ABSTRACT
Arabs, unlike their companions in the hinterland of Arabia, were born traders and sailors. The first attempt to deprive the Arabs of the monopoly of the Indian trade was made in 18 BC when Aelius Gallus was ordered by the Emperor Augustus to explore both Arabia and Ethiopia. The principal ports of Egypt for the Eastern trade were Myoshormus and Berenice. The Indian and Arabian trade were not confined merely to the Horn of Africa; it extended down Azania or the Eastern coast of Africa, as far as Rhapta. During the loosely-organized Parthian empire, the Arabs, finding the coast clear, extended their trade and colonies to the northern littoral of the Persian Gulf. However, the presence of the Persian element must not be ignored because of the existence of the Arabian element in the Parthian sea-trade.
