deep mark and, subsequently, influenced European geographical science.

As noted above, the Arabs in geographical descriptions were not limited to the Caliphate, they continued their travels to the northeast and southeast, where the historical regions such as Maverannahr, Semirechye and East Turkestan were located and entered the trade routes that had existed for several centuries before the arrival of the Arabs .

Arab travelers in their geographical descriptions gave a detailed picture of cities and settlements, their inhabitants, localities and a number of other valuable information that were located on the Great Silk Road and thus they made a significant contribution to the study of the history and culture of the peoples of Central Asia in the Middle Ages. Thanks to the reports of Arab travelers, we know about the existence of medieval cities and settlements, the names of tribes and localities, the routes of trade routes, to a certain extent provide some information about the economic and religious life of the inhabitants of this region.

For Arab geographers of the IX-X centuries. it is typical to describe only Muslim countries, since there is no need to describe the country of the atheists. At that time, the Talas Valley and the western part of the current Osh Valley up to the city of Uzgen were part of the Islamic region. 5 In Central Asia, caravan trade experienced a kind of trade boom, since the main branches of the Silk Road passed through the territory of this region.

Information from Arab authors of the IX-X centuries. make it possible to restore with greater or lesser accuracy for the period under consideration the section of the Great Silk Road with all its branches that passed through Central Asia. The main route of this segment began in Baghdad - the capital of the Abbasid Caliphate - the largest center of culture and trade of the entire Muslim East, connected with numerous countries of the world. 6

Naturally, trade relations with other states depended on the intensity of interstate relations, as well as on stability in the regions located on the trade route.

During this period, Central Asia experienced a kind of trade boom associated with the development of cities, crafts and trade, the subject of trade was a wide variety of goods imported from different countries, which were in great demand in the Central Asian markets, in particular fabrics, jewelry and metal products, etc. .d. Ferghana horses, leather, furs, glassware, jewelry, carpets, agricultural crops, etc., which were also in great demand in the markets of other countries, should be included among the goods exported from Central Asia.

It is also undoubted that Arab travelers traveled only along the most convenient, well-known caravan routes, where they could get (or buy) everything necessary for further travel. This indicates that the research routes coincide with the pre-existing trade routes.

Among the Arab travelers, Ibn Hardadbeh, Kudam ibn Jafar, Ibn al-Fakih, al-Muqaddasi, al-Istakhri should be singled out, who gave their geographical descriptions of the northern branch of the Great Silk Road. In turn, the northern branch consisted of two main branches: southern and northern. Judging by the descriptions of Arab travelers, they managed to pass both branches, in addition, to characterize these routes. According to their description, Arab travelers moved from Baghdad through northern Mesopotamia, got to Iran, and then went along the Persian section to the northeast, to the region of Khorasan, where the Central Asian section proper began. The city of Merv (now Mary, Turkmenistan) served as a gateway to Central Asia, the latter was of great political and commercial importance in the 9th-10th centuries. From Merv, travelers went to Amul (now Charzhou, Turkmenistan) further to Bukhara, from there to Samarkand. The Arabs indicated the distance between these cities, and they occupy from 36 to 39 farsakhs (1 farsakh - 6-7 km.). Moreover, ibn-Hardadbeh, Kudama ibn Jafar and ibn al-Fakih give different distances between these cities and this difference is from 3 to 5 farsakhs. When establishing their modern equivalent, it is necessary to take into account the difference between road and cartographic distances, the difference between ancient and modern distances. The fact is that travelers sought to straighten and strengthen the paths, if the geographical relief allowed it, and opened up new paths or their sections and a number of other points. This can be seen in the further description of the routes of Arab travelers.

