Mecca, Basra and Baghdad: Economic Situation During the Classical Period of Islam

Year 2024, Issue: 44, 21 - 36, 31.12.2024

Ahmet Turan Yuksel

https://doi.org/10.31591/istem.1520980

Abstract

This study examines in general terms three cities that were prominent trade centers from the Ignorance period to the first centuries of Islam. Because Mecca, Basra and Baghdad are the most notable cities throughout Islamic History. Mecca, which is the mother of cities as mentioned in the Holy Quran, was also an important trade centre in the pre-Islamic period. Thanks to the fairs held during the pilgrimage season and especially the ‘Ukāẓ Fair, Mecca has witnessed a very active cultural and economic activity. In addition to its geographical location, for example with Ilâf has also gained the status of an international trade centre. Basra, which was founded as the headquarters city during the caliphate of Umar, developed over time and became one of the schools of religious sciences, while on the other hand, it became one of the main trade centres of the region with its markets, especially Mirbaḍ. It has become a trading city connecting the Arabian Peninsula with Egypt, the coast of Southern Iran, India, Indonesia and China via the Red Sea. On the other hand, Baghdad, which is among the largest metropolises not only of the Islamic world but also of the whole world, has maintained this feature for centuries as a center that directs economic life. Founded during the reign of the Abbasid Caliph Mansur, Baghdad attracts attention with its city model having many different bazaars, as well as being the center of the caliphate of the Islamic world. At the same time, it is primarily in contact with the entire Islamic world through its wide network of land routes and maritime trade. It is the main centre of trade relations with separate regions of Transoxania, China and India. All three cities were affected positively and negatively by political developments throughout Classical Period of Islamic History. In parallel with these influences, their roles in economic and commercial life have differed. However, the traces they left throughout history still maintain their importance even today.

Keywords

Mecca, Basra, Baghdad, Classical Period of Islam, Economic and Commercial Situation

Mekke, Basra ve Bağdat: Klasik İslâmi Dönemde Ekonomik Durum

Abstract

Bu çalışma Cahiliye döneminden İslâm’ın ilk asırlarında öne çıkan ticaret merkezlerinden üç şehri genel hatlarıyla el almaktadır. Zira Mekke, Basra ve Bağdat İslâm Tarihi boyunca şehirler arasında en çok dikkat çekenleridir. Kur’ân-ı Kerîm’in ifadesiyle şehirlerin anası olan Mekke, aynı zamanda İslâm öncesi dönemde önemli bir ticaret merkezi konumuna sahip olmuştur. Hac mevsiminde kurulan panayırlar ve özellikle Ukâz Panayırı sayesinde Mekke çok hareketli bir kültürel ve ekonomik faaliyete ev sahipliği yapmıştır. Coğrafi konumu yanında örneğin Îlâf sebebiyle de uluslararası bir ticaret merkezi vasfını elde etmiştir. Hz.Ömer’in halifeliği döneminde ordugah şehir olarak kurulan Basra, zamanla gelişerek dini ilimlerde ekoller arasında yer alırken diğer taraftan başta Mirbed olmak üzere pazarları ile bölgenin başlıca ticaret merkezleri arasına girmiştir. Arap Yarımadası’nı Kızıl Deniz yoluyla Mısır, Güney İran kıyıları, Hindistan, Endonezya ve Çin ile bağlayan bir ticaret şehri haline gelmiştir. Diğer taraftan sadece İslam dünyasının değil aynı zamanda dünyanın en büyük metropolleri arasında ye alan Bağdat, iktisadi hayata yön veren bir merkez olarak asırlar boyunca bu özelliğini korumuştur. Abbasi Halifesi Mansur döneminde kurulan Bağdat, İslâm dünyasının hilafet merkezi olması yanında çok sayıda farklı çarşıların yer aldığı şehir modeliyle dikkat çekmektedir. Aynı zamanda geniş kara yolları ağı ve deniz ticaretiyle öncelikle bütün İslâm dünyası ile irtibat halindendir. Ayrıca Mâverâünnehir, Çin ve Hindistan’ın ayrı bölgeleriyle ticari ilişkilerin ana merkezi durumundadır. Her üç şehir de Klasik İslam Tarihi boyunca özellikle siyasi gelişmelerden olumlu ve olumsuz açıdan etkilenmiştir. Bu etkilenmelere paralel olarak iktisadi ve ticari hayattaki rolleri farklılık göstermiştir. Ancak tarih boyunca bıraktıkları izler günümüzde bile hala önemini korumaktadır.

