How did the politics of the middle east affect trade and the rise of Islam?

Answer 1

Islam fundamentally changed the power dynamics, organization, and ethnic composition of the Middle East.

In Usr al-Jahiliya (or the Age of Ignorance [before Islam]), the Arab tribes quarreled and fought with each other for control of cities and trade routes. The amount of disunity and polemics in those communities made them far from interesting in Civilized Eyes. The Levant, Egypt, and Anatolia were controlled by the declining Byzantine Empire at the time and Persia and Iraq were controlled by the Sassanids (who were also in decline).

Islam unified the Arab tribes and allowed them to take the Levant and half of Anatolia from the Byzantines and completely absorb the Sassanid Empire. Arabs moved from what is today Saudi Arabia into the Levant, Iraq, and Egypt and began to ethnically mix with the indigenous inhabitants. This produced a flowering of technology and the arts, civilizing the native inhabitants. It also led to the establishment the world's first universities and libraries with endless books in medicine, astronomy, law, philosophy, mathematics, and science.

Answer 2

Traders affected the Islamic world in several ways. For one, traders brought a variety of goods and textiles to Islamic ports. This helped the Arabian Peninsula flourish in commerce and wealth. At the same time, traders also brought back products to their respective countries. This included exotic Arab spices, as well as technologically advanced swords and even textiles.