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This chapter presents theoretical insights that can be gained from other fields and disciplines that can be useful for the study of the migration of institutions and particularly trade organizations. It analyzes more complex, and somewhat more socially and culturally embedded, organizational forms, such as the sea loan, the funduq and caravanserai, and the commenda. The chapter also describes three key organizational forms rather than offering a comprehensive survey of all migratory organizational forms. Some organizational forms, such as the general partnership or the joint ownership of ships, are more complex than typical endogenous institutions and are likely to be migratory. It explains how an objection to an institution could lead to mutations and efforts to hide the foreign or objectionable origins, as well as to fit the institution into pre-existing institutional configurations.

This chapter explores the role of regional commerce in the formation of markets that are rarely studied in contemporary literature. The old markets of Nablus were prosperous in foreign trade because of the location of the city, which was on the crossroads of the commercial roads traversed by trade caravans. In the 18th and 19th centuries, trade in Nablus was described as reaching far-flung places, such as Egypt, Syria, Arabia, and Mount Lebanon. In addition to the strength of industrial activity and agricultural surplus, soap manufacture in Nablus greatly contributed to the development of local commercial activity and trade among Middle Eastern cities. The export of soap was in turn complemented by the import of supplies and goods from the regions to which that export was directed. The author examines the organization of semi-specialized markets of Nablus in their historical context and explains how the strict organizational scheme adopted in the markets provided the basic needs of each industry.

This chapter shows how in early antiquity the universal appeal of silk spread across Eurasia through a trade network known as the Silk Roads. Silk inspired the economic exchange of trading goods, which produced a network of trade centers and cities. The value of silk was so great that traders endured harsh conditions as they passed through the great mountain ranges of the Tien Shan, Karakorams, and Hindu Kush and skirted inhospitable deserts, such as the Taklamakan and Gobi. Caravanserais, rest stops along the Silk Roads, allowed travelers to exchange ideas and innovations and created awareness of different cultures and religions. The product of the domestic silkworm figured prominently in the development of dominant Central and Western Asian empires and Chinese dynasties and produced significant historical figures, such as Timur and Mongol leader, Genghis Khan. As this chapter shows, that rich, arcane history developed because of the domestic silkworm.