Keywords

Mekke, Basra, Bağdat, Klasik İslami Dönem, Ekonomik ve Ticari Durum

References

• Abdul Jabbar Beg, Muhammad. “A Contribution to the Economic History of the Caliphate: A Study of the Cost of Living and the Economic Status of Artisans in Abbasid lraq”, Islamic Quarterly. XVI (1973), 140-167.
• al-Afghani, Said. Aswaq al-Arab fi al-Jahiliyyah wa al-Islam. Dimashq: al-Maktabat al-Hashimiyyah, 1937.
• Ahmad, S.Maqbul. “Travels of Abu’l-Hasan Ali b. al-Husayn al-Mas’udi”. Islamic Culture. XXVII (1954). 509-524.
• Ali, Jawad. al-Mufassal fi Tarikh al-Arab Qabl al-lslam. 9 vols. Beirut, 1980.
• al-Ali, Salih Ahmad. al-Tanzimat al-İjtima’iyah wa al­Iqtisadiyah fi al-Basra fi al-Qarn al-Awwal al-Hijri. Cahen, Claude. “A Legal Text to the Aid of History: A Note On the Suqs of Baghdad in the First Century of the Abbasids”. In Arabian and lslamic Studies. Ed. Robin Bidwell and G. Rex Smith. London, 1983. 38-42.
• Camal Efendi. “al-Basra fi Khilafat al-Mansur”. al-Muqtataf. V/7 (1880). 177-180.
• Cavdah, Camal Muhammad. al-Arab wa al-Ard fi al-Iraq fi Sadr al-lslam. Jordan, 1977.
• Crone, Patricia. Meccan Trade and the Rise of Islam. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1987.
• Davud Efendi. “Baghdad”. al-Muqtataf. V/6 (1830). 149-153.
• Duri, A. A. “Baghdad”. The Encyclopaedia of Islam. New edn. Leiden: E.J.Brill, V/1 (1960). 894-908.
• Duri, A. A. Tarikh al-Iraq al-Iqtisadi fi al-Qarn al-Rabi al­Hijri. Beirut, 1974.
• Emin, Ahmad. Duha’l-Islam. 3 vols. Beirut: Dar al-Kitab al-Arabi, 1933-1936.
• Goitein, S.D. Studies in Islamic History and Institutions. Leiden: E.J.Brill, 1968.
• Hafız, Ali. Suq ʿUkāẓ. Riyad, 1977.
• Hartman, R. “Baghdad”. The Encyclopaedia of Islam. Leiden: E.J.Brill, V/1:2 (1913). 563-570.
• Hartman, R. “al-Basra”. The Encyclopaedia of Islam. Leiden: E.J.Brill, V/1:2 (1913). 672-674.
• Hitti, Philip K. Capital Cities of Arab Islam. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1973.
• lbn al-Fakih al-Hamadani. Baghdad Madinat al-Salam. Iraq, 1977.
• Ibn Habib, Kitab al-Muhabbar. Haydarabad, 1361.
• Ibn Sa’d, Muhammad. al-Tabaqat al-Kubra. Beirut.
• Ibrahim, Mahmood. “Social and Economic Conditions in Pre-Islamic Mecca”. International Journal of Middle East Studies. XIV (1982), pp. 343-358.
• Kister, M.J. “Some Reports Concerning Mecca From Jahiliyya To Islam”. Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient. XV (1972). 61-93.
• Kister, M.J. “Mecca and Tamim (Aspects of Their Relations)”. Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient. VII (1965). 113-163.
• Krenkow, F. “The Annual Fairs of the Pagan Arabs”. Islamic Culture. XXI (1947). 111-113.
• Lammens, H. and A.J.Wensinck. “Mecca”. The Encylopaedia of lslam. Leiden: E.J. Brill, V/III:1 (1913). 437-445.
• Lapidus, Ira M. “Arab Settlement and Economic Development of Iraq and Iran in the Age of Umayyad and Early Abbasid Caliphs”. In The Islamic Middle East,700:-1900. Ed. A.L. Udovitch. Princeton: The Darwin Press, 1981.
