Unit I: The Global Tapestry (c. 1200 to c. 1450) - Developments in East Asia

Vocabulary flashcards covering the economic, political, and social developments in East Asia between 1200 and 1450, with a focus on the Song Dynasty and its influence on Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.

Song Dynasty

A Chinese dynasty ($960$-$1279$) that replaced the Tang and was characterized by great wealth, political stability, and fine artistic and intellectual achievements.

Imperial Bureaucracy

A vast organization of appointed officials who carry out an empire's policies; a feature of Chinese government since the Qin dynasty ($221$ B.C.E.-$207$ B.C.E.).

Meritocracy

A bureaucratic system where officials obtain their positions by demonstrating merit on exams, such as China's civil service exams based on Confucian texts.

Grand Canal

An inexpensive and efficient internal waterway transportation system in China that extended over $30,000$ miles and supported vibrant internal trade.

Champa Rice

A fast-ripening and drought-resistant strain of rice from the Champa Kingdom in present-day Vietnam that greatly expanded agricultural production in China.

Gunpowder

An invention from previous dynasties that Song Dynasty innovators used to create the first guns; it spread from China to Eurasia via the Silk Roads.

Proto-industrialization

A set of economic changes where people in rural areas produced more goods than they could sell, relying on home-based or community-based production with simple equipment.

Artisans

Skilled craftworkers who, in the Song Dynasty, produced steel, porcelain, and silk in widely dispersed smelting facilities or workshops.

Scholar Gentry

A social class in China created by bureaucratic expansion; they were educated in Confucian philosophy and became the most influential class in the empire.

Filial Piety

The Confucian idea of the duty of family members to subordinate their desires to those of the male head of the family and to the ruler.

Tributary System

An arrangement where other states (such as Japan, Korea, and Vietnam) paid money or provided goods to honor the Chinese emperor and cement China's economic and political power.

Kowtow

A ritual in which anyone greeting the Chinese emperor must bow his or her head until it reached the floor to demonstrate respect.

Foot Binding

A practice common among aristocratic families during the Song Dynasty where girls' feet were wrapped tightly to restrict growth, signifying social status but limiting mobility.

Woodblock Printing

A system developed in the $7^{th}$ century that allowed people to make multiple copies of art or written texts without copying them by hand.

Theravada Buddhism

A form of Buddhism focused on personal spiritual growth through silent meditation and self-discipline; it became strongest in Southeast Asia.

Mahayana Buddhism

A form of Buddhism focused on spiritual growth for all beings and on service; it became strongest in China and Korea.

Tibetan Buddhism

A form of Buddhism focused on chanting that became strongest in Tibet.

Chan (Zen) Buddhism

A syncretic faith created by combining Buddhist doctrines with elements of Daoist traditions, emphasizing direct experience and meditation.

Neo-Confucianism

A syncretic system evolved between $770$ and $840$ that combined rational thought with the abstract ideas of Daoism and Buddhism, emphasizing ethics.

Sinification

The assimilation of Chinese traditions and practices by other countries, particularly Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.

Heian Period

A period ($794$-$1185$) in Japanese history during which the country emulated Chinese traditions in politics, art, and literature.

Daimyo

Landowning aristocrats in feudal Japan who battled for control of land and enjoyed more power than the nobility in Europe.

Bushido

The Japanese code of conduct for samurai that stressed frugality, loyalty, the martial arts, and honor unto death.

Shogun

A military ruler in Japan, first installed by the Minamoto clan in $1192$ to reign in place of the emperor.

Nuclear Families

A family structure preferred in Vietnam consisting of just a wife, husband, and their children, rather than the extended families common in China.

Polygyny

The practice of having more than one wife at the same time, which was rejected by Vietnamese women despite Chinese influence.