Radhanite
The Radhanites were medieval merchants, some of Jewish origin. Only a limited number of primary sources use the term, and it remains unclear whether they referred to a specific guild, or to a clan, or generically to Jewish merchants in the trans-Eurasian trade network. Jewish merchants operated in trade between the Christian and Islamic worlds during the early Middle Ages. Many trade routes previously established under the Roman Empire continued to function during that period – largely through their efforts. Their trade network covered much of Europe, North Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia and parts of India and China.
Etymology
Middle-Eastern hypothesis
Several etymologies have been suggested for the word "Radhanite". Many scholars, including Barbier de Meynard and Moshe Gil, believe it refers to a district in Mesopotamia called "the land of Radhan" in Arabic and Hebrew texts of the period. Some maintain that their center was the city of Ray in northern Persia. Still others think the name possibly derives from the Persian terms rah "way, path" and dān "one who knows", meaning "one who knows the way". English-language sources added the suffix -ite to the term, as is done with ethnonyms or names derived from place names.French and Greco-Roman hypothesis
and Claude Cahen, among others, make the same claim about the Rhône River valley in France, which is Rhodanus in Latin and Rhodanos in Greek. They claim that the center of Radhanite activity was probably in France as all of their trade routes began there.Activities
The activities of the Radhanites are documented by ibn Khordadbeh – the postmaster, chief of police for the province of Jibal, under the Abbasid Caliph al-Mu'tamid – when he wrote Kitab al-Masalik wal-Mamalik, in about 870. Ibn Khordadbeh described the Radhanites as sophisticated and multilingual. He outlined four main trade routes utilized by the Radhanites in their journeys; all four began in the Rhone Valley in southern France and terminated on China's east coast. Radhanites primarily carried commodities that combined small bulk and high demand, including spices, perfumes, jewellery, and silk. They are also described as transporting oils, incense, steel weapons, furs, and slaves.Text of Ibn Khordadbeh's account
Historical significance
During the Early Middle Ages, Muslim polities of the Middle East and North Africa and Christian kingdoms of Europe often banned each other's merchants from entering their ports. Privateers of both sides raided the shipping of their adversaries at will. The Radhanites functioned as neutral go-betweens, keeping open the lines of communication and trade between the lands of the old Roman Empire and the Far East. As a result of the revenue they brought, Jewish merchants enjoyed significant privileges under the early Carolingian dynasty in France and throughout the Muslim world, a fact that sometimes vexed local Church authorities.While most trade between Europe and East Asia had historically been conducted via Persian and Central Asian intermediaries, the Radhanites were among the first to establish a trade network that stretched from Western Europe to Eastern Asia. More remarkable still, they engaged in this trade regularly and over an extended period of time, centuries before Marco Polo and ibn Battuta brought their tales of travel in the Orient to the Christians and the Muslims, respectively. Indeed, ibn Battuta is believed to have traveled with the Muslim traders who traveled to the Orient on routes similar to those used by the Radhanites.
While traditionally many historians believed that the art of Chinese papermaking had been transmitted to Europe via Arab merchants who got the secret from prisoners of war taken at the Battle of Talas, some believe that Jewish merchants such as the Radhanites were instrumental in bringing paper-making west. Joseph of Spain, possibly a Radhanite, is credited by some sources with introducing the so-called Arabic numerals from India to Europe. Historically, Jewish communities used letters of credit to transport large quantities of money without the risk of theft from at least classical times. This system was developed and put into force on an unprecedented scale by medieval Jewish merchants such as the Radhanites; if so, they may be counted among the precursors to the banks that arose during the late Middle Ages and early modern period.
Some scholars believe that the Radhanites may have played a role in the conversion of the Khazars to Judaism. In addition, they may have helped establish Jewish communities at various points along their trade routes, and were probably involved in the early Jewish settlement of Eastern Europe, Central Asia, China and India.
trade was via coastal cargo ships such as this dhow.
Besides ibn Khordadbeh, the Radhanites are mentioned by name only by a handful of sources. Ibn al-Faqih's early 10th century Book of the Countries mentions them, but much of ibn al-Faqih's information was derived from ibn Khordadbeh's work. Sefer haDinim, a Hebrew account of the travels of Yehuda HaKohen ben Meir of Mainz, named Przemyśl and Kiev as trading sites along the Radhanite route. In the early 12th century, a French-Jewish trader named Isaac ben Dorbolo wrote that he traveled with Radhanite merchants to Poland.
End of the Radhanite age
The fall of the Tang China in 908 and the collapse of the Khazarian state at the hands of the Rus' some sixty years later led to widespread chaos in Eurasia. Trade routes became unstable and unsafe, a situation exacerbated by the rise of expansionist Turco-Persianate states, and the Silk Road largely collapsed for centuries. This period saw the rise of the mercantile Italian city-states, especially the maritime republics, Genoa, Venice, Pisa, and Amalfi, who viewed the Radhanites as unwanted competitors.The economy of Europe was profoundly affected by the disappearance of the Radhanites. For example, documentary evidence indicates that many spices in regular use during the early Middle Ages completely disappeared from European tables in the 10th century. Jews had previously, in large parts of Western Europe, enjoyed a virtual monopoly on the spice trade.
Some have speculated that a collection of 11th century Jewish scrolls discovered in a cave in Afghanistan’s Samangan Province in 2011 may be a “leftover” of the Radhanites, who had mostly disappeared by the 11th century.