Studied by 80 people
Grand Canal
built by yangdi during the sui dynasty
linked the yangtze to the huang he
an important waterway, connecting north and south china and making agricultural transport much easier
Song Dynasty
a unified dynastic empire that remained in China from 960-1279
Confucianism
one of the chief things that helped organize the chinese government
great continuity in Chinese culture over the years
reality is fundamentally hierarchical
Filial Piety
respect for family
an idea stressed in confucianism
Civil Service Exam
a test you had to pass in order to work in the imperial bureaucracy
one of the major achievements of the Song government
deeply influenced by Confucian ideals
shifted power from a hereditary form of aristocracy to a new class of scholarly leaders
Scholar Gentry
smart/educated people
brought into administrative power during the sui dynasty
maintained imperial unity
Commercialization
the production of goods for use and sale in distant markets
Iron Production
Chinese production in 1200 that rivaled that of Europe in the 18th century
Paper Money
introduced as the economy grew and there was not enough precious metal for the minting of coins to keep up with the demand
Gunpowder
an accidental discovery by daoist alchemists
the original use was for fireworks and pyrotechnic displays for the imperial court
song military leaders turned it into weapons
Japanese Sinification
the assimilation or spread of Chinese culture in a country who worked hard to form their own identity but china's influence was all over its culture
Buddhism
an indian religion/philosophy
one of china's most significant influences
Theravada Buddhism
oldest school of buddhism
the “way of the elders”
monasticism is the ideal life for achieving nirvana
a do it yourself approach to enlightenment
focus on wisdom and meditation
goal is to become a buddha
fairly unified in belief and practice
Mahayana Buddhism
the “great vehicle”
buddhism for the masses
seek guidance from bodhisattvas
focus on compassion
goal is to become a bodhisattva and assist others towards enlightenment
diverse sects and schools
Tibetan Buddhism
the “diamond vehicle”
a mix of theravada and mahayana
mantras, mudras, mandalas and thangkas
bodhisattvas including living lamas
meditation, monasticism, wisdom and compassion
bardo thodol - book of the dead
Champa Rice
a quick-maturing, drought resistant rice that could be harvested several times a year
sent to china as a tribute gift from vietnam
led to massive population growth
Abbasid Caliphate
a new islamic caliphate that came into power in the mid-8th century in the middle east and north africa
big, powerful, and united by the arabic language and islamic traditions
Islam
a religion centered on the Quran and the teachings of Muhammad
5 pillars - one God, daily prayer, charity, fasting, pilgrimage (jihad)
monotheistic, no images, equality
Delhi Sultanate
newly-converted turkish muslims invaded india and created a muslim political state in 1206
Hinduism
a religion that structured indian society for hundreds of years
polytheistic, many idols, caste system
Sufi Muslims
a form of islam that emphasized a more emotional and ecstatic experience
Ghana
a west african country where islam spread by the commercial enterprises of traveling merchants
Mali
a west african civilization that broke away from ghana in the 13th century
founded by sundiata
as islam came into the empire, it caused many cities to emerge as centers of trade, commerce, and learning
Songhai
an empire that broke away from mali in the 14th century
muslim clerics did not like that islam was not adhered to strictly within the kingdom so they called for an invasion to cleanse it which was done by the 16th century
Mansa Musa
mali ruler who went on the hajj with magnificent displays of his wealth
House of Wisdom
large public library belonging to the abbasid caliphs
an academic center for learning, research, and translation established in 830
Nasir al-Din-al-Tusi
considered the founder of trigonometry and mathematical models used in astronomy
Seljuk Empire
captured baghdad in 1055 and took the remaining portions of the abbasid empire
recaptured all territory in 1291
Bhakti Movement
a manifestation of Hindu beliefs from the 12th century
emphasized the emotional side of devotion, one God, religious experience, and direct relationship with the gods
Vijayanagara Kingdom
a hindu kingdom set up in 1336 by brothers who converted from hinduism to islam, then back to hinduism
Srivijaya Empire
a buddhist empire in sumatra
muslims came to dominate trading ports on sumatra after its collapse
Caste System
a hierarchical structure of indian society that divided people into five groups each one better than the one below
to move up castes get good karma
Aztecs/Mexica
The native american people who dominated northern mexico at the time of the spanish conquest in the early 16th century
Tenochtitlan
A magnificent capital city founded in 1325 roughly where mexico city is today
Chinampa
Floating artificial islands that produced high yield crops
Tribute System
a form of conducting diplomatic trade
a payment that conquered peoples had to make to its conqueror
Human Sacrifice
Practiced to serve the gods
The military captured people from resistant tribes to be sacrificed to the gods
The aztecs believed the world would end and the sun would not come up the next day without a sacrifice
Inca
A kingdom that developed in the andes region of south america from 1438 - 1533
Terraced Farming
A method of farming that made previously unfarmable land farmable by cutting steps into hillsides so that you could plant
Quipu
Knotted strings that kept records
Ethiopia
an african christian state that pre-existed the arrival of islam
Great Zimbabwe
An impressive city state in southeast africa near the zambezi and limpopo rivers
Had massive stone walls and buildings
Mwene mutapa ruled as a central figure
The center of trade for all of southern africa
Griots
african storytellers who housed within themselves the history, narratives, and lineage of the tribe to which they belonged
Byzantine Empire
The continuity of the roman empire in the east after the west fell in 476
Feudalism
A system of mutual obligations that existed between classes
Four social layers - the king, the lords, the knights, the peasantry
The serfs worked the land of the lords (not slaves but not free, lives tied to the land)
Manorial System
A system related to feudalism that governed economics
Built around large estates called manors
Guilds
Groups of similar occupations
Played a large role in urban politics and society
Magna Carta
Officially guaranteed rights to the nobles
