Trace the origin of silk route and describe it significance .
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Answer:
Step-by-step explanation:
The Silk Route is one of the world’s oldest and historically most important trade route which affected the cultures of China, Central Asia and the West. It had many branches leading to different regions, including ancient India. It played an important role as a means of pre-modern trade and cultural exchange between different regions.
The Romans learned about the Silk Route from the Parthians around 53 B.C.E. They used the word “Seres”or the silk people to refer to the Chinese. The modern word “Silk Route” was coined by a German scholar, Von Richthofen, in the nineteenth century. Silk was considered the most precious by the Romans even though it was only one of the many commodities that was traded between China and the world through this route.
Historians have identified several silk routes, over land and sea, knitting together vast regions of Asia and linking Asia with Europe and North Africa. These resulted in a vibrant pre-modern trade.
Through this route, Chinese pottery, Indian textiles and spices from South-East Asia travelled to Europe and North Africa. In return, gold and silver flowed from Europe to Asia.
The most well-known silk route connected China to Europe. West bound Chinese silk cargoes and Chinese pottery travelled through this route. Trade and cultural exchange always went hand in hand. Christian missionaries, Muslim preachers, Buddhist monks, all used the silk routes and religions spread from one region to another. These routes were used to spread religions like Buddhism, Christianity and Islam.