Heimler APWH Unit 1

Neo-Confucianism

The revival of Buddhism that began during the Tang Dynasty and was continued throughout the Song Dynasty. The main change Confucianism faced was the ridding of the Buddhist influence it experienced in previous centuries.

Imperial Bureaucracy

A governmental entity, arranged in a hierarchical fashion, that carries out the will on the emperor. It grew in scope under the Song, helping them to maintain rule.

Meritocracy

Bureaucratic jobs were earned on the basis of merit, as eligible men had to pass a civil service examination based on Confucian classics. Theoretically, this made the exam open to all, but to study for it required a man to be rich enough to not work and devote himself to study.

Filial Piety

A main idea of Confucianism that stated the necessity or virtue of children obeying and honoring their parents, grandparents and deceased ancestors. By emphasizing Confucianism’s hierarchical nature, especially citizen to state, this idea helped Song rulers legitimize its power.

Foot Binding

A sign of beauty and status in Song China, usually for the prospect of marriage. Due to the revival of Confucianism, women were delegated to the subordinate position, with this practice helping to hinder their ability to participate in the public sphere.

Four Noble Truths

The center of Buddhist teachings, stating that life is suffering, we suffer because we crave, we cease suffering when we cease craving, and the Eightfold Path leads to the cessation of suffering and craving.

Theravada Buddhism

Began in Sri Lanka and is the more exclusive form of Buddhism. It confined the religion to monks in monasteries, stating that those outside of monasteries were too occupied with the outside world to reach Nirvana. New forms of Buddhism emerged as this belief system interacted with various Asian states.

Mahayana Buddhism

Began in East Asia and the less exclusive form of Buddhism. It encouraged broader participation in Buddhist practices and bodhisattvas helped others along the path to Enlightenment. New forms of Buddhism emerged as this belief system interacted with various Asian states.

Proto-Industrialization

When manufactures and artisans began to produce more goods than they consumed. They sold excess goods in markets in China and across Eurasia, commercializing the Chinese economy. The most important of these goods were porcelain and silk.

Champa Rice

Along with other innovations in agriculture, this crop paved the way for a population explosion in China. It was fast-ripening, drought-resistant, and could be harvested multiple times per year.

Grand Canal

A transportation innovation that began to be built during the Sui Dynasty, but was expanded under the Song. It facilitated trade and communications across China’s various regions.

Sharia Law

A legal code based on the Koran that the Turkic Islamic empires borrowed from their Arab predecessors as the organizing principle of their legal system. In addition, the military administered both of their states.

House of Wisdom

A library in Baghdad that was established under the Abbasid Empire during the Golden Age of Islam and held a vast number of scholarly works. Muslim scholars preserved the great works of Greek moral and natural philosophy by translating them into Arabic. Without these translation, the Renaissance could have never began when these ancient Greek and Roman manuscripts were rediscovered in the 15th century.

Islam

Based on Muhammad’s teachings, who claimed to be the final prophet in the line of God’s messengers that stretched back through Jewish and Christian scriptures.

Seljuk Empire

The Abbasids brought in a group of Turkic pastoralist warriors to help them in their projects of territorial expansion to keep the diverse people of their empire in line. However, they saw the weaknesses in the Abbasid regime and fought with them to set up this empire. During the period 1200-14500, the dominance of Arab Muslim empires was fading while Turkic Muslim empires rose up to replace them.

Sufism

A form of Islam that emphasized mystical experience, making it more open to adapting itself to local beliefs. Most of the conversion to Islam in South Asia was the result of these missionaries.

Bhakti Movement

Began in southern India as an innovation on traditional polytheistic Hinduism. It emphasized devotion to just one of the Hindu gods and became more attractive to ordinary believers who were tired of complex Hindu social and gender hierarchies.

Korea

East Asian state that was most influenced by its Chinese neighbors. It used a similar service examination to appoint bureaucratic officials and also adopted Buddhism.

Delhi Sultanate

Turkic Muslim empire in northern India that had difficulty holding onto their rule and imposing a total Muslim state upon the majority Hindu population.

Rajput Kingdoms

A collection of rival and warring Hindu kingdoms from before the presence of Muslim rule in India. They represent Hindu resistance against Muslim intrusion and despite their constant fighting, they managed to keep Muslim rule in India at bay.

