WHAP GEO1

1. Eurasian Landmass

Continent spanning Europe and Asia; home to most humankind and major civilizations; setting for the trade networks.

2. Inner Eurasia

Central Asia, Eastern Russia; home to pastoral peoples who facilitated the relay trade on the Silk Roads.

3. Outer Eurasia

China, India, Middle East, Mediterranean; provided agricultural and manufactured goods.

4. Himalayas

South-Central Asia; Major geographic barrier that defined routes and limited interaction.

5. Gobi Desert

China/Mongolia; Major geographic barrier in Central Asia.

6. Taklamakan Desert

Western China; desert region where vital oasis cities and Buddhist monasteries were established.

7. Chang'an (Xi'an)

Eastern China (Capital); traditional eastern terminus of the Silk Roads; capital of the Tang Dynasty.

8. Luoyang

Eastern China; major commercial and administrative center in the Silk Road network.

9. Dunhuang

Western China (Oasis City); critical junction of routes; major center of Buddhist learning and art (cave temples).

10. Samarkand

Central Asia (Sogdiana); prosperous oasis city where Buddhism and local traditions interacted.

11. Merv

Central Asia (Oasis City); important commercial hub; key stop for merchants traveling to the West.

12. Khotan

Central Asia (Oasis City); major center for silk production outside of China and a Buddhist stronghold.

13. Kushan Empire

Central Asia, Pakistan, Northern India; empire located at the crossroads of the Silk Roads.

14. Persian Gulf

Middle East; key waterway linking the western Silk Roads to the Sea Roads via ports like Siraf.

15. Antioch

Eastern Mediterranean Coast; port city connecting Eurasian land routes to the Mediterranean Sea trade.

16. Tyre

Eastern Mediterranean Coast; port city connecting Eurasian land routes to the Mediterranean Sea trade.

17. Karakorum

Mongolia; capital city of the unified Mongol Empire under Genghis Khan's successors (1235-1260).

18. Beijing (Dadu/Khanbaliq)

Northern China; new capital established by Kublai Khan for the Yuan Dynasty.

19. Kyiv (Kiev)

Eastern Europe (Rus'); sacked by the Mongols (Golden Horde) in 1240, marking the decline of Kievan Rus'.

20. Moscow

Eastern Europe (Rus'); principality that eventually rose to challenge and overthrow the Golden Horde's rule.

21. Venice

Northern Italy; major maritime republic; western nexus of the Silk Road and Sea Road trade; key to the Crusades.

22. Genoa

Northern Italy; major maritime rival of Venice; controlled key trade routes in the Western Mediterranean and Black Sea.

23. Indian Ocean

Ocean basin (China to East Africa); the world's largest sea-based trade system, reliant on monsoon winds.

24. Arabian Sea

Northwest Indian Ocean; major segment of the Sea Roads; connected India to the Middle East and East Africa.

25. Bay of Bengal

Northeast Indian Ocean; major segment of the Sea Roads; connected India to Southeast Asia and China.

26. Red Sea

Between Africa and Arabian Peninsula; linked the Indian Ocean trade to the Mediterranean via overland routes.

27. India Subcontinent

South Asia; fulcrum of Indian Ocean commerce; source of cotton textiles, spices, and a system of numerals.

28. Calicut

Southwestern India Coast; major port city and trading hub on the Malabar Coast.

29. Straits of Malacca

Between Malay Peninsula and Sumatra; critical "choke point" of trade; controlled by the Srivijaya Kingdom.

30. Srivijaya (Palembang)

Island of Sumatra; powerful Malay kingdom built on taxing trade at the Straits of Malacca (670-1025).

31. Sailendra Kingdom (Java)

Central Java (Indonesia); built the enormous Borobudur Buddhist monument.

32. Khmer Kingdom of Angkor

Mainland Southeast Asia (Cambodia); known for the Hindu temple complex Angkor Wat.

