AP World History- Unit 3

Equal field system

Chinese system during the Tang dynasty in which the goal was to ensure an equitable distribution of land

Grand canal

Located in China, it was one of the world's largest waterworks projects before modern times

Neo-Confucianism

Philosophy that attempted to merge certain basic elements of Confucian and Buddhist thought

Porcelain

Lighter, thinner and adaptable ceramic

Song dynasty

Reigned during the late 10th-13th centuries and had a far-reaching impact on Chinese economy, culture, and society. It was marked by an increasingly urbanized and cosmopolitan society

Tang dynasty

An imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui dynasty. Considered to be the Golden Age of China because of its advancements in technology, medicine, and trade. The foundation of their greatness was from the emphasis put into study which led to stronger leadership and ideas.

Abbasid dynasty

Cosmopolitan Arabic dynasty that replaced the Umayyads; founded by Abu al-Abbas and reached its peak under Harun al-Rashid

Allah

God of the monotheistic religion of Islam

Caliph

"Deputy," Islamic leader after the death of Muhammad

dar al-Islam

The "house of Islam", a term for the Islamic world. It refers to lands under the Islamic rule as a whole; it continued to grow during the Abbasid era.

Five Pillars of Islam

The foundations of Islam: 1. Profession of faith 2. prayer 3. fasting during Ramadan 4. almsgiving 5. pilgrimage or hajj

hajj

Pilgrimage to Mecca

Islam

Monotheistic religion announced by the prophet Muhammad; influenced by Judaism and Christianity, Muhammad was considered the final prophet because the earlier religions had not seen the entire picture

jizya

Tax in Islamic empires that was imposed on non-Muslims

Ka'aba

main shrine in Mecca, goal of Muslims embarking on the hajj

Muhammad

Prophet of Islam

Quran

Islamic holy book that is believed to contain the divine revelations of Allah as presented to Muhammad

Sunni

"Traditionalists," the most popular branch of Islam; Sunnis believe in the legitimacy of the early caliphs, compared with the Shiite belief that only a descendant of Ali can lead

umma

Islamic term for the "community of the faithful"

Ummayad dynasty

Arabic dynasty, with its capital at Damascus, that was marked by a tremendous period of expansion to Spain in the west and India in the east

Melaka (Malacca)

Southeast Asian kingdom that was predominantly Islamic

Axum

African kingdom centered in Ethiopia that became an early and lasting center of Coptic Christianity

caste system

class structure that is determined by birth.

Byzantine Empire

Long-lasting empire centered at Constantinople; it grew out of the end of the Roman empire, carried the legacy of Roman greatness, and was the only classical society to survive into the early modern age; it reached its early peak during the reign of Justinian

caesaropapism

Concept relating to the mixing of political and religious authority, as with the Roman emperors, that was central to the church-versus-state controversy in medieval Europe

Vikings

A group that raided the British Isles from their home at Vik in southern Norway

shamans

Religious specialists who possessed supernatural powers and who communicated with the gods and the spirits of nature

Yuan dynasty

Chinese dynasty that was founded by Genghis Khan's grandson

Bantu

Collective name of a large group of sub-Saharan African languages and of the peoples speaking these languages.

Great Zimbabwe

Large sub-Saharan African kingdom in the 15th century

Mali empire

West African kingdom founded in the 13th century by Sundiata; it reached its peak during the reign of Mansa Masu

Sundiata

Founder of the Mali empire, also the inspiration for the Sundiata, an African literary and mythological work

Swahili

East African city-state society that dominated the coast from Mogadishu to Kilwa and was active in trade. Also a Bantu language of East Africa, or a member of a group who speaks this language

Marco Polo

Italian merchant whose account of his travels to China and other lands became legendary

reconquista

Crusade, ending in 1492, to drive the Islamic forces out of Spain

three estates

The three classes of European society, composed of the clergy #1, the aristocrats #2 and the common people #3

Hangzhou

Capital of later Song dynasty; located near East China Sea; permitted overseas trading; population exceeded 1 million

Mecca

Original city of Islam, birthplace of Muhammad, location of the hajj

Mongols

Nomadic horse-people from the eastern steppe of Asia that created the largest empire in the history of the world.

Pax Mongolica (13th-14th centuries)

Mongols guaranteed safe passage for traders, missionaries, and travelers such as Marco Polo, trade flourished, silk, Asian artistic designs moved westward, Mongols gain incredible wealth taxing the trade, peaceful travel across Asia, cultural exchanges, exchange of ideas, medical, mathematics, finance, engineering knowledge flows between China and Middle East, printing, gunpowder transmitted from China to Europe, spread of bubonic plague.

Spice Roads

The trade of spices from Asia and India to Italian and Muslim merchants who would then trade it to Europeans.

Baghdad

Located on the Silk Roads, it was the capital city of the Abbasid Caliphate.

Horse collar

Harnessing method that increased the efficiency of horses by shifting the point of traction from the animal's neck to the shoulders; its adoption favors the spread of horse-drawn plows and vehicles

Mansa Musa

Greatest Mali king; brought Mali to its peak of power and wealth from 1312 the 1337; expanded borders, maintained peace and order, religious freedom and tolerance; hajj to Mecca; built Timbuktu

Timbuktu

Port city of Mali; located just off the flood plain on the great bend in the Niger River; population of 50,000; contained a library and university.

Ibn Battuta

Moroccan Muslim scholar, the most widely traveled individual of his time. He wrote a detailed account of his visits to Islamic lands from China to Spain and the western Sudan

Caravanserai

a roadside inn where travelers (caravaners) could rest and recover from the day's journey; supported the flow of commerce, information and people across the network of trade routes covering Asia, North Africa and Southeast Europe, especially along the Silk Road.

Astrolabe

astronomical tool for solving problems relating to time and the position of the Sun and stars in the sky, in relation to the equator

Hanseatic League

a commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and their market towns in Europe before 1450s

Bananas

Arrived to Africa via Southeast Asia, cultivation increased the supply of food, enriched diets, and allowed the population to expand more rapidly than before.

bubonic plague

pathogen spread via the increased interactions amongst peoples on/around trade routes in Eurasia

Peasant Labor

System in Europe that kept individuals tied to land and land-owning elites

Foot Binding

Practice in Song Dynasty, increased patriarchal attitudes of society