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Janet L. Abu-Lughod

Before European Hegemony: The World System A.D. 1250-1350 Hardcover – Import, January 1, 1989

by Janet L Abu-Lugbod (Author)

4.2 60 ratings

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By the end of the thirteenth century the regions of Europe, the Middle East, the Indian Ocean area, and China were becoming integrated--through activities in an archipelago of cities located along major land and sea routes--into a world system of commerce and production, albeit one in which
Europe still played a minor role. This book traces the formation of the system and explores how the Black Death, circa 1350, and the subsequent isolation of China under the Ming dynasty interrupted its further development. Abu-Lughod argues that demographic, geographic, and political factors, rather
than any unique qualities of Western capitalism or "personality," account for the eventual triumph of "the West" during the ensuing period of six hundred years, and suggests that current transformations in the world system may signal the end of this aberrant phase of world history.

Print length

460 pages
Language

English
Publisher

New York, Oxford University Pr
Publication date

January 1, 1989
Dimensions

5.75 x 1.06 x 8.5 inches
ISBN-10

0195058860
ISBN-13

978-0195058864
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4.2 out of 5

60 global ratings

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gunnersfan_007

Well written!

Reviewed in the United States on March 21, 2022

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This was a great book and a good read! Took an advanced history class and loved it!

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M. Lorenzo Warby

Eurasian interactions

Reviewed in the United States on December 9, 2005

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A work drawing on deep scholarship providing welcome adjustment to views that overstate Europe's precocity and importance before 1500. Europe was a peripheral backwater prior to its export of the Eurasian disease pool to the Americas (and even for some time after). Abu-Lughod examines each major area of the Eurasian trading network in term, bringing out how much events in one area were affected by changes elsewhere (in particular, how much Europeans were responding to such changes).

I also found Abu-Lughod's scepticism about grand conceptual schemas and strong preference for considering the complex texture of reality engaging. She sets out a highly informative history of the creation of an interacting Eurasian economy under the period of Mongol domination and how changes among the various participating powers (particularly China) resulted in the interactions falling back to a lower level. She also argues a power vacuum was set up in the Indian Ocean that the Europeans (first the Portugese, then the Dutch and finally the British) were able to fill. That there was a "Fall of the East" prior to there being a "Rise of the West". She does a nice job of debunking "cultural" and "Confucian-isolationism" explanations for China's shift, placing the public policy considerations the Ming court was dealing with in a more plausible context.

My first quibble is with the title. This is about the Eurasian system, not a global one, a point the author herself concedes (p.37). It is a "world" system only in terms of the Old World/New World usage and, to be fair, she is responding to Immanuel Wallerstein's coinage of the term. The second is she suffers from the modern academic fetish for shudder quotes, though at least she is often prepared to explain in more detail why concepts are problematic, rather than simply engaging in the tedious knowing-virtue wink. The worst bit of the book, as so often is the way, is when she attempts to look forward. The talking down of the stability of the current world-system, and the situation of the US in particular, reads rather poorly for a book published in 1989 with clearly no sense whatsoever of the impending collapse of the Soviet empire.

But the book is very readable and extremely informative, the personality of the author engaging. An excellent way of coming to grips with how global history works.

24 people found this helpful

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Crusty Critic

Your Move, Europe

Reviewed in the United States on February 20, 2017

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Well researched and carefully analysed review of the "myth" of inevitable European supremacy. In fact, Indians, Chinese, and Muslims, as well as Mongols and South Asians were all heavily involved in long distance east-west trade long before the Europeans recovered from the fall of the Roman Empire (and the Romans themselves also traded with the east). Shows how the infrastructure, logistics, and business organization arose, and were probably copied by, Europeans. Also a cautionary tale for those who still believe that hegemony is forever. A bit heavy going as she is not the most inspiring writer, but well worth a read.

6 people found this helpful

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S. Day

Description inaccurate

Reviewed in the United States on September 2, 2023

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Too much underlining and highlighting to be considered "very good."

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MFH

The book is a classic overview of the 'world system' ...

Reviewed in the United States on October 17, 2016

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The book is a classic overview of the 'world system' as it existed on the Eurasian and North African land masses before its integration with the Americas. The book is divided into three sections that follows the main trading centres from the Champaigne and Flanders regions of France eastward towards Baghdad, Damascus and Cairo and from there towards the main routes to China. Anyone interested in the history of trade and exchange will find this book a must.

6 people found this helpful

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David Kn.

Light shining into the darkness

Reviewed in the United States on September 28, 2017

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Well-researched and well-written book on a topic - global trade networks before European domination - that has been written about far too seldom. Highly recommended.

One person found this helpful

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Blanca marin

Four Stars

Reviewed in the United States on March 17, 2017

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great book

One person found this helpful

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Helena Cobban

Missing pages 239-270 including three key maps!

Reviewed in the United States on April 11, 2023

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I was surprised & super disappointed to find these pages were missing, as I'd been really enjoying the book till then. It seems to be a common problem for the paperback edition of this title-- which you wouldn't expect from Oxford University Press... But there you are...

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Pedro

Livro interessante

Reviewed in Brazil on June 6, 2023

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Satisfeito

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Bernardo Andrews

Estar abiertos a desarrollar un nuevo observador... de la historia en nuestras vidas

Reviewed in Mexico on May 25, 2021

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Una nueva mirada a la historia, poniendo en duda lo central de nuestros ancestros europeos, de acuerdo a la historia que nos han contado, abriendo los ojos al rol extraordinario de chinos, árabes, mongoles e indios en lo que es "nuestro" mundo hoy. Lo que otras razas hicieron me inspira respeto y gratitud, en lugar de la indiferencia en que he vivido. El libro es una gran contribución a honrar el patrimonio y el esfuerzo que otros hicieron para que yo pudiese llegar al punto en que me encuentro, y así también mi descendencia. Gracias Janet L. Abu-Lughod.

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kit collins

Of academic quality (canonical perhaps), detailed and constantly referenced ...

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 21, 2015

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Of academic quality (canonical perhaps), detailed and constantly referenced. Written in a clear fluid style, very readable. As a result this book highly informative and theoretically novel. The edition (printing, paper, boards, etc.) is for me inadequate, the 'relatively' (in relation to university text books) low price shows.

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Before European Hegemony: The World System A.D. 1250-1350 Hardcover – Import, January 1, 1989

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Before European Hegemony: The World System A.D. 1250-1350 Hardcover – Import, January 1, 1989

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