APWH Units 1 and 2: Empires, Trade, and Cultural Exchange

Song Dynasty

Chinese dynasty (960 - 1279 AD) known for inventions like the magnetic compass, paper money, and gunpowder.

Grand Canal

1,100-mile waterway linking the Yellow and Yangzi Rivers in China.

Champa Rice

Quick-maturing rice allowing two harvests in one season, introduced from India to China.

Tributary System

States sending gifts to China for friendship and trade benefits.

Kowtow

Chinese custom of kneeling and touching the ground in worship or submission.

Scholar Gentry

China's landowning families who were government officials.

Foot Binding

Chinese practice of mutilating women's feet to restrict movement.

Zen Buddhism

Chinese adaptation of this religion, focuses on enlightenment through meditation, criticizes worldly accomplishments.

Filial Piety

Confucian virtue emphasizing respect and support for parents.

Neo-Confucianism

Resurgence of Confucianism with Daoist or Buddhist influences.

Sinification

Spread of Chinese culture.

The House of Wisdom

Intellectual center during the Islamic Golden Age.

Hijab

Head covering worn by Muslim women.

Swahili

Bantu-speaking people of East African coast with Arabic-influenced language.

Battle of Tours

Frankish victory over Ummayad forces in France, seen as a turning point against Islam.

Delhi Sultanate

Muslim kingdom ruling parts of India from the 13th to 16th centuries.

Jizya

Tax paid by non-Muslims in Muslim-ruled territories.

Proselytize

To convert someone to another religion or belief.

Caste System

Rigid social classification system for maintaining order.

Qutub Minar

Towering tower in Delhi symbolizing Muslim dominance.

Bhakti Movement

Hindu devotional movement emphasizing direct union with the divine.

Angkor Wat

Enormous Buddhist temple complex in Cambodia.

Cahokia

Largest urban settlement of the Mississippian culture in the US.

Matrilineal Society

Kinship traced through the female line.

City-State

A city that with its surrounding territory forms an independent state

Tenochtitlan

Aztec capital built on an island in Lake Texcoco.

Great Pyramid

Largest Egyptian pyramid serving as Khufu's tomb.

Chinampas

Artificial islands on freshwater lakes for agriculture.

Theocracy

Government system where priests rule in the name of God.

Pochteca

Traveling merchants in the Aztec Empire often employed as spies.

Mit'a System

Mandatory public service tribute in the Incan government.

Carpa Nan

Inca road system, the most extensive in pre-Columbian South America.

Trans-Saharan Trade

The routes connected West Africa to the Islamic world, particularly the Middle East, and facilitated the exchange of goods, ideas, and technologies between these regions. Played a significant role in the spread of Islam in Africa.

Hausa Kingdoms

Powerful state situated between the Niger River and Lake Chad (modern day northern Nigeria). Took shape as a political and cultural region during the first millennium CE as a result of the westward expansion. By the 14th century, the largest city, Kano, had become the most powerful city-state and was the base for the trans-Saharan trade in salt, cloth, leather, and grain.

Sundiata

Founder of the Mali Empire, controlling gold trade routes.

Indian Ocean Trade

A vast network of maritime trade routes connecting Southeast Asia, India, Arabia, and East Africa from the 3rd century BCE to the 15th century CE

Great Zimbabwe

One of the most powerful east African kingdoms, prospered through agriculture, grazing, trade, and gold; traded with coastal city-states but declined due to overgrazing

Zanj Rebellion

Considered one of the most successful slave revolts in history. Led by Ali ibn Muhammad and 15,000 enslaved people capturing Basra and establishing a splinter government

Griots/Griottes

Professional singers or storytellers transmitting stories, histories, and epics

Indian Ocean Slave Trade

Trade of enslaved people captured in raids primarily south of the Sahara, who were traded as slaves to the Middle East, Indian Ocean islands (including Madagascar), Indian subcontinent, and Java.

Feudalism

System where the king owns all land, granting fiefs to nobles in exchange for loyalty and military service, who in turn grant land to vassals

Fiefs

Land granted by a lord to a vassal in exchange for services and loyalty during medieval times under feudalism

Serfs

Agricultural laborers bound to a piece of land and the lord of that land

Three-field system

Regime of crop rotation where a field is planted with different crops each year and left fallow every third year

Absolutist (government)

The political doctrine and practice of unlimited centralized authority and absolute sovereignty, as vested especially in a monarch or dictator.

