Contact With the Arabian Peninsula

¶ … contact with the Arabian peninsula existed at this time. What does that suggest about cross-cultural contact?

The contact with the Arabian peninsula suggests that there was a great deal of contact across cultures, even that far back in history. This is important, due to the fact that some people seem to believe that different cultures are not able to work together and that these different cultures will never be able to understand one another well enough to get along. While this may be true with some people in various cultures, this evidence would indicate that many people can work across different cultures quite well and that the differences that they have can be put aside long enough to do what is necessary. Without the ability to do this, the contact with the Arabian peninsula would not have been possible and would not have continued. Erythraei (1989) talks about the many different ports that were visited, and the "continual intercourse and intermarriage" that took place (p. 61). Because of this, those that traded with others were able to acclimate themselves to different cultures enough to work with those cultures and ensure that they were accepted to the point that they could trade what they had to offer for what they needed from others. The significance of this cannot be overstated, and this cultural blending is something that has continued, not always that successfully, from the time of The Periplus to the present day.

2. To whom would these descriptions be important?

The descriptions in the information provided on The Periplus could be important to many different groups of people. One of the most overlooked groups would be those that study navigation, since the Periplus refers to a "sailing around" of all of the ports in a particular area (Periplus, 2005). Naturally, those that study Ancient Greece and its culture would be interested in the descriptions of various things that relate to it. However, those that study ancient history would not be the only ones that would be interested in this information. Those that study culture, communication, and interaction would also be interested in this type of information and description, since much of the information found in this context can help provide valuable information as to how people interacted with one another in older times, and whether their methods of cultural interaction have changed with the times or remained virtually the same in the face of technology and other issues.

3. What is the main concern of the author in this passage?

The author's main concern is that those that read the passage understand what the Periplus is and the different ports that had been visited. Also important to the author is what these ports have to offer, since various ports have different items that they can offer to traders. Knowing how to get to specific ports and what those ports offer for the trader seems to be the most serious and important focus of the author's work.