Silk Roads and Trans-Saharan Trade: Key Concepts and Historical Figures

Caravanserai

Inns along the Silk Roads where merchants traveling in caravans could rest, resupply, and exchange goods and ideas.

Caravan

Groups of merchants (and their camels/horses) traveling together for protection and trade across the Silk Roads or Trans-Saharan routes.

Paper Money

Chinese invention during the Tang/Song dynasties; lightweight currency that replaced heavy coins and made trade easier.

Flying Cash

Early form of credit in Tang China; merchants could deposit money in one city and withdraw it in another.

Silk Roads

Overland trade routes connecting China to Europe; carried luxury goods like silk and spices, along with religions and diseases.

Trans-Saharan Trade Route

Trade network across the Sahara; used camel caravans to move goods like gold, salt, and slaves between West Africa and North Africa.

Interregional Trade

Exchange of goods and cultures between different regions (Silk Roads, Indian Ocean, Trans-Saharan).

Exports

Goods sent out from one region to be traded (e.g., China exported silk and porcelain; Africa exported gold and ivory).

Diasporic Communities

Merchant communities set up away from their homelands (e.g., Muslim merchants in Indian Ocean cities, Swahili Coast towns).

Facilitated

Made trade easier; states, safe routes, and new technologies facilitated exchange.

Astrolabe

Tool from the Islamic world that calculated latitude by the stars; improved Indian Ocean navigation.

Magnetic Compass

Chinese invention (Han, perfected Song); showed direction at sea, boosting maritime trade.

Astrological Charts

Star maps sailors used for navigation; also tied to cultural/religious beliefs.

Cartography

Mapmaking; improved by exchanges during this period, helping long-distance trade expand.

Ibn Battuta

Muslim scholar from Morocco who traveled across Africa, the Middle East, India, and Asia, recording observations of Islamic culture.

Mansa Musa

Ruler of Mali, famous for his wealth and 1324 pilgrimage to Mecca, which showed Mali's power and spread Islam.

Marco Polo

Venetian merchant whose travels to Yuan China under the Mongols introduced Europeans to Asian wealth.

Zheng He

Ming dynasty admiral who led massive treasure ship voyages across the Indian Ocean (1405-1433), showing Chinese power.

Mongol Khanates

The four divisions of the Mongol Empire after Genghis Khan's death: Yuan (China), Ilkhanate (Persia), Golden Horde (Russia), Chagatai (Central Asia).

Mongols

Nomadic pastoralists from Central Asia who created the largest land empire in history, encouraged Silk Road trade, and spread ideas, goods, and disease.

Abbasid Caliphate

Islamic dynasty (750-1258) centered in Baghdad; oversaw a golden age of science, trade, and cultural exchange.

Turkic States

States founded by Turkic peoples (e.g., Seljuks, Ghaznavids, Ottomans), many converted to Islam and expanded into the Middle East and South Asia.

Monotheism

Belief in one God (Islam, Christianity, Judaism).

Polytheism

Belief in many gods (Hinduism, traditional religions).

Ideology

A system of beliefs guiding politics or society.

Doctrine

Official teachings of a religion or political system.

Secular

Concerned with worldly matters, not religious.

Divine

Related to God or the sacred.

Sufis

Muslim mystics who spread Islam through spiritual practice and missionary work, often blending with local traditions.

Shia

Branch of Islam believing leadership should stay in Muhammad's family (through Ali).

Sunni

Branch of Islam believing leadership should go to the most qualified member of the community.

Bureaucracy

System of officials that helped empires manage trade, taxes, and administration.

Feudalism

Political system in medieval Europe and Japan where lords granted land to vassals in return for loyalty and service.

Filial Piety

Confucian idea of respecting and obeying parents and ancestors.

Foot Binding

Chinese practice of binding women's feet; symbol of beauty and status, but limited mobility.

Serf

Peasant tied to land under feudalism, worked for lords in return for protection.

Prestige

Respect or influence gained by rulers or states through wealth, culture, or religion (e.g., Mansa Musa's hajj boosted Mali's prestige).

Bubonic Plague

"Black Death" spread along trade routes in the 14th century; killed millions and reshaped societies.

Epidemic

Widespread outbreak of disease in a region.

Demographics

Population data (size, age, growth, decline, etc.); often shifted due to disease and trade.

Suppress

To put down or control (e.g., rebellions or dissent).

Depict

To represent in art, writing, or description.

Mitigate

To reduce or lessen the severity of something (e.g., governments tried to mitigate effects of plague).

Allude

To indirectly refer to something.

Bias

Unfair preference or prejudice that shapes how events are described (important in evaluating historical sources).