The Development of Chinese History and the Transportation (Maritime Silk Road) - Peng, KK; KK Peng (al-Muʼtamar al-Duwalī: ʻUmān wa-Duwal Janūb Sharq Āsiyā wa-al-Ṣīn: Āfāq Thaqāfīyah wa-Tārīkhīyah wa-Siyāsīyah wa-Ḥaḍārīyah, 2016)
The formation of history and the accumulation of culture, like the growth of living things and the formation of geology, are shaped gradually over a lengthy period of time. If time is a common feature, then geography is differential, owing to differences of ethnic group, geographical environment, climate and crops. Besides this, each ethnic group differs in terms of economy, politics and culture, so that different groups may share common ground at different points in history — perhaps with conflicts, but also living in peace and generating cultural creation through occasions of contact. This paper examines the contact between China and Oman before the fifteenth century along the maritime route later known as the Maritime Silk Road, and considers what that long exchange signifies for the cultural history of both.
The Development of Chinese History and the Transportation between China and Oman before the Fifteenth Century, and the Significance of Its Cultural History PENG, Kwang-Kai Preface The formation of history and accumulation of culture, just like the growth of living things and geological formation, is gradually shaped in a lengthy period of time. If time is a common feature, then geography is differential owing to the difference in ethnic group, geographical environment, climate and crops. Besides, each ethnic group differs in terms of economy, politics and culture that different ethnic groups may share the common ground at different time points in history, perhaps with conflicts, but may also live in peace and incur cultural creation due to occurrences of contact. The contact of China and the Arabian world in particular belongs to the latter pattern, able to be certified by historical documents. The creative development in culture is not easy which requires the preparation in time. Among the examples of ethnic groups with creative development due to peaceful exchanges, besides time points in exchange, the cultural confidence and contribution of each ethnic group undoubtedly are the
Keywords: conference publication; Maritime Silk Road; China; Oman; Cultural history; Trade routes; Pre-modern exchange