Glossary · Term

Triangular trade

Also known as triangular commerce

The triangular trade was the Atlantic commercial system linking Europe, West Africa and the Americas from the sixteenth to the nineteenth centuries. Manufactured goods went from Europe to Africa, enslaved Africans were transported to the Americas, and plantation products such as sugar returned to Europe. Accounts of the Oyo Empire describe Oyo as an indispensable structural node in this commerce through its central role in the Atlantic slave trade.

Triangular trade
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Oyo EmpireImpact

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Cite this entry
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Triangular trade. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/triangular-trade
MLA
“Triangular trade.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/triangular-trade. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Triangular trade.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/triangular-trade.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Triangular trade’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/triangular-trade (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