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“Ismaël pria Osman de luy donner quelques Chrestiens” : gift exchanges and economic reciprocity in trans-Saharan diplomacy (sixteenth–seventeenth centuries)
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Dewiere, Remi (2020) “Ismaël pria Osman de luy donner quelques Chrestiens” : gift exchanges and economic reciprocity in trans-Saharan diplomacy (sixteenth–seventeenth centuries). Diplomatica, 2 (2). pp. 223-247. doi:10.1163/25891774-02020003 ISSN 2589-1766.
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Official URL: https://doi.org/10.1163/25891774-02020003
Abstract
The practice of gift-giving was omnipresent in trans-Saharan embassies. Gifts were the material expression of the political dialogue between rulers. Their quality and quantity was a good barometer of relations between rulers. A close analysis of the gifts sent or received by the Borno rulers (present-day Nigeria) between the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries reveals a system of norms and customs on the part of the Borno chancellery. Their material value also raises the question of their economic dimension and how they were recycled. By focusing on the embassies between Tripoli and Borno in the early modern period, the aim of this article is to demonstrate that the gifts were a part of a normalized practice of diplomacy. Beyond the message carried by the gifts themselves, the Borno sultans mixed economic and political interests by integrating the exchanges of gifts into the wider trans-Saharan trade.
Item Type: | Journal Article | ||||||
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Subjects: | D History General and Old World > D History (General) D History General and Old World > D History (General) > D204 Modern History D History General and Old World > DT Africa H Social Sciences > HC Economic History and Conditions J Political Science > JZ International relations |
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Divisions: | Other > Institute of Advanced Study Faculty of Arts > History |
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Journal or Publication Title: | Diplomatica | ||||||
Publisher: | Brill | ||||||
ISSN: | 2589-1766 | ||||||
Official Date: | 21 December 2020 | ||||||
Dates: |
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Volume: | 2 | ||||||
Number: | 2 | ||||||
Page Range: | pp. 223-247 | ||||||
DOI: | 10.1163/25891774-02020003 | ||||||
Status: | Peer Reviewed | ||||||
Publication Status: | Published | ||||||
Access rights to Published version: | Restricted or Subscription Access |
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