33. Angkor Wat

Modern Cambodia; massive temple complex expressing a Hindu understanding of the cosmos.

34. Swahili Civilization

East African Coast (e.g., Kilwa, Mombasa); set of independent commercial city-states that rapidly became Islamic.

35. Kilwa

Swahili Coast (City-State); prominent Swahili city-state that flourished due to the gold trade from the interior.

36. Mombasa

Swahili Coast (City-State); major Swahili port and commercial center.

37. Sofala

Swahili Coast (City-State); southernmost Swahili port, key for accessing Great Zimbabwe's gold.

38. Great Zimbabwe

Interior Southeastern Africa; powerful state connected to the gold trade; known for large stone enclosures.

39. Axum

Horn of Africa (Ethiopia/Eritrea); major trading center on the Red Sea that later adopted Christianity.

40. Guangzhou (Canton)

Southern China Coast; major Chinese maritime trade port on the Sea Roads.

41. Quanzhou

Southern China Coast; one of the world's largest ports during the Song and Yuan Dynasties.

42. Maluku Islands

Southeast Asia (Indonesia); the "Spice Islands"; original source of fine spices (cloves, nutmeg, mace).

43. Sahara Desert

Vast arid region of North Africa; became a major international trade route via the Arabian camel.

44. West Africa (Sudan)

Region south of the Sahara; home to powerful states that grew wealthy by taxing trans-Saharan trade (gold, salt).

45. Ghana Kingdom

West Africa; early powerful monarchy that monopolized the gold trade.

46. Mali Empire

West Africa; successor to Ghana; known for its wealth and the pilgrimage of Mansa Musa.

47. Songhay Empire

West Africa; successor to Mali; largest of the West African empires.

48. Timbuktu

West Africa (Mali); major commercial and intellectual center of Islamic learning.

49. Gao

West Africa (Songhay); prosperous commercial center along the Niger River.

50. Koumbi-Saleh

West Africa (Ghana); capital of the Ghana Empire and a key commercial center.

51. Sijilmasa

Southern Morocco; major northern terminus of the Sand Roads; crucial for gold and salt trade.

52. Taghaza

Western Sahara Desert; remote salt-mining center crucial to the West African trade.

53. Kanem-Bornu

Region around Lake Chad; powerful West African kingdom east of Mali/Songhay.

54. Fez

North Africa (Morocco); urban center of learning and trade in the Islamic Al-Andalus/North African sphere.

55. Arabian Peninsula

Middle East; birthplace of Islam in the 7th century C.E.

56. Mecca

Arabian Peninsula (Saudi Arabia); birthplace of Muhammad and the most sacred site in Islam; destination of the Hajj.

57. Medina

Arabian Peninsula (Saudi Arabia); site of the Hijra (622 C.E.); first Islamic state capital.

58. Damascus

Syria; capital of the Umayyad Caliphate (661-750 C.E.).

59. Baghdad

Mesopotamia (Iraq); capital of the Abbasid Caliphate; center of the Islamic Golden Age and the House of Wisdom.

60. Cairo

Egypt; center of power under the Fatimid and Mamluk Sultanates; succeeded Baghdad as the Islamic world's political/cultural center after 1258.

61. Córdoba

Iberian Peninsula (Spain); capital of the Umayyad Caliphate in Al-Andalus; one of the largest and most advanced cities in Europe.

62. Jerusalem

Holy Land; sacred city for Islam, Christianity, and Judaism; a focal point of the Crusades.

63. Aleppo

Syria; major commercial and strategic city; fell to the Mongols in 1260.

64. Granada

Southern Spain; last Muslim-held territory in the Iberian Peninsula, falling in 1492.

65. Byzantine Empire

Eastern half of the old Roman Empire; western terminus of the Silk Roads.

66. Constantinople

Capital of the Byzantine Empire; major political and commercial hub; fell to the Ottoman Turks in 1453.

67. Western Europe

Region West of the Byzantine Empire; developed a decentralized feudal political system and manorial economy.

