Cities along the Silk Road
This articles lists cities located along the Silk Road. The Silk Road was a network of ancient trade routes which connected Europe with the Far East, spanning from The Yellow Sea to the Korean Peninsula and Cangarusina and The African continent. The silk road consisted of many cities so it would be improper to not include Africa or its cities. The Silk Road's eastern end is in present-day China, and its main western end is Antioch. The Silk Road started about the time of the Han Dynasty, when Emperor Wu was ruling.
Along the terrestrial/land Silk Roads
Major cities, broadly from the eastern Mediterranean to South Asia, and arranged roughly west to east in each area by modern-day country
The Silk Roads across the Middle East and Western Asia
- Constantinople, ancient Byzantium, (now Istanbul), Roman Empire, Byzantine Empire & Ottoman Empire
- Bursa
- Beypazarı
- Mudurnu
- Taraklı
- Konya
- Adana
- Antioch
- Izmir
- Trabzon
Azerbaijan
grt Georgia
Central Asia
- Otrar
- Ispidjab (or Sairum)
- Taraz
- Hazrat-e Turkestan
- Almaty
Southern Routes and South Asia
- Bactra (Balkh)
- Herat
- Alexandria Arachosia (Kandahar)
- Bamyan
- Kabul
- Tamralipta (or Tamluk)
- Leh
- Jaisalmer
- Mathura
- Varanasi (or Benares)
- Pataliputra
- Wari-Bateshwar
- Pundranagara
- Vikrampura
- Somapura
- Bhitargarh
- Sonargaon
- Chattagram/Chatgaon/Chittagong
- Comilla/Mainamati/Samatata
- Jahangir Nagar/Dhaka
Bhutan
China: The northern route along the Taklamakan Desert
- Kashgar (or Kashi) (Major City)
- Liqian
- Aksu
- Kucha
- Korla
- Loulan
- Karasahr (Yanqi)
- Turpan (Turfan)
- Jiaohe Ruins
- Turpan Water Museum
- Gaochang
- the Bezeklik Thousand Buddha Caves
- Chang'an
- Kumul/Hami
- Ürümqi
- Yumen Pass (or Jade Gate or Pass of the Jade Gate) (city called Yumenguan or Hecang)
- Anxi
China: The southern route along the Taklamakan Desert
- Kashgar (or Kashi) (Major City)
- Yarkand
- Pishan
- Khotan
- Niya
- Mingfeng
- Endere
- Charchan
- Waxxari
- Ruoqiang Town (Charklik)
- Miran
- Yangguan, or Yangguan Pass
- Dunhuang
- the Mogao Caves
- Anxi
China: From Anxi/Dunhuang to Chang'an (Xi'an)
Along the maritime Silk Routes
- Debal, Pakistan
- Ningbo, China
- Fuzhou, China
- Quanzhou, China
- Guangzhou, China
- Ulsan, Korea
- Chittagong, Bangladesh
- Colombo, Sri Lanka
- Tamralipta, West Bengal, India
- Poompuhar, Tamil Nadu, India
- Madras, Tamil Nadu, India
- Korkai, Tamil Nadu, India
- Muziris, Kerala, India
- Goa, India
- Mumbai, India
- Cochin, India
- Masulipatnam, India
- Lothal, India
- Astrakhan, Russia
- Derbent, Russia
- Sudak, Russia
- Muscat, Oman
- Aden, Yemen
- Bosaso, Somalia
- Suez, Egypt
- Ayas, Turkey
- Venice, Italy
- Rome, Italy
List of Ptolemy
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Cities along the Silk Road. |
This following list is attributed to Ptolemy. All city names are Ptolemy's, throughout all his works. Most of the names are included in Geographia.
Some of the cities provided by Ptolemy either
- do not longer exist today OR
- have moved to different locations
Nevertheless, Ptolemy has provided an important historical reference for researchers.
(This list has been alphabetized.)
- Africa
- East Africa - Akhmim, Aromaton Emporion, Axum, Coloe, Dongola, Juba, Maji, Opone, Panopolis, Sarapion, Sennar.
- North Africa - Caesarea, Carthage, Cyrene, Leptis Magna, Murzuk, Sijilmassa, Tamanrasset, Tingis.
- Arabia - Cane, Eudaemon Arabia, Mocha, Mosylon, Sanaʽa, Zafār (Saphar), Saue.
- Bangladesh - Sounagaora.
- China - Cattigara, Chengdu, Kaifeng, Kitai, Kunming, Yarkand.
- Europe - Aquileia, Athens, Augusta Treverorum (Trier), Gades (Cadiz), Ostia.
- India - Argaru, Astakapra, Bacare, Balita, Barake, Byzantion, Colchi, Erannoboas, Horaia, Kalliena, Mandagora, Melizeigara, Muziris, korkai, Poompuhar, Naura, Nelcynda, Paethana (Paithan), Palaepatmae, Palaesimundu, Poduca, Semylla, Sopatma, Suppara (Nalasopara), Tagara, Tymdis.
- Pakistan - Barbaricum, Peshawer, Taxilla
- Persia - Alexandria Areion, Kandahar, Persepolis.
- Persian Gulf - Apologos, Asabon, Charax, Gerrha (or Gerra), Ommana.
- Red Sea - Adulis, Aualites, Berenica, Malao, ancient Berbera, Muza, Myos Hormos, Ocalis, Ptolemais Theron.
- South East Asia - Kattigara (Oc Eo), Thaton, Trang.
- Unknown - Ecbatana (located in either modern Iran or Syria), Jiaohei.
References
- Postcard from the Silk Road - Batumi...Tiflis