China: Dynasties, Innovations, and Culture (Sui, Tang, Song)

Vocabulary flashcards covering key terms, dynasties, innovations, and cultural developments from the notes on Sui, Tang, and Song China.

Sui Dynasty

581–618 CE; reunified China after chaos; built the Grand Canal; tyrannical rule with heavy taxes led to rebellion and assassination in 618 CE.

Grand Canal

Monumental waterway linking the Yellow River and Yangtze River; connected north and south, enabling vast rice shipments and economic integration.

Tang Dynasty

618–907 CE; Golden Age of imperial China; reforms, revival of the civil service exam, expansion, Empress Wu Zhao, and major technological/cultural achievements.

Empress Wu Zhao

625–705 CE; only woman to rule China as emperor; rose from concubine and maintained power for decades, expanding Tang influence.

Civil Service Examination

Confucian-based exams used to recruit officials; promoted meritocracy but favored the educated and wealthy; expanded scholar-official class.

Confucianism

Philosophical system underpinning governance and social order; foundation of the civil service and bureaucratic culture.

Steel Production (Tang innovation)

Advanced steel production by combining cast iron and wrought iron in coal-fired blast furnaces.

Gunpowder

Invention during the Tang era; initially for fireworks and flamethrowers, later transforming warfare with guns and cannons.

Printing

Woodblock printing in the 8th century, followed by movable type; greatly increased access to literature and knowledge.

Paper Money

Emergence in the 700s–800s as a more convenient medium of exchange than copper coins; accompanied early banking.

Magnetic Compass

Crucial maritime navigation tool; enabled expanded sea travel and trade.

Silk Road

Revival and growth of overland trade routes under Tang; connected China to Southwest Asia and South Asia.

Hangzhou

Song capital; major economic and cultural hub; described by Marco Polo as a paradise and one of the wealthiest cities.

Chang’an (Chang’an/Shangdu)

Tang capital; one of the world’s wealthiest and most cosmopolitan cities during the Tang era.

Foot-binding

Controversial practice among upper-class women; symbol of wealth and status; limited female mobility and caused physical harm.

Gentry

Rise of scholar-official families as the new upper class; status rooted in education and government service rather than land.

Neo-Confucianism

Song-era revival blending Confucian ethics with Buddhist/Daoist ideas; emphasized moral cultivation and worldly engagement.

Fast-ripening rice (Dongting/Vietnam rice)

Introduced around 1000 CE; allowed two harvests per year, fueling population growth.

Buddhism in Tang/Song

Introduced from India; gained popularity after the Han; later suppressed by rulers due to wealth of monasteries and foreign origins.

Jin Empire (Jurchen)

Jurchen state in northern China that conquered northern Song and established the Jin Empire; pressed Song from the north.

Song Dynasty

960–1279 CE; founded by Taizu; capital eventually moved south to Hangzhou; faced northern threats but achieved economic and cultural prosperity.

Southern Song

1127–1279 CE; period of economic growth in the south after losing northern China; Hangzhou as the capital and economic engine.