Social studies east Asia vocab

For test

extended family

closely related people of several generations

holistic

concerned with the whole person, animal, or organism as opposed to a specific part or aspect

civil service

the group of people whose job is to carry out the work of the government

loess

a yellow-brown soil

currency

the kind of money used by a group or a nation

pagoda

a temple or sacred building, usually a pyramidlike tower and typically having upward-curving roofs over the individual stories.

warlord

a local leader of an armed group

silk

a valuable cloth originally made only in China from threads spun by caterpillars called silkworms

concubine

a woman who lives with a man but has lower status than his wife or wives

feudalism

a political and economic system in which people were given land and protection by people of higher rank, and worked and fought for them in return

mandate

an official order or commission to do something

ancestors

someone from whom you are descended (but usually more remote than a grandparent)

dynasty

a series of rulers from the same family or ethnic group

Silk Road

an ancient network of trade routes formally established during the Han dynasty of China, which linked the regions of the ancient world in trade between 130 BCE and 1453 CE

Legalism

a philosophy that states humans are inherently bad and must have strict laws to prevent them from committing evil acts; adopted in China during the Qin dynasty by Shi Huangdi

Taoism

a religious philosophy of simple and selfless living, based on the writing of the Chinese philosopher, Lao Tzu