المراكز التجارية الموحّدية ودورها في التبادل التجاري البحري خلال القرنين 6– 7هـ/ 12– 13م

Abstract

This paper examines the commercial centers of the Almohad state as pivotal nodes within an integrated network of land, river, and maritime exchanges that connected the regions of the Islamic Maghreb (al-Maghrib al-Aqṣā, al-Maghrib al-Awsaṭ, al-Maghrib al-Adnā) with al-Andalus and the countries of the Mediterranean basin during the 6th–7th centuries AH / 12th–13th centuries CE. The study is grounded in the premise that the Almohad commercial centers were far more than mere ports or caravan halts; they were comprehensive urban and economic institutions characterized by an advanced organizational and administrative structure that merged port facilities, market functions, and regulatory frameworks. These included the ḥisba (market supervision), ʿushūr (customs and taxation), caravanserais and qaysariyyas (urban trading complexes), and dār al-ṣināʿa (arsenals and industrial workshops). Collectively, they represented a sophisticated economic system that harmonized trade, governance, and logistics, reflecting the Almohads’ deliberate policy to unify inland and coastal economies under a single, efficient commercial order.

The findings reveal that the Almohads restructured the geography of trade through a clearly defined hierarchy of major and secondary centers—Marrakesh, Fez, Sijilmāsa, Ceuta, Tlemcen, Béjaïa, Tunis/Mahdia, Almería, Seville, Málaga, and Murcia—forming a coherent network that ensured the continuous flow of goods between the inland markets and maritime ports. This structure greatly enhanced the movement of exports and imports, optimized overland and riverine transport, and facilitated the transition from internal routes to the seaports, thus making Almohad trade more organized, efficient, and regionally integrated.

Furthermore, the Almohads adopted robust maritime and overland security policies to protect these routes and markets, successfully countering regional threats such as the Normans, Banū Ghāniya, and Banū Hilāl Arabs, which in turn fostered a climate of safety and confidence essential for commercial expansion. The study concludes that the Almohad network of roads, markets, and trade centers represented not only an economic infrastructure but also a strategic vision that aimed to integrate the Maghrebi and Andalusian economies into a unified system. In doing so, the Almohad state emerged as a decisive turning point in the evolution of maritime trade in the western Islamic world, and as a central actor linking both shores of the Mediterranean within a stable and interconnected commercial framework.