Unit 2 Vocab - Networks of Exchange

Samarkand

Located in present-day Uzbekistan in the Zeravshan River Valley, it was a stop along the Silk Roads and a center of cultural exchange. Many religions were present there and it was viewed as a place of Islamic learning.

Khan

a king of a Mongol clan. For example, Genghis Khan means “ruler of all”

Mongols

pastoral nomads who lived north of the Gobi Desert. Under Genghis Khan, they conquered from Eastern Europe to Asia, creating the largest land empire in history. They conquered the Abbasid Empire, which was under Seljuk rule at the time, in 1258

Pax Mongolica

“Mongolian peace” in the 13th to 14th centuries; a period of peace under Ghengis Khan, capital at Karakorum, trade prospered (third golden age of the Silk Roads)

Khanates

kingdoms under khans (ex Ghengis Khan’s empire, his 3 grandsons’ kingdoms)

Kublai Khan

a grandson of Ghengis Khan who conquered Song China during 1235-1271, calling himself the “great khan” and founding the Yuan Dynasty

Yuan Dynasty

after the Song, this is a Mongol dynasty under Kublai Khan, with the capital ad Dadu (formerly Zhongdu); created religious tolerance, prosperity, and greater freedom for women

Ming Dynasty

1348 to 1644; the secret White Lotus society planned to end the Yuan Dynasty. Zhu Yuanzhang, a Buddhist monk, led the revolt and founded the Ming Dynasty.

Bubonic Plague

originate on fleas in South China, the Mongol conquests helped spread it along trade routes to Europe, Asia, and North Africa

Sultanate of Malacca

AKA Melaka, a Muslim city-state that got wealthy by taxing ships in the straight of Malacca (on the route from India to China). The Sultan became powerful in the 1400s and expanded the state into Sumatra and the Malay Peninsula. In 1511 the Portugese invaded and the sultanate ended.

Swahili City-States

East African city-states that were wealthy from Indian Ocean trade. For example, Kilwa, Mombasa, Zanzibar; they sold ivory, gold, slaves, tortoise shells, peacock feathers, and rhino horns to Arabs and in return received ironwork, Chinese porcelain, Indian cotton

Indian Ocean Basin

countries around the Indian Ocean. They benefitted from Indian Ocean trade, which was benefitted by knowledge of monsoon winds, junk and dhow ships, and the astrolabe.

Monsoon Winds

Indian Ocean winds that blow FROM the northeast in the winter and FROM the southwest in the spring and summer (so merchants had to plan ahead)

Lateen Sails

triangular sails used by Arabs because they could easily catch winds in various directions. These helped in Indian Ocean Trade.

Astolabe

an invention that uses the angle between the sun or stars and the horizon to determine latitude. Muslims proved it in the 12th century. It helped in Indian Ocean Trade.

Diaspora

a settlement of people in a location away from their homeland. For examples, Muslims waited in India or East Africa for monsoon winds, married, and stayed (and in this way spread Islam)

Zheng He

A Muslim admiral from the Ming dynasty in China. Emperor Yongle sent him on voyages to show Ming power and to get tribute. He had 300 ships and 28000 people. As a result, the Chinese gained prestige and access to new markets and goods. However, Yongle’s son Zhu Gaozhi stopped the voyages because Confucianism prefers stability.

Mali Empire

founded by Sundiata, a Muslim who traded gold with Arabs and North Africans. Shells, cloth, and gold beads were “currency”; they got rich by taxing West African Trade

Mansa Musa

Sundiata’s grand-nephew. As a Muslim, he made a pilgrimage to Mecca in 1324. He brought a huge caravan and handed out gold along the way.

Timbuktu

a city in Mali, renowned as a center of Islamic learning; made and sold books

Trans-Saharan Trade

trade routes across the Sahara; camel saddles increased the amount of goods merchants could carry; mainly gold, ivory, slaves, salt, textiles, and horses traded; created wealth for Ghana and later Mali; helped to spread islam

Black Death

an epidemic of the Bubonic Plague from 1347 to 1351 in Europe caused by connections: trade and the Crusades. Many people (possibly over a third!) died, meaning that there were fewer agricultural workers, so they could demand higher pay, leading to the decline of feudalism

Ibn Battuta

a Muslim scholar from Morocco who went to see the world at age 21. He spent over thirty years traveling Africa, Asia, Spain (Muslim lands), and when he returned, the Sultan of Morocco said to write a book about the places and culture he saw.

Marco Polo

an Italian who visited Kublai Khan in China, returned in 1295, and wrote a book about Chinese culture and achievement; people were incredulous until others saw it too

Champa Rice

It spread from Hindu Vietnam to the Champa States, then to China as tribute; it resisted droughts and floods, grew two crops a year, and caused population growth in China

Bananas

Originally from Indonesia, they spread to sub-Saharan Africa and caused population growth. They also allowed Bantu-speaking people to settle in areas where they couldn’t cultivate their yams.

Deforestation

the cutting down of forests to create farmland in feudal Europe. This caused soil erosion, which led to less agricultural production

Sugar

from the Middle East/Mesopotamia area; farmed by East African Slaves called zanj on plantations in Mesopotamia before they rebelled; spread with Islam, cotton, citrus, and the Arabic language as caliphs conquered more land; high demand for it in Europe

Citrus Fruit

from Southeast and Southwest Asia, it spread across the Mediterranean to Muslim Spain; it is beneficial because it provides Vitamin C, can be preserved, and is valuable for trading; by 1450 it became common in Europe

Silk Roads

Eurasian land routes on which goods and ideas spread (ex silk, porcelain, textiles, iron, steel) states include the Tang Dynasty and Abbasid Caliphate; Kashgar and Samarkand were major cities on the route

Caravanserai

Inn spaced apart on the Silk Roads to provide rest, storage

Rudder

A Han Dynasty invention that help with control and navigation on ships; a steering device on the back of a boat

Junk ship

A Han Dynasty invention (similar to a Southwest Asian boat called a dhow); a large, multi sailed boat with a strengthened hull

Flying cash

A Chinese system as an alternative to copper coins; merchants could deposit paper money and withdraw the same amount somewhere else

Kashgar

A city at the Western edge of China, situated on the meeting point of north and south Silk Roads between the Taklamakan Desert and Tian Shan Mountains, made textiles, leather, and pottery

Because it was on a river and the trade routes went through deserts, it was a better location for agriculture and a stop for water and food