Medieval Lives 6: Wuhsha the Broker

Medieval Lives 6: Wuhsha the Broker

Author: D Field April 26, 2023 Duration: 40:31
Today's episode takes us to medieval Egypt, to old Cairo in the 11th and 12th century, to Fustat, to the Fatimid Caliphate during the period of the First Crusade, and to the life of a medieval woman named Wuhsha al-dallala who stands out in her time for strength, independence, and wild financial success (through lending and investment in trading ventures, including one to Gujarat, India). Her history comes to us through the fragments of the Cairo Geniza, in legal documents, and in a will. If you like what you hear and want to chip in to support the podcast, my Patreon is here. I'm on Twitter @circus_human, Instagram @humancircuspod, and I have some things on Redbubble. Sources: Abramson, Henry. "Wuhsha the Broker Jewish Women in the Medieval Economy." December 6th, 2012, lecture. Frenkel, Miriam. "Charity in Jewish Society of the Medieval Mediterranean World." In Charity and Giving in Monotheistic Religions, edited by Miriam Frenkel & Yaacov Lev. Walter de Gruyter, 2009. Goitein, S. D. A Mediterranean Society, Volume III: The Family. University of California Press, 1978.  Goitein, S. D. “A Jewish Business Woman of the Eleventh Century.” The Jewish Quarterly Review 57 (1967): 225–42. Goitein, S. D. & Friedman, Mordechai Akiva. India Traders of the Middle Ages: Documents from the Cairo Geniza. Brill, 2008. Hoffman, Adina & Cole, Peter. Sacred Trash: The Lost and Found World of the Cairo Geniza. Knopf, 2011. Zinger, Oded. Women, gender and law: Marital disputes according to documents of the Cairo Geniza. Princeton University, 2014. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Step away from the dry textbook version of the Middle Ages and into the footsteps of those who actually walked it. Human Circus: Journeys in the Medieval World, hosted by D Field, is a narrative history series built around the voyages of real people. Each episode follows a specific traveler-whether a merchant on the Silk Road, a Franciscan friar venturing to the Mongol court, or an ambassador navigating Ottoman politics-placing their personal experiences within the sweep of larger events. You’ll hear how these individual journeys, driven by faith, trade, diplomacy, or sheer adventure, wove together a surprisingly interconnected world long before modern globalization. The podcast digs into the cultural exchanges and dramatic encounters that defined an era, all through the lens of movement and human connection. It’s about listening to history unfold as a story, where the vast and often abstract medieval world becomes immediate and personal through the voices of those who traversed it. Tune in for a deeply researched yet vividly told exploration of places, societies, and the figures who moved between them, reminding us that the past was never static.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 50

Human Circus: Journeys in the Medieval World
Podcast Episodes
A 12th-Century Pilgrim's Guide 2: The Camino de Santiago [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 41:53
A medieval guide to the still-popular pilgrimage, our source covers the dangerous waters and malicious boatmen, the notable saints and sites along the way, and the writer's very open dislike of virtually everyone they wo…
A 12th-Century Pilgrim's Guide 1: The Source and the Way [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 35:11
The 12th-century text The Pilgrim's Guide to Compostela provided advice for travellers from France on the Camino de Santiago, the pilgrimage route which is still/again very popular today. If you like what you hear and wa…
Medieval Lives 13: A Christmas Coronation [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 25:14
It's Christmas Day in 1066, and a new king is to be crowned. There will be all sorts of festive events: arrows in the eye, fires outside the church, and just a little holiday looting too. If you like what you hear and wa…
Medieval Lives 12: Two Saints and a Sinner [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 43:22
Marcellinus and Peter died in the early 4th century, but the saints would still be active and on the move in the 9th. This is about their journey. It is also about Charlemagne's biographer, Einhard, the man who wrote abo…
Afanasy Nikitin 2: Return from India [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 39:48
The 15th-century Russian merchant and traveller journeys back from India. If you like what you hear and want to chip in to support the podcast, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠my Patreon is here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. I'm on BlueSky ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@a-devon.bsky.social⁠⁠⁠…
Afanasy Nikitin 1: Journey Beyond the Three Seas [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 32:31
Afanasy Nikitin, a 15th-century Russian merchant, sets out from Tver and immediately runs into trouble before travelling to India. If you like what you hear and want to chip in to support the podcast, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠my Patreon is…
Osman of Timisoara 5: Osman's Great Escape [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 45:51
Osman flees Vienna and reaches freedom, with success and suffering on the other side. If you like what you hear and want to chip in to support the podcast, ⁠⁠⁠⁠my Patreon is here⁠⁠⁠⁠. I'm on BlueSky ⁠⁠⁠⁠@a-devon.bsky.soc…
Osman of Timisoara 4: Imperial Pastry Prep and Tavern Brawls [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 40:52
Osman's time in the city of Vienna is punctuated by violent misadventure, an unlikely career in sweets, and an ethical failing. If you like what you hear and want to chip in to support the podcast, ⁠⁠⁠my Patreon is here⁠…
Osman of Timisoara 3: Hunger, Illness, and Intimacy [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 40:20
The story of Osman of Timisoara continues, and on this episode we follow him out of his initial adventures in captivity and into the years that came after, years of "toil and misery," he would say, along with hunger and…
Osman of Timisoara 2: Ransom, Boats, and Bandits [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 36:26
In a fit of extreme absentmindedness, I forgot to upload this episode after recording it and then did the same thing for part 3 in the series! Osman of Timisoara 3 and 4 will follow this over the next few days. Within th…