AP World History Unit 1 & 2

Song Dynasty

Golden age of arts and literature, flourishing in culture, economic growth, and technological innovation in China.(960-1279)

Chinese Economic Revolution

Occurred under the Song Dynasty, leading to a population increase and China becoming an economic powerhouse due to improved agricultural production (Champa rice from Vietnam) and better waterways for transport.

Examples of Tech Innovation in Song China

Significant technological advancements such as gunpowder, printing, silk production, and the use of paper money for commerce.

Examination System

A merit

Women's Role in Song China

Women were subordinate in a patriarchal society, with a decreased demand for their handcraft skills due to commercialization.

Foot

binding

Mix of Restrictions on Women

Song China presented a combination of increased rights (property ownership, education) and limiting practices like foot

Tributary System

An economic and diplomatic system used by imperial China to regulate relationships with neighboring states.

How the Tributary System works

Foreign rulers sent delegations to the Chinese emperor, performed rituals such as the kowtow, and presented gifts (tribute) in exchange for recognition, trading rights, and often reciprocal gifts or protection from China. The system reinforced China's central role and maintained soft power.

Korea as a Tributary State

Korea maintained a tributary relationship with China, offering tribute while retaining its political independence.

Korean Culture

Korean society adopted Confucian values from China, which influenced social organization and reduced flexibility for family dynamics.

Filial Piety

A Confucian value emphasizing respect for one’s parents and ancestors, central to Korean and Chinese family structures.

Kowtow

Ritual of special greeting to emperor/ruler in 9 steps, gesture of respect.

Modern Day China Silk Road

Belt Initiative

Trade Based on Ecological Zones

Different regions specialized in producing goods suited to their local environment, creating networks of trade across diverse ecological areas.

Specialization/Monopolies

The practice of focusing production on one particular good or service, with China historically specializing in silk production and maintaining a near monopoly on the global silk trade.

Merchants

Individuals who exchanged goods across regions, often increasing wealth and facilitating cultural, religious, and technological exchanges during trade.

Geographic Proximity Role

Geographic closeness between regions facilitated cultural exchange, allowing for the spread of goods, ideas, technologies, and religions.

What Did Trade Spread?

religious ideas (Buddhism, Islam), technology (gunpowder, paper), and diseases (plague, smallpox), fostering interconnectedness between civilizations.

Caravanserai

Roadside inns along trade routes where travelers could rest and exchange goods and knowledge with locals and other merchants.

Tech Innovation

Innovations like paper money and saddles made travel and trade easier, reducing the need to carry heavy coins and improving the efficiency of long

Luxury Goods

Goods such as silk, spices, gold, and ivory that were highly valuable and primarily traded along the Silk Roads, catering to elite demand.

Mongol Empire (Mongol Peace)

The Mongol Empire's control of vast territories led to increased safety and trade (known as the Pax Mongolica), facilitating cultural and economic exchange across Eurasia.

Indian Ocean Exchange

Trade across the Indian Ocean, aided by technological innovations such as the compass and dhow ships, allowing for easier maritime trade and exchange of goods.

Pax Mongolian Empire

Created vast economic zones, spurring trade, extracting wealth from conquered territories, and facilitating exchange across the empire.

Genghis Khan

Founder of the Mongol Empire, known for his strong military leadership, conquest, and unification of Mongol tribes, creating one of the largest empires in history.

Abbasid Caliphate

Arab dynasty, capital Baghdad, golden age for Islamic culture, arts, and science.

Seljuk Turkic Empire

Turkic dynasty, founded by Turkic pastoralists, embraced Islam, ruled by sultans.

Sultan

Muslim sovereign or ruler, especially in the Seljuk and Ottoman empires.

Political Fragmentation

Decentralized governance, where political power is divided among local rulers or regions.

Ottoman Empire

Long

Islam with India

Small penetration of Indian society, characterized by violent encounters and invasions.

North India

More Muslim communities attracted low

South India

Vijayanagar Empire, peaceful Hindu

Jizya

Tax imposed on non

Islam in Spain

Contributed knowledge to Spain, particularly in math, science, and medicine.

Persecution of Muslims in Spain

Increased after the decline of the Cordoba Muslim regime, as more Christians and Jews gained power.

