AP World History - Unit 2: Networks of Exchange

Silk Roads

A network of trade routes connecting East Asia, Central Asia, and the Mediterranean, facilitating the exchange of goods, culture, and ideas from around 200 BCE to the 15th century CE.

Sea Roads

Maritime trade routes, especially across the Indian Ocean, linking East Africa, the Middle East, South Asia, and Southeast Asia, active from ancient times through the medieval period.

Srivijaya

A powerful maritime kingdom (7th-13th century) based on the island of Sumatra, Indonesia, that controlled key trade routes in Southeast Asia.

Angkor Wat

A large Hindu temple complex in Cambodia, originally built in the 12th century as a state temple for the Khmer Empire, later transformed into a Buddhist site.

Swahili Civilization

A coastal East African civilization, flourishing between the 10th and 15th centuries, that developed through trade and cultural exchange with Arabs, Persians, and Indians.

Great Zimbabwe

A medieval city in Southern Africa (11th-15th centuries) known for its large stone ruins, which were part of a thriving kingdom based on trade, particularly in gold.

Zheng He

A Chinese admiral and diplomat during the Ming Dynasty (early 15th century), known for leading seven major naval expeditions to Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Arabian Peninsula, and East Africa.

Sand Roads

Trade routes across the Sahara Desert connecting West Africa with the Mediterranean and the Middle East, primarily involving the exchange of gold, salt, and slaves.

Arabian Camel

A domesticated camel species, well-adapted for desert travel, that became essential for trade and transportation across the Arabian Peninsula and North Africa.

West African Civilization

Refers to the diverse societies and kingdoms of West Africa, such as Ghana, Mali, and Songhai, known for their wealth, trade networks, and cultural achievements from the medieval period onward.

Ghana

An ancient West African kingdom (circa 6th-13th centuries), famous for its wealth from gold and its strategic role in trans-Saharan trade.

Mali

A West African empire (circa 13th-16th centuries), known for its wealth, particularly from gold, and its centers of learning like Timbuktu.

Trans-Saharan Slave Trade

The trade of enslaved people across the Sahara Desert, primarily to North Africa and the Middle East, from the medieval period to the early modern era.

Timbuktu

A major city and center of learning and culture in Mali, famous for its libraries and universities during the medieval period.

House of Wisdom

A major intellectual center in Baghdad during the Islamic Golden Age (8th-13th centuries), where scholars translated and advanced knowledge in science, mathematics, medicine, and philosophy.

American Web

The network of trade routes connecting various pre-Columbian societies across the Americas, especially in Mesoamerica and the Andes, facilitating cultural and material exchanges.

Chaco Phenomenon

A cultural and architectural development in the American Southwest (circa 9th-12th centuries), characterized by the construction of large, planned cities and complex systems of trade and communication.

Pochteca

Professional traders in the Aztec Empire, who traveled long distances to acquire luxury goods for the elite, and were also key in spreading information and culture.

Temujin (Chinggis Khan)

The birth name of Genghis Khan, the founder of the Mongol Empire in the 13th century, who united the Mongol tribes and led them to conquer vast territories.

Mongol World War

Refers to the series of Mongol conquests during the 13th century, which expanded the Mongol Empire across much of Asia, Europe, and the Middle East.

Khubilai Khan

The grandson of Genghis Khan, who founded the Yuan Dynasty in China and expanded Mongol rule to include China, as well as parts of Southeast Asia.

Yuan Dynasty (China)

The Mongol-ruled dynasty in China (1271-1368), established by Kublai Khan, known for its efforts to integrate Chinese and Mongol cultures.

Ming Dynasty

A Chinese dynasty (1368-1644) known for its strong central government, cultural achievements, and maritime explorations, including those led by Admiral Zheng He.

Hulegu

A Mongol leader and grandson of Genghis Khan, who led the conquest of the Middle East, including the destruction of the Abbasid Caliphate in Baghdad in 1258.

Safavid Empire

A Shiite Muslim empire in Persia (1501-1736), known for establishing Shiite Islam as the state religion and creating a powerful and culturally rich state.

Khanate of the Golden Horde

A Mongol state that controlled much of Russia, Eastern Europe, and parts of Central Asia from the 13th to the 15th centuries.

Black Death (Plague)

A deadly pandemic of bubonic plague that swept through Europe, Asia, and North Africa between 1347 and 1351, killing millions and causing major social and economic upheaval.

Hanseatic League (1358)

A trade alliance through northern Europe aimed at driving toward nationhood and increasing social mobility and flexibility.

Heresies

Religious practices/beliefs not conforming to traditional church doctrine.

Crusades (11-14th century)

Military campaigns by European Christians to convert Muslims and non-Christians, combat religious questioning.

Pope Innocent III

Issued strict decrees on church doctrine, frequently persecuted heretics and Jews, and was unsuccessful in the 4th Crusade.

Pope Gregory IX

Initiated the Inquisition, a formal interrogation and prosecution of perceived heretics, with punishments like excommunication, torture, and execution.

Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)

Christian theologian who made advancements in Christian thought, arguing that faith and reason are not in conflict.

Mansa Musa

Malian ruler who built the capital of Timbuktu and expanded the kingdom beyond Ghana.

Sonni Ali

Songhai ruler who conquered the region of West Africa in the 15th century, transforming it into a major cultural center until 1600.

Urbanization

The growth of urban culture driven by trade, often centered around trade routes.

Mongol Empire

An empire that spanned from the Pacific Ocean to Eastern Europe, known for its military conquests and cultural diffusion.

Cultural diffusion

The spread of religions, languages, literature, art, ideas, and diseases facilitated by trade and interactions among different cultures.

Xuanzang

A Chinese Buddhist monk who traveled through the T’ang Dynasty to India to explore Buddhism.

Marco Polo

A merchant from Venice who traveled to China and Europe, known for his detailed accounts of his travels.

Ibn Battuta

An Islamic traveler known for his extensive journeys through the Islamic world, including India and China.

Margery Kempe

An English Christian who traveled throughout Europe and the Holy Land.

Islamic Golden Age

A period of cultural, economic, and scientific flourishing in the history of Islam, marked by advancements in numerous fields.

Chinese Song Dynasty

Known for advancements in technology, culture, and governance, including a bureaucratic system based on merit.