Trade Wind - History

History

The term trade winds originally derives from the early fourteenth century late Middle English word 'trade' meaning "path" or "track." The Portuguese recognized the importance of the trade winds in navigation in the Atlantic ocean as early as the 15th century. The full wind circulation, which included both the trade wind easterlies and higher-latitude Westerlies, was un-known (to Europeans) across the Pacific ocean until Andres de Urdaneta's voyage in 1565.

The captain of a sailing ship seeks a course along which the winds can be expected to blow in the direction of travel. During the Age of Sail the pattern of prevailing winds made various points of the globe easy or difficult to access, and therefore had a direct impact on European empire-building and thus on modern political geography. For example, Manila galleons could not sail into the wind at all.

By the 18th century the importance of the trade winds to England's merchant fleet for crossing the Atlantic Ocean had led both the general public and etymologists to identify the name with a later meaning of 'trade', "(foreign) commerce". Between 1847 and 1849, Matthew Fontaine Maury collected enough information to create wind and current charts for the world's oceans.