The Silk Road World Economy in the 6th-8th Centuries

This article examines the concept of the Silk Road as a single world-economy in the 6th–8th centuries, linking China, the Turkic Khaganate, and the Sogdians within a complex system of economic and political interactions. This approach allows us to view the Silk Road not simply as a network of trade routes, but as a complex system connecting various regions through the division of labor, economic interests, and political alliances. Thus, the aim of this study is to analyze the structure of trade relations in Central Asia in the 6th–8th centuries. The study shows that the rise of the Turkic Khaganate and the Chinese dynasties (Sui and Tang) created the political stability necessary for secure trade. China supplied silk and handicrafts, the Turks supplied horses and cattle, and the Sogdians organized trade and provided intermediary services. The central zone of this system was the area of active interaction among the Turks, Sogdians, and Chinese (the Turkic-Chinese frontier), where goods from sedentary and nomadic economies were concentrated and exchanged (border markets, Ordos, Chang'an, the khagan's headquarters, etc.). The inland provinces of China constituted the periphery and supplied silk, grain, and handicrafts in the form of taxes or tribute. The Turkic steppes supplied horses, cattle, and livestock products within the political and tributary framework of the Khaganate. Silk was used as payment for nomadic services, as a diplomatic gift, and in trade; its high value and liquidity made it a universal medium of exchange. The Turks and Sogdians sold Chinese silk in Central Asia, receiving elite horses and other goods from the West in exchange. This created a self-reinforcing cycle that stimulated trade along the entire Silk Road “from China to China.” However, major subsequent political upheavals in Central and East Asia in the mid-8th century led to the collapse of this world-economy and the formation of new channels of international trade.