Phoenicians established trade with Kerala during this period.[45] Arabs and Phoenicians were the first to enter Malabar Coast to trade Spices.[45] The Arabs on the coasts of Yemen, Oman, and the Persian Gulf, must have made the first long voyage to Kerala and other eastern countries.[45] They must have brought the Cinnamon of Kerala to the Middle East.[45] The Greek historian Herodotus (5th century BCE) records that in his time the cinnamon spice industry was monopolized by the Egyptians and the Phoenicians.[45]