2.3 and 2.4 Week 6 Vocab 2026-27

Indian Ocean Basin

An ocean region heavily involved in trade that connected East Africa, the Middle East, South Asia, and East Asia, fostering the growth of wealthy port cities.

Calicut

A bustling port city on the west coast of India that became a thriving center of trade where Arab and Chinese merchants met to exchange goods, especially spices.

Spice Islands

The historical name for modern-day Malaysia and Indonesia, known for exporting fragrant nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, and cardamom.

Indian Ocean Slave Trade

A trade network where enslaved people from eastern Africa were transported to northern Africa, the Middle East, and India to provide forced labor in seaports, shipping, and households.

Monsoon Winds

Essential weather patterns in the Indian Ocean that blew from the northeast in winter and southwest in spring, requiring merchants to time their voyages carefully.

Lateen Sails

Triangular sails popular among Arab sailors that could easily catch winds coming from many different directions to aid travel.

Stern Rudder

A maritime invention by Chinese sailors that gave ships more stability and made them easier to maneuver.

Astrolabe

A maritime navigation instrument, improved by Muslim navigators in the 12th century, that allowed sailors to determine how far north or south they were from the equator.

Sultanate of Malacca

A wealthy Muslim city-state that built a navy and imposed fees on ships passing through a narrow strait connecting ports in India and China.

Diasporic Communities

Settlements of people away from their homeland, such as Arab and Persian merchants in East Africa, who introduced their own cultural traditions into indigenous cultures.

Gujarat

A western Indian Rajput kingdom that acted as a go-between for trade between the East and West, generating massive revenue from customs taxes.

Zheng He

A Muslim admiral sent by the Ming emperor on seven great voyages to display the might of the Ming Dynasty and receive tribute from people across the Indian Ocean.

Sahara Desert

An immense, arid region in northern Africa occupying 3.6 million square miles where nomadic communities conducted overland trade.

Oases

Places in the desert where human settlement is possible because water from deep underground is brought to the surface, making land fertile.

Camel Saddle

A technology developed for pack animals, specifically by Somalis in Eastern Africa, capable of carrying loads up to 600 pounds to facilitate heavy overland trade.

Caravans

Large groups of merchants traveling together across the desert, often using thousands of camels laden with trade goods and fresh water provisions.

Sundiata

The legendary Lion Prince and founding ruler of Mali who used his faith to establish trade relationships with North African and Arab merchants.

Songhai Kingdom

The West African powerhouse that took the place of the declining Mali Empire by the late 1400s, becoming even larger and richer.

Timbuktu

A great city in West Africa that accumulated immense wealth and developed into a world-renowned center of Islamic learning.

Cowrie Shells

A widely understood currency used in West Africa, alongside cotton cloth, gold, glass beads, and salt, to administer and maintain the economy.