Lecture by Dr Jose Carvajal Lopez on Nomads and connectivity in the Gulf in the early Islamic period

Lecture for IASA members, May 2022. The beginnings of Islam in the Gulf are usually associated with the establishment of important urban centres, such as Baghdad, Basra, Siraf and Sohar, to tap into the Indian Ocean trade, and in particular with the centres of China. However, recent research suggests that nomadic groups in the Gulf shores played a crucial role in the development of this connectivity even before the foundation of some of the major centres. This lecture explores the archaeological evidence related to this question and will suggest avenues of research to address it.