Networks of Exchange (1200-1450)

It significantly increased the volume of goods that could be transported, enhancing long-distance trade.

It caused a shift towards maritime trade routes as they became more efficient than land routes.

It led to a decline in trade as camel caravans were targeted by bandits due to their valuable loads.

It resulted in decreased demand for gold from West Africa as transportation costs rose sharply.

Improved cartography

development of camel saddles

Steam engine

Use of caravans for protection and organization

Increased interaction with Islamic traders led to the spread of Islam into West Africa.

The Bantu migration patterns shifted towards North Africa as a result of camel domestication.

Sub-Saharan African societies became isolated due to their reliance on camel caravans for survival.

Indigenous belief systems in sub-Saharan Africa rapidly displaced Islamic influences.

It encouraged the use of horses over camels for mobility.

It fostered reliance on riverboats for inland trading.

It required extensive use of coastal shipping lanes.

It necessitated camel caravans for transport across the desert.

It led to an increase in trade as competing states sought alliances through commerce.

It disrupted consistent trading activities along these routes due to security concerns.

It boosted trading as regional leaders competed for control over trade products.

It had little effect since traders relied more on their personal networks than on state stability.

Patriarchal structures were entirely dismantled due to economic demands, aligning with trends in commerce-driven Viking communities.

Female labor was exclusively relegated to textile production across all involved societies similar to Europe.

Gender roles remain unchanged despite economic shifts, paralleling static conditions within medieval European peasantry.

Women in some West African societies gained roles as traders or market managers unlike their European counterparts.

Date, wine, glass, ceramics

Pearls, textiles, spices, horses

Copper, pottery, wool, silk

Silverware, carpets, pomegranates, almonds

Revival of the Silk Route under Kublai Khan's rule

Establishment of a money-based economy with minted coins

Second Industrial Revolution

Protestant Reformation

Timbuktu wouldn't develop as an important center of learning and culture.

Islam wouldn’t spread into West Africa at all.

Mali Empire's wealth might not be globally recognized as quickly as it was.

There wouldn't be any substantial impact on world history or Mali's status in it.

He was an European colonial power who exploited these routes for slave trading

He was a Berber nomad who innovated camel saddle designs.

He was a West African king known for his wealth and promotion of Trans-Saharan trade routes.

He was an Arab trader who first introduced Islam to West Africa through these routes.