The First Trading Empire: The Assyrian Merchant Networks

On the Power of Guest Rights

Author

Ray Doraisamy
February 03, 2025

Who used trade partnerships to spread?

Before Jews, Muslims, and the Hanseatic League, there was a web of Assyrian traders.

It was once believed that the colonies were established in the wake of Assyrian military conquests, reflecting Assyrian domination over the regions where they were located. But in fact the colonies were simply 'guest enclaves' based on trading pacts between Assyria and the local rulers, with the latter retaining overall control of the Assyrian merchants' activities in their region.

The Kingdom of the Hittites, Trevor Bryce

Coordinating mostly through messengers, over dozens of years, in single lifespans.