Magna Carta

Agreement imposed on King John of England in 1215 by rebellious barons to limit royal power

Great Schism

Event on July 16, 1054, leading to the split between the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox faiths

First Crusade

Military campaign by western European forces to recapture Jerusalem and the Holy Land from Muslim control (1095-1102)

Fourth Crusade

Called by Pope Innocent III (r. 1198-1216 CE) to retake Jerusalem from its current Muslim overlords. However, in a bizarre combination of mess ups, financial constraints, and Venetian trading ambitions, the target, Constantinople, capital of the Byzantine Empire and the greatest Christian city in the world was lost to Muslim forces on 12 April 1204 CE.

Silk Roads

Network of trade routes connecting Asia, Europe, and Africa, known for trade in luxury goods, ideas, cultures, and technologies

Kashgar

A major Chinese hub on the silk roads, an important center for trade and cultural exchange between the east and the west.

Samarkand

One of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Central Asia, (present day Uzbekistan) a significant stop along the Silk Road

Caravanserai

Roadside inns along the Silk Road where travelers could rest and recover

Flying cash

Paper money first used in China in the 9th century AD, initially used by merchants and later by the government for tax payments

Hanseatic League

Commercial and defensive confederation dominating trade in the Baltic Sea region during medieval times

Mongol Empire

Empire founded by Genghis Khan, uniting nomadic tribes of the Asian steppe and dominating Asia from the Black Sea to the Korean peninsula

Temujin

Mongol leader Genghis Khan, established the largest land empire in history through conquests and reforms

Khan

Title given to Mongol leaders, meaning 'supreme ruler'

Khanate

Political entity ruled by a Mongol leader, similar to a king or emperor, governing a specific territory

Pax Mongolica

Period of peace within the Mongolian Empire enabling extensive communication and trade between China and Europe

Karakorum

Capital of the Mongol Empire under Genghis Khan

Golden Horde

Major subdivision of the Mongol Empire ruling over Russia and Eastern Europe for over two centuries

Il-Khanate

Mongol rule over the Middle East after capturing Baghdad, leading to religious tolerance and trade expansions

Yuan Dynasty

Chinese rule by Mongols, led by Kublai Khan

Chagatai Khanate

One of the four Khanates that Central Asian Mongol Empire One of the four principal Khanates that emerged from the vast Mongol Empire following the death of Genghis Khan in 1227. Centered in Central Asia.

White Lotus Society

Banned Buddhist sect in China, a resistance group

Calicut

Port city on the west coast of India that specialized in the spice trade

Spice Islands

Modern day Malaysia and Indonesia, known for its spices like nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, and cardamom

Monsoon Winds

Essential for Indian Ocean trade routes

Lateen Sails

Triangular sails for versatile wind catching

Malacca

Muslim trade city-state invaded by Portuguese. A well-known international trade center in the East

Diaspora

Scattering of people from their homeland

Swahili City-States

Thriving trade cities on East African coast

Zheng He

Chinese admiral, explorer, diplomat, and bureaucrat during the early Ming dynasty (1368-1644). He is often regarded as the greatest admiral in Chinese history.

Sahara Desert

Largest arid climate, Trade grew with the arrival of Muslim merchants and with the rise of the kingdom of Mali.

Oases

Desert areas with underground water sources

Camel Saddles

Innovation that helped camel transportation become more efficient

Trans-Sahara Trade

Network connecting Mediterranean to West Africa

Mali Empire

Wealthy West African empire in 13th-14th centuries, founded by Sundiata Keita, known for its export of gold, salt, and other goods.

Timbuktu

Mali's trade capital, center of Islamic learning

Mansa Musa

Powerful king of Mali, known for wealth and travels, traveled the Trans-Saharan Trade Network on his hajj (pilgrimage) to Mecca in Arabia, exposing Mali's wealth and power to the lands he traveled through.

Songhai Kingdom

Dominant state in western Sahel in 15th-16th century

Cultural Diffusion

Adoption of cultural values by different societies

Black Death

Devastating plague in Europe, originated in Asia

Marco Polo

Venetian explorer who traveled the Silk Road, visited the leader of the Yuan dynasty, Kublai Kahn, and recorded the stories of his travels in II Milione. Employed by Kublai Kahn for 17 years, making many journeys for the Kahn.

Ibn Battuta

Moroccan explorer who traveled extensively in 14th century, expeditions took him further than any other traveler of his time

Margery Kempe

Medieval mystic and author of first English autobiography