TY - BOOK ID - 17295347 TI - On Trans-Saharan trails : Islamic law, trade networks, and cross-cultural exchange in nineteenth-century Western Africa PY - 2009 SN - 9781107611788 9780521887243 0521887240 9780511575457 1107611784 1107200830 1282103679 9786612103674 0511575459 051151509X 0511517726 0511514182 0511516371 9780511517723 0511517238 9780511517235 PB - Cambridge ; New York : Cambridge University Press, DB - UniCat KW - West Africa KW - Trade routes KW - Sahara KW - Routes commerciales KW - Islam KW - History KW - Histoire KW - Histoire. KW - Africa, West KW - Afrique occidentale KW - Pays musulmans KW - Commerce KW - Relations KW - History of Africa KW - anno 1800-1899 KW - Commercial routes KW - Foreign trade routes KW - Ocean routes KW - Routes of trade KW - Sea lines of communication KW - Sea routes KW - Sahara Desert KW - Africa, North KW - Africa, Western KW - Western Africa KW - History. KW - Islamic countries KW - Muslim countries KW - Arts and Humanities UR - https://www.unicat.be/uniCat?func=search&query=sysid:17295347 AB - This study is the first of its kind to examine the history and organization of trans-Saharan trade in western Africa using original source material. It documents the internal dynamics of a trade network system based on a case study of 'Berber' traders from the Wād Nūn region, who specialized in outfitting camel caravans in the nineteenth century. Through an examination of contracts, correspondence, fatwas and interviews with retired caravaners, Professor Lydon shows how traders used their literacy skills in Arabic and how they had recourse to experts of Islamic law to regulate their long-distance transactions. The book also examines the strategies devised by women to participate in caravan trade. By embracing a continental approach, this study bridges the divide between West African and North African studies. The work will be of interest to historians of Africa, the Middle East, and the world and to scholars of long-distance trade, Muslim societies and Islamic law. ER -