Then the travelers moved from Samarkand to Zamin (Uzbekistan), here the trade route was divided into branches, these are the so-called Fergana (southern) and Shash (Turkic). 7 According to V.V. Barthold, this path was divided in Sabata. 8 From Zamin the road went to the city of Akhsiket (now the ruins of Iski-akhsy, Uzbekistan). According to O.K. Karaev that between these cities (more) four branches departed from the southern road: two villages of Sabata, the third in the city of Khojent, and the fourth in the city of Akhsiket. 9 These roads connected the Muslim regions with the regions of Central Asia. Further, the path followed from the city of Akhsiket through Quba to Osh, and then to Uzgen. This route for caravan trade was convenient and passed through the steppe. From Uzgen, the path lay through high mountain passes along Kudam ibn Jafar al-Aqaba, where the author notes that the road is very steep and difficult to pass, with ups and downs, and from there you can get to the city of Atbash. 10 O.K. Karaev explains that the Arabic word Al-Aqaba means a mountain pass, a mountain road, a steep climb. 11 According to Mahmud of Kashgar, this mountain pass is called Kachuk Art and it was located between Uzgen and Kashgar. 12 According to A.N. Bernshtam, this mountain pass, mentioned by Kudama ibn Jafar, was not in the Arpa region, but in the valley of the Ala-Buka River. 13

From Aqaba the road led through the Kara-Koyun valley to the medieval city of Atbash (now the ruins of Koshoy-Korgon). According to the archeology of the city of Atbash in the VIII-XII centuries. was the headquarters of the Turkic Khagans. 14

OK. Karaev, referring to the reports of Kudam ibn Jafar, connects the Atbash-Upper Barskan road, and it passed through the Kochkor and Issyk-Kul valleys. 15 V.V. Barthold, this path is not indicated. 16

Obviously, the southern road played a secondary role, since this route is less well-known among Arab geographers, with the exception of Kudam ibn Jafar.

As for the Turkic or Shash road, the Northern branch of the Great Silk Road, as Arab travelers called it, it began at the city of Zamin, from there the path lay to the Turk River (modern Chirchik) and further to the city of Shash (Tashkent). According to Arabic writers R. Türk was considered as the border between the Muslim regions and the country of the Turks or infidels. From the city of Shash the road led to Isfijab (Chimkent), from there to Taraz. All the distances between cities and villages indicated by Arab travelers almost coincide with modern ones, and therefore we have no reason not to trust the authors.

From the city of Taraz, the northern route passed through the villages of Uch-Bulak and Kulan (st. Lugovaya), this section is mentioned by ibn Hardadbeh and al-Muqaddasi that there was a cathedral mosque and a fortification in Kulan. 17

Northern road from Kulan to s. Aspara (village Chaldovar), passed through the territory of modern Kyrgyzstan through numerous villages of the Chui valley in the city of Nevaket (Kemin). In this area, according to Arab geographers, there were numerous cities and villages Merke, Aspara, Nusket, Haranjuvan, Saryg, Jul, Kirmirab and Nevaket (Orlovka village), now all of the above cities and villages are in ruins.

The northern road from the city of Nevaket led through the city of Suyab (now the village of Shabdan) to the Upper Barskan, the latter was located on the southeastern shore of Issyk-Kul, then the path lay through the San-Tash pass in the Karkara region to East Turkestan.

According to O. Karaev, northern and southern trade roads connect in the Upper Barskan region. 18

In the valley of Talas and Chu, the northern road was divided into five branches, passing directly through the territory of modern Kyrgyzstan.

The first (Chatkal) branch of the northern route started near the city of Taraz and went through the Kara-Bura pass and the Chatkal valley to Fergana. Muslim geographers of the 10th century report about the Chatkal valley. Ibn Haukal, al-Muhaddasi and author of the anonymous work Hudud al-alam and her city of Ardalanket.