• Lassner, Jacob. The Topography of Baghdad in the Early Middle Ages. Detroit: Wayne State University Press, 1970.
• Lassner, Jacob. “Massignon and Baghdad: The Complexities of Growth in an Imperial City”. Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient. IX (1966). 1- 27.
• Lombard, Maurice. The Golden Age of Islam. Trans. Joan Spencer. Amsterdam: North-Holland Publishing Company, 1975.
• al-Maqdisi, Shams al-Din Abu Abdillah. Ahsan al-Taqasim fi Ma’rifat al-Aqalim. Ed. M.J. de Goeje. Leiden: 1967.
• al-Marzuqi, Abu Ali al-lsbahani. Kitab al-Azminah wa al-Amkinah. 2 vols. Haydarabad, 1332.
• Massignon , Louis. Khitat al-Baṣra wa Baghdad. Trans. Ibrahim al-Samarrai. Beirut: al-Muassasat al-Arabiyah li al-Dirasat wa al-Nashr, 1981.
• Matlub, Ahmad. “al-Basra fi Turath al-Jahiz”. al-Mawrid. XI (1902). 15-28.
• Mawlawi, S.A.Q.Husaini. Arab Administration. Madras: Solden & Co., 1949.
• Naji, A. J. and Y. N. Ali. “The Suqs of Basrah: Commercial Organization and Activity in A Medieval lslamic City”. Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient. XXIV (1981). 298-309.
• Pellat, Ch. “al-Basra”. The Encyclopaedia of Islam. New edn. Leiden: E.J.Brill, V/1 (1960). 1085-1086.
• Salim, Abdülaziz. Dirasat fi Tarikh al-Arab Qabl al-Islam, I. al-lskandariyah, 1939.
• Samadi, S.B. “Social and Economic Aspects of Life Under the Abbasid Hegenomy at Baghdad”. Islamic Culture. XXIX (1955). 237-245.
• Somogyi, Joseph. “The Part of lslam in Oriental Trade”. Islamic Culture. XXX (1956). 179-189.
• Spuler, Bertold. “Trade in the Eastern lslamic Countries in the Early Centuries”. In Islam and the Trade of Asia. Ed.A. S. Richards. Oxford, 1970.
• Stanley, D.Brunn and Jack F. Williams. Cities of the World Regional Urban Development. New York, 1983.
• Strange, G. Le. Baghdad During the Abbasid Caliphate. Oxford: The Clarendon Press, 1900.
• Strange, G. Le. The Lands of the Eastern Caliphate. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1930.
• Tuma, Elia H. “Early Arab Economic Policies (1st/7th-4th/10th Centuries)”. lslamic Studies. IV (1965). 1-23.
• Watt,W.Montgomery and A.J. Wensinck- [C.E.Bosworth) “Makka”. The Encyclopaedia of Islam. New edn. Leiden: E. J.Brill, V/VI (1987). 144-152.
• Waines, D. “The Third Century International Crisis of the Abbasids”. Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient. XX (1977). 282-306.
• Yaqut el-Hamevi. al-Mu’jam al-Buldan. Ed. Ferid Abdulaziz al-Jundi. Beirut: 1990.
• Zaki, Ahmad Kamal. al-Hayat al-Adabiyah fi al-Baṣra ila Nihayat al-Qarn al-Thani al-Hijri. Dimashk: Matabiu Dar al-Fikr, 1961.
• Zaydan, Georgi. Tarikh al-Tamaddun al-lslami. 5 vols. Ta’liq. Husayn Mu’nis. lraq: Matbaatu Dar al-Hilal, 1958.
• al-Zaylai, Ahmad 'Umar. Makka wa Alaqatuha al-Khariciyyah (301-487 A,H,). Riyad, 1981.