Overview
As part of the “Gulf History Lecture Series,” this lecture sheds light on the role of caravan merchants in the Arabian Peninsula, with particular focus on the ʿUqaylāt groups. It examines their patterns of movement, their commercial networks, and their contributions to connecting Najd with the Ottoman world and the wider regional sphere.
The lecture will be delivered by Dr. Mansour al-Shuraidah, Assistant Professor in the Department of History at King Saud University, whose research and publications have explored the commercial role of the ʿUqaylāt and their trade networks in the region. Reem Al-Sada, Senior Information Services Librarian for Gulf Collections at the Heritage Library will moderate the session.
Overland caravan trade in the Arabian Peninsula has long constituted one of the fundamental pillars of the region’s economic and social history.
Through complex networks of trade routes, it connected Najd with Bilād al-Shām, Iraq, the Ḥijāz, and Egypt. Caravan merchants—most notably the ʿUqaylāt groups—were among the principal actors within these networks, playing a pivotal role in the transport of goods, the facilitation of trade, and the interconnection of regional markets.
With the expansion and flourishing of these networks during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the role of caravans extended beyond the mere movement of commodities. They contributed to the formation of a transregional economic geography, linking diverse patterns of mobility and commercial exchange across the region.
Despite the romanticized image often associated with caravan journeys across the desert, this trade was grounded in harsh daily realities. Caravan activity entailed significant challenges, including the dangers of travel, climatic fluctuations, and the complexities of political and tribal relations, all of which formed an integral part of these networks.
The event will be conducted online via Zoom.
Target Audience: Academics, students, and researchers
Language: Arabic and English
