Ocean A history of the Atlantic before Columbus

Haywood's Ocean sets itself a daunting task--to convey the history, geology, and legends surrounding the Atlantic and eventual European progress across it. And the hefty work delves in with relish on topics ranging from which early humans ate the first oysters to tales of the souls inhabiting the Fortunate Isles to the west. Several possible reasons are offered for why traversing the open waters of the Atlantic was primarily done by developing European nations, including particularly adverse conditions off the African coastline and the stability of Middle Eastern trade with the much closer Asian countries. The author's academic background in medieval history and early European maritime ventures especially shines in the sections outlining the treks across the North Atlantic by early Scandinavians. A selection of maps illustrates the currents that inhibited travel across the ocean as well as the evolving knowledge of what lay beyond familiar shores. An extensive bibliography closes out the book for anyone interested in pursuing the topic further. Overall, a fascinating dive into a true ocean of history.

Historian Haywood (Northmen) begins this rich account by noting that historians' nearly exclusive focus on post-Columbian Atlantic seafaring has reduced "168,000 years of human history on and around" the Atlantic's shores to "little more than a footnote." Pointing to the unique geography of Europe--with "the longest coastline in relation to its area of any continent" and numerous inland "nursery seas," which served as "ideal environments" for learning shipbuilding and navigation skills--Haywood traces the development of seafaring on the continent, starting around 5500 BCE, when hunter-gatherers were first displaced by farmers whose thirst for territorial expansion pushed them to settle "every significant island in the entire British and Irish archipelago within a few hundred years of their first arrival." After tracking European seafaring through the the Viking era, Haywood then turns to the Atlantic's other coasts, profiling among others the Calusa, a hunter-gatherer empire that "flourished in southern Florida from around 1100 BC" until the 18th century, ruling over the peninsula's many tributaries with a "large fleet of canoes," and the seafarers of West Africa, where a lack of the deep inlets and bays that encouraged costal navigation in other places meant that river transport was the focus, with "canoes of over 20 meters in length" piloting the Niger river delta and venturing into open ocean to fish. Colorfully written with the flair of a seasoned guide, this is an excellent survey of ocean exploration's lesser-known histories. (Jan.)

Oceanic history;Atlantic Ocean;pre-Columbian;Atlantic seas;history;mid-Atlantic ridge;Castilian;Canary Islands;fifteenth century;Spain;colonization;New World;Atlantic history;Christopher Columbus;seafaring;shipbuilding;European history;global exploration;global expansion;Newfoundland;Grand Banks;Sea of Darkness;Sargasso Sea;Vinland;Greenland;Faroes;Cape Verde;technology;developing technology;cultural history;age of European discovery;maritime history;slavery;European imperialism; Excerpted from Ocean: A History of the Atlantic Before Columbus by John Haywood All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.