The second branch of the northern road also started near the city of Taraz and passed through the territory of Kyrgyzstan and led to the Upper Barskan through the valleys of Talas and Suusamyr. 19

The third (Ili) branch began in the Harran region (village Ak-Su). According to A.N. Bernshtam, this path passed through the Taikechu ford on the river. Chu, Kurdai pass, near Alma-Ata. 20

The fourth branch of the northern road is connected with the city of Dzhul (the ruins of Chala-Kazak). V.V. Bartold wrote on the basis of written sources of the 9th-10th centuries that this path passed from Dzhul through Taraz and connected with the road from Akhsiket. 21

The last, fifth branch started in the city of Nevaket and went along the Boom Gorge to the banks of Issyk-Kul, where it connected with the southern road. Although A. Bernshtam denies the existence of this trade line, referring to the fact that the Boom Gorge is devoid of any traces of former inhabited areas. 22

Thus, the emergence and then flourishing of Arabic geographical science were associated with a number of factors, primarily with the formation of the Arab Caliphate and the spread of Islam, as well as the development of Greek geographical science by the Arabs, and its creative achievements. In addition, the Arabs at the same time associated all achievements in the field of science with the needs and interests of the state and the financial and economic system.

So, the Arab geographers ibn-Hardadbeh, Kudama ibn-Jafar, al-Istakhri and others gave in their works a geographical description of the northern branch of the Great Silk Road, in which they noted the existence of cities and settlements in the 9th-10th centuries. on the territory of Kyrgyzstan. It can be said, judging by the reports of Arab geographers, that the northern branch of the trade route occupied a special place, like all other branches of the Great Silk Road. Moreover, travelers indicated the routes of roads and localities, the distances between them, without which it would be impossible to restore the routes of caravan trade. There is no doubt that the settled and nomadic population took an active part in international trade, this is emphasized by Arab geographers. In addition, thanks to the reports of these travelers, we know that on the territory of Kyrgyzstan, at that time, urban civilization, craft and trade were rapidly developing, and occupied a significant place in their economic life.

Notes:

1. Gafurov B.G. Tajiks. v. 2, Dushanbe, 1989, p. 21-22
2. Krachkovsky I.Yu. Selected writings. vol. 4, M-L., 1957, p. 17
3. Krachkovsky I.Yu. Selected writings. vol. 4, M-L., 1957, p. 18
4. Krachkovsky I.Yu. Selected writings. vol. 4, M-L., 1957, p. 21
5. Karaev O.K. Arabic and Persian sources of the IX-XII centuries. about the Kirghiz and Kyrgyzstan. Frunze, 1968, p.64
6. Bartold V.V. History of the cultural life of Turkestan. Soch., v. 2, part 1, M., 1963, p. 241-242
7. Karaev O.K. Arabic and Persian sources of the IX-XII centuries. about the Kirghiz and Kyrgyzstan. Frunze, 1968, p.65
8. Karaev O.K. Arabic and Persian sources of the IX-XII centuries. about the Kirghiz and Kyrgyzstan. Frunze, 1968, p.66
9. Karaev O.K. Arabic and Persian sources of the IX-XII centuries. about the Kirghiz and Kyrgyzstan. Frunze, 1968, p.64
10. Mahmud of Kashgar. Sofa all-lugat at-turk. v. 2, Tashkent, 1960, p. 211
11. Bernshtam A.N. Historical and archaeological essays on the Central Tien Shan and Pamir-Alay. MIA, No. 26, M-L., 1952, p. 102
12. Bernshtam A.N. Historical and archaeological essays on the Central Tien Shan and Pamir-Alay. MIA, No. 26, M-L., 1952, p. 100-102
13. Karaev O.K. Arabic and Persian sources of the IX-XII centuries. about the Kirghiz and Kyrgyzstan. Frunze, 1968, p.67
14. Bartold V.V. History of the cultural life of Turkestan. Soch., v. 2, part 1, M., 1963, p. 243
15. Materials on the history of the Kirghiz and Kirghizia. issue 1, M., 1973, p. 30.42
16. Bartold V.V. Turkestan in the era of the Mongol invasion. Soch., v. 1, M., 1963, p.116
17. Bartold V.V. Turkestan in the era of the Mongol invasion. Soch., v. 1, M., 1963, p.130
18. Bernshtam A.I. Archaeological sketch of Northern Kirghizia. Frunze, 1941, p. 70
19. Bartold V.V. Essay on the history of Semirechye. Soch., v. 2, part 1, M., 1963, p.37-38