Vijayanagara Empire

Arose as a counterpoint to Muslim rule in northern India. The Delhi Sultanate sent former-Hindu emissaries who converted to Islam under pressure from their conquerors to try to extend Muslim rule into the south. However, when they left their Muslim overloads, they converted back to Hinduism and established a rival empire.

Majapahit Kingdom

A sea-based empire and Buddhist kingdom based in Java. It maintained its influence by controlling sea routes for trade, but began to decline when China started supporting its trading rival: the Sultanate of Malacca.

Khmer Empire

A land-based empire in Southeast Asia that was founded as a Hindu Kingdom. Eventually, the leadership converted to Buddhism which can be seen in the Angkor Wat. The Angkor Wat was built as a magnificent Hindu temple, but after the conversion, they added several Buddhist elements

Aztec Empire

Founded by the Mexica people. This empire reached its height in 1428 when it entered an alliance with two other Mesoamerican states and established an aggressive program of expansion.

Tenochtitlan

Capital city of the Aztecs. It was the largest city in the Americas before the arrival of Europeans.

Tributary States

The Aztecs created an elaborate system of these to maintain control of their empires. The people they conquered were required to provide labor and regular contributions of goods like food, animals, materials, etc.

Human Sacrifice

Enslaved people played a large role in the Aztec’s religion, with many becoming candidates for these rituals.

Mit’a System

One of methods used by the Inca to maintain and improve their empire. This system required all people under their rule to provide labor on state projects like large state farms, mining, military service, state constructions projects, etc. It was this system and their elaborate bureaucracy that made the Inca highly centralized compared to the Aztecs who were mostly decentralized in how they ruled.

Mississippian Culture

First large scale civilization in North America. This civilization grew around the Mississippi River valley because the soil there was extremely fertile, making it an agriculture-focused state. Large towns dominated smaller satellite settlements politically, and they were known for building monumental mounds around which their towns were organized.

Swahili Civilization

A series of city states organized around commerce and trade along the East African coast. This civilization became more influential as they became more involved in the Indian Ocean trade. Each city was politically independent, but they shared a common social hierarchy with the merchant elite above commoners.

Empires of West Africa (Ghana, Mali, and Songhay)

The growth of these empires was driven by trade, influencing them to become Muslim. It was mostly the elite members and government officials in these empires that converted to Islam, while the majority of the population held onto their indigenous beliefs and tradition.

Hausa Kingdom

Not a centralized empire, but a series of city states more like the Swahili states in Eastern Africa than the empires of Western Africa. They shared a common language and culture and grew powerful through trade. Unlike the Swahili, they acted as brokers of the trans-Saharan trade, not sea-based trade.

Great Zimbabwe

A powerful African state that grew thanks to trade, with its economic power coming from farming and cattle herding. With the increasing African and international trade being processed through this state, it grew exceedingly wealthy and shifted to mainly gold exports. Unlike other African states who converted to Islam to increase their prominence in the trading world, they maintained their indigenous shamanistic religion.

Ethiopia

Like other African states, grew and flourished because of trade, especially around the Mediterranean and the Arabian Peninsula. It also had a hierarchical power structure, with a monarch holding the top position over various class structure below. However, it was Christian, while other African states were Muslim or followed indigenous belief systems.

Eastern Orthodox Christianity

The version of Christianity practiced by the Byzantine Empire in Eastern Europe. By 1200, this empire was declining, but another civilization emerged that carried this belief system forward: the Kievan Rus.

Kievan Rus

A civilization in Eastern Europe that was united into a common people due to the adoption of Eastern Orthodox Christianity in 988. This also plugged them into a larger network of trade in Afro-Eurasia.

Roman Catholicism

After the fall of the Roman Empire, Westen Europe split into various decentralized states. Despite being largely isolated from the larger world of international trade, this religion culturally linked every state in the region together. With the Church’s hierarchy of popes, priests, and bishops spread throughout Europe, the Church had a significant influence over society, culture, and politics.

Feudalism

A system of allegiances between powerful lords, monarchs, and knights. Knights, called vassals, received land from their lords in exchange for military service. This system emerged due to the political decentralization and fragmentation in Europe.

Manor

A piece of land owned by a lord which was then rented out to peasants, called serfs, who worked the land. All aspects of life were centered around this land, so serfs were bound to it and worked it in exchange for protection from the lord and his military forces.