著者

太田 啓子

出版者

一般社団法人 日本オリエント学会

雑誌

オリエント (ISSN:00305219)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.50, no.2, pp.161-180, 2007 (Released:2010-03-12)

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Jidda first appeared on the historical stage as the port city of Mecca. Former studies have not discussed the urban structure of Jidda or the historical changes in its character. This article examines how the international situation around Hijaz influenced Jidda and its ruler, the Meccan Sharifate, using primarily the local chronicles of Mecca, Meccan biographical dictionaries, and Meccan pilgrimage records.The natural conditions of Jidda were not suitable for a seaport; besides, early on its public facilities were insufficient. Nonetheless, during the pilgrimage season a flow of people and goods concentrated in Jidda because of its geographical advantage of being 72 kilometers from Mecca.In the middle of the 8/14th century, Jidda and Yanbu' rose as relay ports, and the west coast of the Arabian Peninsula became a main international trade route. The Meccan Sharifate became interested in Jidda as a sourse of revenue through customs duties. They built harbor facilities and collected customs duties. The Mamluk Sultan Barsbay, who was confronted with the economic decline of the Mamluk dynasty, sought to the increase of the amount of the customs duties collected in Jidda and actively invited ships engaged in the Indian trade. He dispatched a port controller to Jidda and collected the customs duties directly. Therefore the rise of Jidda as a relay port on the international trade route changed the policy of the Mamluk dynasty toward Hijaz; until then the Mamluk dynasty had ruled Hijaz indirectly through the Meccan Sharifate. In consequence, the character of Jidda changed from being the port city of Mecca into being a commercial port of the Mamluk dynasty, and the Meccan Sharifate became subordinate to the Mamluk dynasty in politics and economy because it had lost its source of revenue and economic independence.