Facilitated the transfer of power from the king to the noble class in 1215
Roman Catholic Church
They had heavy influence during the time of feudalism
Established the first universities in europe
Crusades
Starting in the 12th century the pope and bishops urged christians to take their swords and reclaim jerusalem from the infidel muslims
A response to threats on the cultural hold of the catholic church
Marco Polo
An italian explorer who wrote about his travels along the silk road
Bourgaise
The middle class
Not as rich as nobles and not as poor as peasants
Little Ice Age
For a few years temperatures steadily fell which led to a sharp decrease in agricultural productivity
Renaissance
Rebirth
The reintroduction of ancient greek and roman culture, art, and literature
Silk Roads
Land based trade route that stretched from china to europe to north africa
Indian Ocean
Sea based trade route that stretched from china into east africa
Trans-Saharan
Desert trade route that stretched from north africa to the mediterranean to west africa
Camel Caravan
animal used to carry goods across the silk roads
Arabian Camel
animal that made it possible to transverse the vast stretch of desert between north africa and west africa
Chinese Silk
Originated in china around 3000 BCE
Considered a status symbol
Luxury good traded on the silk roads
Syncretism with Samarkand
buddhists incorporated zoroastrian fire rituals into their devotional patterns
Black Death/Bubonic Plague
Nearly half the european population died between 1346 - 1348 because of this disease
spread through fleas
Monsoons
The success of the indian ocean trading routes was made possible by these predictable yearly storms
Magnetic Compass
a device used for navigation
allowed sailors to hold their bearing without sight of the sun
Astrolabe
Allowed sailors to calculate latitude
Chinese Junks
Huge, flat-bottomed ships with six masts jutting out of their bellies, and enough room to carry 500 men
Swahili City-States
important trading cities in east africa
emerged in the 8th century
rulers found abundant opportunities to trade native goods
Neo-Confucianism
a fusion of rational thought with daoist and buddhist beliefs that originated in china but soon spread to korea and japan
religious syncretism
Swahili Language
combination of bantu and arabic languages
a major cultural consequence of the spread of islam from muslim merchants
Lateen Sail
a large triangular sail that allowed sailors to tack into the wind and therefore had much more flexibility to travel
Stern Post Rudder
steering apparatus of a ship that gave it much more precision in turning
Hangzhou
one of the largest and most metropolitan cities in china
a diverse population of over a million people
poetry and literature flourished
Ibn Batutta
A muslim traveler who made it his ambition to travel all throughout dar al islam
Kept a detailed journal of the people whose lands he visited
Kublai Khan
Ghengis khan’s grandson
founder of the yuan dynasty
Zheng He
Sailed the indian ocean under the leadership of yongle to enroll people into the chinese tribute system
Banana
crop brought to sub saharan africa by indonesian merchants
Bantu speaking natives of africa could move to regions where yams couldn't grow
Caravenseri
Little places that dotted the length of the silk roads where merchants could rest and sleep
Chinggis Khan
Born in the 12th century into a network of mongolian tribes that were fractured at war with one another
He gained a reputation for brutality and ruthlessness with his enemies
In 1206 he was recognized as the supreme leader of a newly unified mongol nation
Mongol Army Organization
military units of 10,000, 1000, 100, and 10 to quickly and effectively control and command troops
Mongols in China
most extended and difficult mongol conquest lasting from 1209 - 1279
brought unification and established the yuan dynasty
improved roads, built canals, and patronized scholars and artists
driven out by factionalism, the plague, and peasant rebellions by the 14th century
Mongols in Persia
civilization fell to mongol attacks
made use of their administrative system and kept many rulers in place
assimilated into this society rather than being forced out
Gunpowder Empires
Large states that relied on firearms to control the territory that they had and to expand into new territory
Gutenberg Press
Made the production of books and pamphlets much easier and as a result the european population began to experience an increase in literacy
Isabella and Ferdinand of Spain
Their marriage joined together the kingdoms of castile and aragon in 1469
Their goal was to expel the muslims and jews and purify their kingdom into a catholic state
Ivan the Terrible
Crowned in 1547
Was able to expand the russian territory even further east and took much of the land that was held by the mongols
Peter the Great
Began rule in 1682
Known for traveling to other european kingdoms in secret to learn their ways
A brutal autocrat, crushed dissent through murder
Catherine the Great
Overthrew her husband in 1762
Strictly autocratic, quelled all dissent and rebellion
Used her sexual relations to get her way in european affairs
Brought the european enlightenment to russia
Yuan Dynasty
Established by the mongols
Overthrown in 1368
Ming Dynasty
Replaced the yuan dynasty and held power in china well into the 1600s
Qing Dynasty
The manchu seized power of china and established in 1644
Chinese territory was significantly expanded into taiwan, mongolia, central asia, and tibet
Ottoman Empire
The largest and the greatest of all the islamic empires during this time
Established in the 1300s and lasted 600 years
Mehmed II
a ruler who led the ottomans to capture constantinople which ended the byzantine empire in 1453
Constantinople
The ottomans seized this city and changed it to istanbul
Safavid Empire
a shia religious order that sought to purify islam under safi-al-din
Shia Islam
a type of islam that believes that muhammad designated his family to lead the muslim community
Sunni Islam
a type of islam that believes that muhammad did not explicitly declare a successor
Mughal Empire
A muslim dynasty who ruled over a majority hindu population
Dominated much of india for several centuries
Babur
Founder of the Mughal Empire
When india was in disarray he completed conquest of northern India and established a central government
Akbar
The greatest leader of the mughal empire
Under his leadership the mughal empire was one of the most prosperous and well led states in all the world
Divine Right of Kings
To challenge the king is to challenge god and no good christian wants to find themselves in the position of challenging god
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