Christian Reconquest (Reconquista)

Spanish monarchy outlawed Islam, Muslims were banished.

Islamic Cultural Exchange

Secular knowledge of the Islamic world contributed to math, medicine, and language development in Europe.

North Africa

Islam became widespread in this region, forming a key part of Dar al

East Africa

Swahili civilization, involved in Indian Ocean trade, demand for gold, ivory, iron, and urban commercialization, politically independent cities, Bantu-speaking

Swahili

East African culture and language that developed through interactions between Arabs and Bantu

International Trade

The exchange of goods, services, and ideas across regions, often facilitated by routes like the Silk Roads and Indian Ocean trade.

Commercialization

Development of a more trade

West Africa

Engaged in Trans-Saharan trade, rich rulers gained wealth from taxes, slavery, independent city-states, male-dominated monarchies, Ghana and Mali empires.

Timbuktu

Major trade city linking African civilization to the eastern hemisphere, especially involved in gold and salt trade.

Trans-saharan trade

across the Sahara desert, including gold, salt, and slaves, crucial for West African economies. Trade

Rich Rulers

West African kings, such as those in Mali and Ghana, who became wealthy through taxing trade routes and controlling gold production.

Slavery

A widespread practice in many societies, including in West Africa, where slaves were traded across the Trans

West African Traded What Things

Gold, iron, ivory, slaves, and other luxury goods across Trans-Saharan trade routes

Tribute in West Africa (Forced)

Some West African states demanded tribute from smaller kingdoms in the form of goods, services, or slaves.

Ghana and Mali

Two powerful West African empires that controlled important trade routes and gained wealth through the trade of gold and salt.

Tribal Society

Societies organized into tribes or clans, often without formal bureaucracies, as seen around Muhammad's time.

Caliphate

Successor to Muhammad in Islamic governance, responsible for both religious and political leadership in Muslim society.

Silk Roads

Networks of trade connecting East Asia with the Mediterranean, facilitating the exchange of luxury goods

Trans

Saharan Trade Network

Mediterranean Trade

Trade across the Mediterranean Sea that linked regions like Africa and Europe, trading goods such as salt, horses, and luxury items.

Song State Building

The Song dynasty in China developed a centralized bureaucracy, expanded its economy, and promoted Confucianism.

West Africa State Building

West African empires like Mali and Ghana built centralized states with strong control over trade routes and taxation.

Dar al

Islam State Building

Byzantine Empire

Powerful empire, center of Orthodox Christianity, emerged after the fall of the Western Roman Empire, with its capital in Constantinople.

Kievan Rus

A federation of Slavic tribes that adopted Eastern Orthodox Christianity, preserving Greco

Roman Catholic World

The Western branch of Christianity, centered around the Pope and the church in Rome, created political unity across Europe.

Feudalism

A decentralized political system where lords granted land to vassals in exchange for loyalty and military service.

Serfdom

A form of labor where peasants were bound to the land and required to provide labor or produce to their lord in exchange for protection.

Manorialism

The economic system of medieval Europe, where lords managed large estates, and peasants worked the land in return for protection, creating self

Political Fragmentation/Decentralization

A state of governance in which political power is dispersed across various local rulers rather than centralized.

3 Field System

An agricultural system where farmland was divided into three parts: two used for crops and one left fallow to maintain soil fertility and increase productivity.

Independent Cities

Cities that operated autonomously, often with their own government and economy, like Venice and Florence during the Renaissance.

Differences from China

Unlike Europe, China was often politically unified under dynasties, with a centralized bureaucracy, while Europe experienced more political fragmentation.

Black Death/Plague

A devastating epidemic that wiped out a large portion of Europe's population, leading to significant social and economic changes.

Tech Innovation

Europeans adopted and innovated technologies like gunpowder, cannons, and shipbuilding, improving military and economic power.

Role of Women in Europe

Women were largely subordinate to men and confined to domestic roles, though they had more influence in religious institutions and certain economic activities.

Neo Confucianism

Revival of Confucian teachings during the Song Dynasty, blending Confucian, Daoist, and Buddhist ideas, emphasizing filial piety, maintenance of proper roles, and loyalty to superiors.