Long before Reef and Lattafa bottles reached UK shelves, Arabian perfume ingredients were already travelling one of the world’s oldest trade networks. The route from southern Arabia to Europe, and the parallel Silk Road connecting Arabia to South and East Asia, carried oud, musk, frankincense and spices centuries before “Arabic perfume” was a UK retail category.
The Incense Route: Arabia’s Original Export
Southern Arabian kingdoms built real wealth on the overland incense trade, moving frankincense, myrrh and other aromatics north toward the Mediterranean and Roman markets, where demand for perfumed oils and incense was substantial.
Oud’s Journey from Southeast Asia
Oud itself did not originate in Arabia at all — agarwood comes from Aquilaria trees native to Southeast and South Asia. It reached the Arabian peninsula via maritime and overland trade, was adopted into Arabian perfumery, and became so closely associated with the region that many UK shoppers assume it is a Middle Eastern native ingredient.
Musk’s Parallel Route
Historical musk followed a similar pattern, sourced from Central and East Asia and traded westward — modern perfumery has moved almost entirely to synthetic musk, but the trade-route history explains why musk sits so centrally in Arabian perfume tradition despite not being a regional raw material.
From Trade Route to UK High Street
The modern version of that same journey is a container of Reef or Lattafa bottles shipped from the Gulf to a UK warehouse — the ingredients and the trading instinct are centuries old, even if the logistics have changed completely. See our sourcing and sustainability guide for how that supply chain looks today.
FAQ
Did oud originally come from Arabia?
No, agarwood comes from Aquilaria trees native to Southeast and South Asia; it reached Arabia through historical trade and was adopted into the region’s perfumery tradition.
What was the incense trade route?
An ancient overland trading network moving frankincense, myrrh and other aromatics from southern Arabia north toward Mediterranean markets.
Is musk still sourced from animals?
Modern commercial perfumery, including Arabian perfumery, has moved almost entirely to synthetic musk rather than animal-derived musk.
Read more about where oud actually comes from.