By Salma Ghalwash<\/p>\n\n\n\n
UNIVERSITY CITY, SHARJAH \u2013 The strengthened ties between India and the Gulf states have ancient roots, said American University of Sharjah History Professor and Ahmed Sediqqi Chair of Gulf and Middle Eastern Studies Dr. James Onley, during his inaugural lecture on Feb. 14.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Onley\u2019s lecture, which was titled \u201cIndia and the Gulf: A Survey of 4,600 Years of Trade and Cultural Contact,\u201d overviewed cultural and commercial connections between the two regions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to Onley, India\u2019s maritime trade with the Gulf dates back to the invention of ships in the third millennium B.C. India influenced Gulf material culture from architecture to clothing, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Until the 1950s, the Gulf saw India\u2019s ports as \u201cmore economically important than any Middle Eastern city,\u201d Onley said. After the oil era, the Gulf\u2019s economy reoriented toward the West and the Arab world, he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cToday, the Indian connection is more apparent than ever because trade with India has returned to its historic levels of intensity,\u201d said Onley.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Gulf also influenced India. Onley said that the Indian subcontinent developed a collective identity through its interaction with the Gulf. But these shared historical ties have been left out of modern national narratives, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n