The World of the Ancient Silk Road by Xinru Liu

The World of the Ancient Silk Road by Xinru Liu

This volume explores human migration, communication, and cross-cultural exchange on the Silk Road, a complex network of trade routes spanning the Eurasian continent and beyond. It covers thousands of years of human history, from the 3rd millennium BCE to the early 2nd millennium CE.

Consolidating archaeological discoveries, historical analyses, and linguistic studies in one comprehensive volume, The World of the Ancient Silk Road brings to light diverse perspectives from scholars who have lived and worked across this vast region, many of which are published here in English for the first time. It contains extensive references of primary and secondary sources in their original languages and scripts. From Early Bronze Age cultures to the rise of regional Islamic empires, from the Mediterranean to the Yellow River basin, this multidisciplinary volume seeks to offer new insights and expand Silk Road studies to the Anglophone world.

The World of the Ancient Silk Road provides an essential reference work for students and scholars of world history, particularly those studying the regions, cultures, and peoples explored in this volume.

"An outstanding collection of essays that brings the history of the peoples, cultures and places of the Silk Roads into sharp focusEach essay is a gem; taken together, they are a collection that delights." - Peter Frankopan, University of Oxford

"No doubt, The World of the Ancient Silk Road is more attractive to the western audience who are interested in Chinese research in Silk Road studies, and with its rich archaeological, cultural, and linguistic information, it will be a useful reference work for the students and scholars in the field." - Bryn Mawr Classical Review

Xinru Liu received her PhD from the University of Pennsylvania in 1985. She is Professor Emeritus at the College of New Jersey. She has published extensively on topics related to the Silk Road, including Ancient India and Ancient China; Silk and Religion; The Silk Road in World History; and The Silk Roads, a Brief History With Documents. She has been teaching courses on the Silk Roads for more than thirty years.