History of trade

History of trade

Trade is the exchange of goods and services for commercial purposes or other products.  There are different forms of business that existed in the pasture. Barter trade is a form of business whereby the people exchanged goods for other products. This type of trade is the first trade to ever occur in the world. This was because there was no money to transact the trade with during the ancient times. In the past, many people were moving from one pint to another as hunters and gathers. They used to look for pasture and more fertile ground in which they could hunt and gather. Many human beings during ancient times did not settle at one point. They kept on moving to different places where they could find animals to hunt. This was their main survival tactic.

Pre historians in France and the Czech Republic have found different bones that are about 50 thousand years of age. They were mostly found along the rivers and the forests. This means that during ancient times, most travelers were mainly living along streams and in the woods. From here, they could hunt and as well as fish from these rivers (Davis, 2004). There are also sites in Russia and Africa where human bones have been traced at specific places where human beings lived in the past. About 45 years ago, they had spread to most parts of the work that is Africa, Asia, and Europe. From this point, many of them still were hunters and gathers who settled along rivers and lakes, forests to survive. To move to places such as North America, they had to use the canoes and sail through.

As time went by, the human populations were growing, and they could no longer move about fro food as they were hunting. Because of this, humans came up with other means of survival. The only means of survival they could manage was farming.  They came up with tools that they could use and the plants that they would grow to have food (Davis, 2004).  How farming spread around the world remains a mystery. They all had the ideas of farming and utilized them well and in the end, got to have food to survive. During this time, they could no longer survive on hunting and gathering as the population had grown. Besides, there was also competition for the animals that they hunted by other prey animals in the forest (Standage, 2009). In Mesopotamia, between 4500-5000 B.C, farming started in this area.

Humans then decided to settle at different places in the world and began tom practice farming. Most of them had no idea totally about agriculture, but through the invention of different designs, they managed to get the crops that they would plant and how they could harvest. This made them settle and from various clans in different parts of the world. They formed their norms and culture, which they would follow, and this came, especially when one was born or dies (Davis, 2004). They had different ceremonies that came up during the harvest season. Food was becoming such an essential commodity in the world. It became more precious as farmers and the ancient people began comparing their harvest to previous seasons in which they had. Other than that, they began competing as clans over the clan that had the highest number of products made.

Because of such clans, there was the development of the government, which they formed that would guide them in various aspects that they did. The government had policies where they wanted the tax to be paid by the people of the clan (Davis, 2004). This was only possible through giving out of food during the ancient times. In Egypt, they lived along the river Nile where the farmers engaged in different farming practices.  Other than that, in Mesopotamia too was a bunch of so many farmers. This led to the competition of farming, and the people who had no crops had to trade and exchange the food they had with whatever food that they needed. When the clans had different foods, for example of a group harvested maize well while the other family had wheat, they would do some exchange of goods at specific places across the sub-Saharan.

Trading began as a barter trade system whereby people used to exchange goods and services in the world. Besides, some people had already come up with various ways of ironing different metal that was used in farming. To get such minerals, then this means that farmers had to trade these goods with the food that they had. Barter trade system took place in a very long time before the other means of trade came to be (Standage, 2009). Besides, food was used as a sacrifice in religions where they would appease the gods. This was to bring about a continuation in the agricultural cycle.

The paying of tax in Egypt and Mesopotamia is traced to 19500 B.C, where the king in the area collected tax in the form of food.  During these times, they developed other things such as the clay pots that were also used in trade. From such practices, other clans also began the keeping of animals as others mainly ventured in top farming. This brought about a difference, like economic activities that they were practicing (Standage, 2009). As a result, the communities would reach out to each other through messengers and enquire what they would exchange such that both of then mm benefited. Barter trade was a system that was used in ancient times and involved communication whereby both parties would agree. From these agreements, they formed different days in which they decided to meet at specific placed to make their trade take place. In such situations are nowadays the upcoming towns and cities that grew as a result of business among people.

After the domestication of animals and planting of crops between 9000- 6000 B.C, they started being used as money. In different communities and different cultures, various units were used as money. This was as a result of those who were employed and could not be paid using food that they still had in their homes (Standage, 2009).  Other than that, the world was evolving, and the people decided that they would have their denomination of comparing goods while trading. While trading, some people never gave the right amounts of quantity, for example, trading a hen with a sack of maize is not the correct denomination. They had to look for a more stable and lasting solution to the problem. This was through the developments of money.

From this, many communities developed the urge to use money and other valuable staff as their money. In Africa, Asia, and Europe, there was the use of cowry shells as the form of cash. Also, in Mesopotamia, there was handwriting that was invented and was used in recording the harvest and trade that took place.  This writings were so detailed and first recorded the use of cowry shells in 3000 B.C. this was first used in the measuring of wheat and bailey that was found in the country. Other than that,  Babylonians developed their systems of the trade such that they would record the shekel that they got after the business. Other than that, the cowries shell was very convenient as it was easy to carry around. Many workers would now be paid using the cowry shells.

Other than the cowry shells, then other means that were earlier on used as money were the valuables such as gold and bronze and small spades that were made of such items. These items were so valuable in society, and nobody would leave them in case they were to b bought. They had different notions in which they decided that such valuables would exchange the goods and services from different communities. This was mostly used in china during the Zhou dynasty. The first actual coin was first seen in India.  This was in the 7^th century, and they had holes in them. These coins were made in such a way that one could easily recognize them by size and the worth in which they had in them. By 500 B.C, the Greeks and also developed their currency and were using it in places such as Italy to trade (Davies, 2010). Other coins that were made of electrum were later created, and they had a highly recognized value. They were used on the coast of Turkey, which was formally known as the Lydia. From here, the denomination of money continued taking different forms in different countries and was used to measure the economic status of different places.

In conclusion, there are different ways in which barter trade began in the past. This was after the developments of farming systems in the world. Other than that, the development of barter trade saw the growth of money, which was used in various countries. Despite having different values in different countries, payment can be exchanged in different places and have different rates. From trade, many developments have occurred and have led to many upcoming towns and cities.

References

Davis, J. (2004). The human story. Our history from the Stone Age to today. HarperCollins e

-books

Standage, T. (2009). An edible history of humanity. An author of the New York Times bestseller.

A history of the world in six glasses. The Turk

Davies, G. (2010). History of money. University of wales press.