Book contents
- The Worlds of the Indian Ocean
- The Worlds of the Indian Ocean
- The Worlds of the Indian Ocean
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Epigraph
- Contents
- Maps and Charts (in color plates)
- Illustrations (in color plates)
- Figures
- Tables
- Abbreviations
- Preface
- Acknowledgments
- Prologue
- Introduction: The Geography of the Indian Ocean and Its Navigation
- Part I The Ancient Routes of Trade and Cultural Exchanges and the First States (Sixth–Second Millennium bce)
- Part II The Birth of the Afro-Eurasian World-System (First Millennium bce – Sixth Century ce)
- Introduction
- Chapter 8 The Beginnings of the Iron Age
- Chapter 9 The Roads to the Orient
- Chapter 10 India: The Birth of a New Core
- Chapter 11 Southeast Asia, an Interface between Two Oceans
- Chapter 12 China: From Kingdoms to Unification
- Chapter 13 Arabia: Maritime Cultures and the Rise of the Caravan Trade
- Chapter 14 East Africa: The Emergence of a Pre-Swahili Culture on the Azanian Coast
- Chapter 15 The Austronesian Expansion and the First Malagasy Cultures
- Bibliography
- Index of Geographical names
- Name Index
- Subject Index
- Plate Section (PDF Only)
Chapter 15 - The Austronesian Expansion and the First Malagasy Cultures
from Part II - The Birth of the Afro-Eurasian World-System (First Millennium bce – Sixth Century ce)
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 04 October 2019
- The Worlds of the Indian Ocean
- The Worlds of the Indian Ocean
- The Worlds of the Indian Ocean
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Epigraph
- Contents
- Maps and Charts (in color plates)
- Illustrations (in color plates)
- Figures
- Tables
- Abbreviations
- Preface
- Acknowledgments
- Prologue
- Introduction: The Geography of the Indian Ocean and Its Navigation
- Part I The Ancient Routes of Trade and Cultural Exchanges and the First States (Sixth–Second Millennium bce)
- Part II The Birth of the Afro-Eurasian World-System (First Millennium bce – Sixth Century ce)
- Introduction
- Chapter 8 The Beginnings of the Iron Age
- Chapter 9 The Roads to the Orient
- Chapter 10 India: The Birth of a New Core
- Chapter 11 Southeast Asia, an Interface between Two Oceans
- Chapter 12 China: From Kingdoms to Unification
- Chapter 13 Arabia: Maritime Cultures and the Rise of the Caravan Trade
- Chapter 14 East Africa: The Emergence of a Pre-Swahili Culture on the Azanian Coast
- Chapter 15 The Austronesian Expansion and the First Malagasy Cultures
- Bibliography
- Index of Geographical names
- Name Index
- Subject Index
- Plate Section (PDF Only)
Summary
It is certain that Austronesians reached the western Indian Ocean at the end of the first millennium bce or even earlier (see below). These migrations did not come about by accident, but were based on commercial strategies embedded in evolving exchange networks throughout the Indian Ocean. It is likely that the Austronesians tried to take advantage of the demand from the West – and also from the East – transporting coveted products (above all spices), along routes that bypassed India and allowed them to reach East Africa directly. It may be within this context that Austronesians later settled in the Comoros and Madagascar.
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- The Worlds of the Indian OceanA Global History, pp. 595 - 642Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2019