Textbook Vocab

Allah

the only god of Islam (monotheism)

caliph

successor to Muhammad as the political leader of umma

Dar al-Islam

means "house of peace", any place that allows free practice of Islam

5 pillars of Islam

declaration of faith (Shahadah), prayer (salat), charity (zakat), fasting (Ramadan), pilgrimage to Mecca (hajj)

hadith

traditions about the sayings or actions of Muhammad (important to Islamic law)

hajj

pilgrimage to Mecca (once in a lifetime if possible)

harem

domestic spaces that are reserved for the women in the house of a Muslim family

hijab

concealing garments worn by Muslim women outside the house

jihad

the obligation of Muslims to follow Allah's will

kaaba

the religious shrine in Mecca with 360 deities (Muslim pilgrimage site)

minaret

a tower used to project the Muslims' call to prayer (salat)

mosque

place where Muslims worship

Muslim

a follower of the Islamic religion

Quran

the holy book for Muslims (recorded Muhammad's revelations)

Ramadan

the month of fasting for Muslims

shariah

means "correct path". divine counsel (law) that Muslims follow

Shiites

branch of Islam that believed only Muhammad's relatives should be leaders. considered themselves the minority

Sufis

represented Muslim's mystical dimension. followed the Quran, but believed it had some limits.

Suitan

moral or spiritual authority, ruled over "sultanates" or Islamic states.

Sunni

Islamic branch that believed that caliphs where the rightful political and militaristic leaders of Islam

Umma

the "just and moral" society of Islam (community of Muslims)

Zakat

charity (one of the 5 pillars of Islam)

Ulam

religious scholars from Sunni and Shia branches

bananas

entered East Africa from India by Indian Ocean trade and helped to increase the population of the Bantu people

Bantu-speaking peoples

nomadic African language group

Jenne-Jeno

urban society on the Niger River in Africa, center of trade and iron production

Ghana

Soninke people \---\> Ghana civilization, known for gold and salt trade

Trans-Saharan Trade

trade across the Sahara desert

Hijira

Muhammad's journey from Mecca to Medina

camels

animal that replaced donkeys and horses that quickened the pace of communication across the Sahara

Gao

Islamic trading center in Africa

caravans

a group of people that traveled together for protection

Qadis

Muslim judges

Sahara Desert

largest desert in the world, located in Northern Africa

Sundiata

founder of the Mali empire who built the empire by making connections

Mali

(second) empire in West Africa that controlled all trade

Mansa Musa

ruler of Mali, wealthiest man ever, made the hajj along with a large caravan and gave out gold along the way

Great Zimbabwe

capital kingdom of Zimbabwe

Niani

capital of Mali

Swahili

language that mixed Arabic and Bantu, used by Bantu settlers in East Africa

Ibn Battuta

Muslim traveler and scholar who wrote the travel log Rihla

Kilwa

busiest city-state on the East African coast, trade and agriculture were common

kinship group

aristocratic groups based off of clans and families

Zanj Revolt

Zanj slaves in Southern Mesopotamia revolted and captured Basra, establishing a rebel state

Axum Kingdom

city in the Northern Highlands that was known for Christianity and trading

Mecca

city in Arabia that was the holy city for Islam. This was where people made the hajj

Battle of Tours

battle where Charles Martel defeats Muslim invaders in Spain

Charlemagne

king of the Carolingian dynasty, named the "emperor of Rome" by the Pope

Byzantine Empire

the Eastern half of the Christian world and Eastern Roman Empire

Franks

a Germanic state inhabiting Western Europe whose leader was Clovis

Golden Horn

a major waterway in Constantinople

Byzantium

another name for the Byzantine Empire, Eastern Roman Empire

Ottoman Turks

empire that controlled much of central Asia and SE Europe and eventually captured Constantinople

Justinian and Theodora

prominent ruler of Byzantium at its height, assisted by his assertive wife (originally an actress)

Code of Justinian

the collection of Justinian's laws, codification of Roman laws

Hagia Sophia

Christian church in Constantinople, then turned into an Islamic mosque

Missi Dominici

means "envoy of the lord", Frankish officials that were sent to supervise provincial administration

Magyars

Hungarian invaders who raided the Western Roman Empire

longboat

a boat used by the Vikings to conduct raids in the Western Roman Empire and Russia

heavy plow

plow that allowed users to dig deeper in the ground, allowed use of plow and farming in colder climates

Iconoclasm

the ban over the use of religious images or idols

Asceticism

self-discipline to avoid all forms of indulgence for religious reason

monasteries

religious communities inhabited by monks

Cyrillic writing

alphabet based on Greek letter that was used in Slavic languages

the Crusades

a series of holy wars undertaken by Christians in an attempt to take back Jerusalem from the Muslims

Caesaropapism

combining the government and church authority (Byzantium used this)

Kievan Rus

state around the Russian city of Kiev that was known as the "Third Rome"

Prince Vladmir

prince of Rus, responsible for their mass conversion to Christianity

Silk Road

trade network running through Eurasia

Borobudur

mountain shaped Buddhism monument in SE Asia

oasis cities

rest stops with a water source in a desert, often centers for learning and commerce in Eurasia

sand roads

trans-Saharan trade routes in Africa

Dunhuang

Chinese oasis city that practiced and transmitted Buddhism

Arabian camel

a type of camel that was a turning point for African commerce and trade

bubonic plague

a disease that spread throughout Europe that also weakened Byzantium

Angkor Wat

a Hindu temple complex in Cambodia

Pochteca

professional Aztecan merchants who led large but private trading expeditions

third wave civilizations

civilizations occurring from 500-1500 CE

Cahokia

city near present day Saint Louis, was the center of trade along 3 rivers and in many different geographical regions in the Americas

Saliendras

people from a kingdom in Java who built many Hindu temples and Buddhist monuments

Thorfinn Kharlsfeni

Viking voyager who explored the Americas

Trans-Saharan slave trade

the trade of slaves across the Sahara desert, mostly to North Africa

American Web

transcontinental trade routes between the Mississippi Valley, Mesoamerica, and the Andes

Jie people

a nomadic group that ruled much of Northern China, many of whom converted to Buddhism because of their leader's interactions with a Buddhist monk

Indian Ocean trading network

sea trade networks between Asia, India, and Africa

grand canal

an artificial canal used for trading food products from North to South China

Tang Taizong

second emperor of the Tang dynasty who built their capital at Chang'an

fast-ripening rice

rice discovered in Vietnam and imported to China that quickened the rate of production

gunpowder

noticed by Daoist alchemists and taken by the military to be used in fire lances (flamethrowers)

Xuanzang

Chinese Buddhist monk who made the pilgrimage back to India to learn more about Buddhism

paper money

money that facilitated commercial transactions in the China, only the government was allowed to print it

Hangzhou

China's capital in the southern Song dynasty after invasions from nomadic people

porcelain

high demand product in China, lighter and prettier than normal pottery

Zhu Xi

philosopher representative of Neo-Confucianism, wrote the book Family Rituals

samurai

warriors specialized in fighting who served provincial lords in exchange for labor services or agricultural surplus

equal field system

a Chinese system that ensured the equal distribution of land

foot binding

wrapping girls' feet to prevent their growth that made walking very painful and caused them to rely on men (supported the patriarchy)

junks

Chinese ships with large, square sails

Tale of Genji

Japanese book written by woman Murasaki Shikibu about a prince named Genji

Muromachi Period

the medieval period in Japan