Countries

The Silk Roads have existed for thousands of years, passing through many different empires, kingdoms, and societies throughout history. At certain times during their long history, traders could travel freely along these routes, whereas at others, travel was difficult, dangerous, or prohibited.

The Silk Roads enriched the countries it passed through, transporting cultures, religions, languages and of course material goods into societies across Europe, Asia and Africa, and uniting them with a common thread of cultural heritage and pluralistic identities. Today there are over 40 countries along the historic land and maritime Silk Roads, all still bearing witness to the impact of these routes on their culture, traditions and customs.

The Silk Roads online platform sorts this shared heritage according to various themes to be found in each of these countries, which can be explored whether choosing a country's name in the list below here or by clicking on the balloons on the map above.