Our special column focuses on a book written by Professor David Abulafia that explores the most famous bodies of water in the world and shows readers their significance to human history.
The three large oceans —the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian, which together make up the vast majority of the planet’s water and cover more than half of its surface— are the principal characters.
The book , titled ‘The Boundless Sea: A Human History of the Oceans’ follows the development of maritime networks across time, from local exploration to lines of regional communication and trade to, eventually, massive arteries.
According to Mr. Abulafia, maritime networks connected islands first, then continents, while the economics and cultures of Africa, Europe, Asia, and the Americas were transformed and ultimately shaped by these waterways. They also transported commodities, plants, cattle, and of course people, across great distances.
“The Boundless Sea” also demonstrates how marine networks eventually developed a continuum of contact and linkage, making it much more than just another history of exploration. The book travels through time, starting with the earliest inhabitants paddling homemade canoes through undiscovered waters, reaching to today’s journeys of supertankers.
Mr. Abulafia takes a deep look into the means, motives, and timelines of humanity as it crossed the oceans, subsequently bringing interdependence between geographically distant nations. “The Boundless Sea” is among the best world histories because of its masterful storytelling, exquisitely rendered characters, audacious expanse, and meticulous research.
All in all, the “Boundless Sea” is a work of immense scholarship, paying a tribute to human enterprise. After reading this book, readers should expect their horizons to be expanded, feeling as eager as the ancient mariners to retell their stories.
In the making of connections between human societies, the role of the sea is fascinating. Connections across large open spaces have brought together peoples, religions and civilizations in stimulating ways.
…Professor Abulafia explains in the preface of the book.
