author
active 9th century Sulayman al-Tajir
An early Muslim merchant-traveler, he is remembered for one of the oldest surviving Arabic accounts of trade and travel between the Islamic world, India, and China. His observations give a rare firsthand glimpse of the Indian Ocean world in the 9th century.
1 Audiobook
Voyage du marchand arabe Sulaymân en Inde et en Chine rédigé en 851 Suivi de remarques par Abû Zayd Hasan (vers 916), traduit de l'arabe avec introduction, glossaire et index par Gabriel Ferrand
by active 10th century Abu Zayd Hasan ibn Yazid Sirafi, active 9th century Sulayman al-Tajir
About the author
Known as "the Merchant," Sulayman al-Tajir was active in the 9th century and is generally linked with Siraf, an important port in present-day Iran. He is remembered as a merchant, traveler, and writer whose name is attached to a travel account describing voyages across the Indian Ocean.
His surviving reputation rests on an account of journeys to India and China, usually dated to around the mid-800s. That work is especially valued because it preserves an early Arabic description of long-distance commerce, ports, customs, and everyday life in regions connected by maritime trade.
For modern readers, his importance is less about a full personal biography—which remains sparse—and more about the window his writing opens onto the Abbasid-era trading world. Through that account, he stands out as one of the earliest known Arabic voices to describe China and the sea routes linking the Middle East with South and East Asia.