Özet:

The arrival of the Crusaders in the Near East brought warfare to the region, but their coming also encouraged an increased presence of Western merchants in Egypt, Syria, and the Crusader states. To gain access to commercial goods and local markets, these Western traders needed institutional and political support for their activities. In many respects, their needs paralleled those of contemporary Muslim and Jewish traders operating in the same commercial sphere. On the other hand, the presence of Western Crusaders and merchants also put new pressures and demands on the structure of trade in the Near East during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. One of the most critical areas of demand was the need for lodging and security. A chronological analysis of the terminology and function of certain types of merchant hostelry reveals shifts in the commercial infrastructure that shaped long-distance trade in the Near East during and after the era of the Crusades.

Anahtar Kelimeler: