8th century – 12th century
Maghreb and western Sudan
The Ibāḍite trans-Saharan trade network linked Kharijite communities and commercial centres across the Maghreb, the Sahara, and the Sudan. Its routes connected Tahert, Wargala, Sijilmāsa, Tadmekka, Gao, Awdaghust, Ghana, and Wangara. Merchants exchanged gold and enslaved people, while commercial relations also generated diplomatic contacts and close ties among Ibāḍite rulers and communities.
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The Story
The network developed around Kharijite communities that controlled or participated in the northern approaches to the trans-Saharan routes. After their defeat in the Maghrib during the middle of the eighth century, Kharijites retreated toward the pre-Saharan steppes, where trading centres such as Zawila and Sijilmāsa became linked to routes leading south toward the Sudan.
Ibāḍite merchants used several corridors. Tahert’s principal link ran through Wargala and Tadmekka to Gao, while other trade passed through Sijilmāsa and Awdaghust. Wargala connected the Djarid with Tadmekka and later served as the main gateway for central Maghrebi traders. Merchants from Ifrīqiya also used Tadmekka or travelled first to Sijilmāsa before crossing the Sahara.
The commerce carried gold and enslaved people and connected North African markets with the gold-producing regions of the Sudan. Ghana and Wangara appear in the network as destinations for merchants seeking gold for minting. These exchanges were not purely commercial: Tahert sent an envoy to the Sudan, and the rulers of Tahert and Sijilmāsa maintained close relations and intermarried despite belonging to different Kharijite sects.
8th century – 12th century
Maghreb and western Sudan
The Ibāḍite trans-Saharan trade network linked Kharijite communities and commercial centres across the Maghreb, the Sahara, and the Sudan. Its routes connected Tahert, Wargala, Sijilmāsa, Tadmekka, Gao, Awdaghust, Ghana, and Wangara. Merchants exchanged gold and enslaved people, while commercial relations also generated diplomatic contacts and close ties among Ibāḍite rulers and communities.
Continue exploring
The Story
The network developed around Kharijite communities that controlled or participated in the northern approaches to the trans-Saharan routes. After their defeat in the Maghrib during the middle of the eighth century, Kharijites retreated toward the pre-Saharan steppes, where trading centres such as Zawila and Sijilmāsa became linked to routes leading south toward the Sudan.
Ibāḍite merchants used several corridors. Tahert’s principal link ran through Wargala and Tadmekka to Gao, while other trade passed through Sijilmāsa and Awdaghust. Wargala connected the Djarid with Tadmekka and later served as the main gateway for central Maghrebi traders. Merchants from Ifrīqiya also used Tadmekka or travelled first to Sijilmāsa before crossing the Sahara.
The commerce carried gold and enslaved people and connected North African markets with the gold-producing regions of the Sudan. Ghana and Wangara appear in the network as destinations for merchants seeking gold for minting. These exchanges were not purely commercial: Tahert sent an envoy to the Sudan, and the rulers of Tahert and Sijilmāsa maintained close relations and intermarried despite belonging to different Kharijite sects.
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