68. Paris

France (Frankish Kingdom); major urban center and site of the University of Paris, a key center of scholastic learning.

69. Rome

Italy; spiritual center of the Catholic Church; site of the Papacy.

70. Holy Roman Empire

Central Europe (Germany/Italy); complex political entity centered in Central Europe.

71. Novgorod

Northern Rus'; major trading city (furs/wax) and member of the Hanseatic League; avoided direct Mongol sack.

72. Maghreb

North Africa (West of Egypt); region that participated in the Sand Roads and was key to Islamic expansion into Spain.

73. Tang Dynasty China

East Asia (618-907 C.E.); restored imperial unity; a "golden age" and economic powerhouse.

74. Song Dynasty China

East Asia (960-1279 C.E.); restored imperial unity; a "golden age" and economic powerhouse.

75. Grand Canal

Eastern China; major state-sponsored infrastructure linking north and south China for internal trade.

76. Hangzhou (Lin'an)

Southern China Coast; capital of the Southern Song Dynasty; one of the largest and wealthiest cities in the world.

77. Japan

East Asian Archipelago; heavily influenced by Chinese culture (Buddhism, Confucianism); developed a unique feudal system.

78. Kyoto

Japan; traditional imperial capital and cultural center during the Heian Period.

79. Korea

Korean Peninsula; main conduit for Chinese cultural influence to Japan; experienced its own dynastic cycle.

80. Vietnam

Southeast Asia; heavily influenced by China but retained a distinct cultural identity; engaged in trade.

81. Mesoamerica

Modern Mexico and Guatemala; center of Maya and Aztec civilizations; engaged in active local/regional trade.

82. Tenochtitlán

Central Mexico (Lake Texcoco); capital of the Aztec Empire; major urban and trading center.

83. Teotihuacán

Central Mexico; major classical city whose influence persisted through the Post-Classical era.

84. Chichen Itza

Yucatán Peninsula (Maya); major political and economic center of the late classic and post-classic Maya civilization.

85. Cahokia

Near present-day St. Louis, North America; a major North American chiefdom (900-1250); center of a widespread regional trade network.

86. Mississippi River

North America; major waterway that served as a key route for the Cahokia trade network.

87. Andes Mountains

Western rim of South America; location of the Inca Empire; trade was a state-run operation facilitated by roads.

88. Cuzco

Andes Mountains (Peru); capital and heart of the vast Inca Empire.

89. Chaco Canyon

Modern New Mexico, United States; part of a commercial network that received items from Mesoamerica.

90. Wari Empire

South America (Peru); precursor state in the Andes whose influence laid the foundation for the later Inca empire.

91. Nubian Kingdoms

Nile River Valley (South of Egypt); maintained Christianity until the arrival of Islam.

92. Horn of Africa

East African Coast/Interior; region containing Axum and later Abyssinia (Ethiopia); a center of Christian and Islamic interaction.

93. Transoxiana (Central Asia)

Region between the Amu Darya and Syr Darya Rivers; highly prized by empires; major junction of the Silk Roads.

94. Kievan Rus'

Eastern Europe; early Slavic state that adopted Orthodox Christianity from Byzantium.

95. Tuʻi Tonga Empire

Oceania (Polynesia); complex political entity in the Pacific that collected tribute from many island chains.

96. Pacific Ocean

Largest ocean basin; the setting for the gradual spread of Polynesian peoples and their local trade networks.

97. Bengal

Ganges River Delta (India); region known for the opening of its delta to rice cultivation, allowing large population growth.

98. Siberia

North Asia; source of furs (sable, ermine) traded along the northern extent of the Silk Roads.

99. Straits of Gibraltar

Between Iberian Peninsula and North Africa; strategic choke point connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Atlantic Ocean.

100. Anatolia

Modern Turkey; core territory of the Byzantine Empire and later the center of the rise of the Ottoman Turks.