Indian Journal of Science and Technology

Abstract

Background/Objectives: To identify the role of trade transport routes in economic growth throughout history in Bisha Province. Methods/Statistical Analysis: The study followed two approaches; the first one is the historical approach, which seeks to study the ancient and historical phenomena and linking them with the current problems. The second approach is the analytical approach to analyze the documents that related to the subject matter of the study, and data extraction that may contribute in answering the main question of the study. The study concluded that ‘Asir Region publically and Bisha Province privately were linked together with a strong cultural linkage with the kingdoms of South Arabian Peninsula. Bisha Province has an important historical presence, as it is one of the richest places with heritage and archaeological places. Two trade routes were famous in Arabian Peninsula that connects eastern and western sides of Asia; these trade routes are Incense trade route and Al Hareer Route. Bisha was one of the most important trade routes passages that came from south to north in its way to the civilization of Mesopotamia, The Levant, Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea. The paper used 26 of previous studies as references. Findings: We found on the sides of the trade routes of Wadi Bisha the emergence of stations and trade centers that have been developed into villages and cities where people were aggregated along the trade route to provide service to the conveys in terms of food and drink also they act as a trade guide. Researchers mentioned that Bisha Province and its villages and cities, were an old and thriving Arab town, because it is located along the southern sector of the path of the historical Incense pathway that was linking the cultural centers at the south and the north of Arabian Peninsula together. The region seems to get a great benefit from this trade so markets are spread. People got rich and they got benefit from this in reclamation and cultivation of their lands. They build dams and facilitate the methods to get benefits from valleys’ water, however most of them extinct as a result of time factors where future archaeological scans may result in a clearer picture of these sites. Bisha has an important role in successive Islamic ages due to its strategic location on the trade routes and on Yemeni Hajj routes, it is known by highest Yemeni Hajj route or known by Najdian Hajj route that links between San’a in Yemen with Makkah in Hejaz. Bisha and its cities related closely to transportation and tribe’s movement even it is a trade tribe or a Hajj tribe, the fertile soil and abundant water in the tribe stations had been helped in the flourishing of these routes. Improvements/Applications: The study had recommended the importance of studying historical economic diversity in Bisha Province, as well as the possibility of benefiting from this study in the future planning of the railway lines that could be operated in the region, based on the old routes that have been tracked according to its facility and simplicity. 

Keywords: ‘Asir Region, Bisha Province, Historical Approach, Trade in Ancient Times, Trade Routes, Wadi Bisha