Commercial Activity of Caucasus’ Towns in the Abbasid Caliphate

This article is dedicated to the commercial links of the Caucasian towns that were conquered by the Arabs and became a part of the Abbasid Caliphate (750–1258) and to their great role as the mediators in the Arabs’ trade with the northern countries such as Russia, Scandinavia and the towns of the Volga River basin. Geographic position of the Caucasus on the crossroads of Europe and Asia determined its economic and political importance for the Arab Caliphate that was striving for control over such popular trade routes as Volga-Caspian and a branch of a well-known rout «from Varangians to Greeks» called «from Varangians to Arabs». The period of the Arab rule over the Caucasus is also characterized by the introduction of the brand new socio-economic institutions developed in the central parts of the Caliphate.

Arab Middle Ages, the Abbasids, the Caucasus, commerce, the Arab Caliphate, medieval town