ABSTRACT

In Volume 1 of China: The Results of My Travels and the Studies Based Thereon published in 1877, the German geographer von Richthofen defined the “the Silk Road” as the network of trade and communication routes linking China to Central Asia and India on which silks were traded from 114 BC to 127 AD. Von Richthofen’s definition of “the Silk Road” was widespread. On this basis, the connotation of this term was constantly expanding. It is generally used to refer to the network of overland communication routes linking ancient China and West Asia, South Africa, and even Europe through the hinterland of Asia.