# Maritime Commerce

## Definition

Trade conducted by sea between ports and coastal regions, as distinct from inland river trade. Smith argues that maritime commerce is the most powerful mechanism for extending markets because it connects distant parts of the world that could never trade overland. The Mediterranean Sea, with its calm waters, numerous islands, and proximate shores, served as the cradle of maritime commerce in the ancient world, enabling the earliest civilisations to trade across vast distances.

## Source Chapter

Book 1, Chapter 3: "That the Division of Labour is Limited by the Extent of the Market"

## Context

Smith transitions from the London-Edinburgh transport comparison to a global historical argument. Maritime commerce explains why coastal nations civilised first, why the Mediterranean basin was the seat of early civilisation, and why interior continental regions like Africa and Tartary remained undeveloped. The absence of "great inlets" in Africa is contrasted with the Baltic, Adriatic, and Mediterranean in Europe.

## Economic Domain

Exchange

## Smith's Original Wording

> "There could be little or no commerce of any kind between the distant parts of the world. What goods could bear the expense of land-carriage between London and Calcutta?"

## Modern Interpretation

Smith's emphasis on maritime trade as the engine of globalisation and development anticipates modern trade theory's focus on shipping costs and port access as determinants of trade volume and economic integration.