Port Port A port is a maritime commercial facility which may comprise one or more wharves where ships may dock to load and discharge passengers and cargo. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, some ports, such as Hamburg, Manchester and Duluth, are many miles inland, with access from the sea via river or canal. Today, by far the greatest growth in port development is in Asia, the continent with some of the world's largest and busiest ports, such as Singapore and the Chinese ports of Shanghai and Ningbo-Zhoushan. Whenever ancient civilisations engaged in maritime trade, they tended to
Islam in Europe Islam in Europe Islam is the second-largest (after Christianity) and fastest-growing religion in Europe. Although the majority of Muslim communities in Europe formed recently, there are centuries-old Muslim societies in the Balkans. Islam entered southern Europe through the invading "Moors" of North Africa in the 8th–10th centuries; Muslim political entities existed firmly in what is today Spain, Portugal, South Italy and Malta for several centuries. The Muslim community in these territories was converted or expelled by the end of the 15th century (see "Reconquista"). Islam expanded into the Caucasus through the Muslim conquest of Persia in the 7th century. The