AMSCO World History Notes

Champa rice

a fast-ripening and drought-resistant strain of rice from present day Vietnam

proto-industrialization

a set of economic changes in which people in rural areas made more goods than they could sell

artisans

skilled craft workers

scholar gentry

civil servants educated in Confucian philosophy and the most influential social class in China

flial piety

the duty of people to honor their ancestors

Grand Canal

stretching over 1,000 miles, it connected the agricultural south to the population centers in the north. Helped unify the varied ethnic and cultural groups of China

Song Dynasty

an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 960 to 1279

imperial bureaucracy

a vast organization in which appointed offcials carried out the empire’s policies

meritocracy

a bureaucratic system that allowed for more upward mobility than any other hiring system of its time

woodblock printing

a system of printing in the 7th century

foot binding

from a very young age, girls had their feet wrapped so tightly that the bones did not grow naturally

Buddhism

a widespread Asian religion or philosophy, founded by Siddartha Gautama in northeastern India in the 5th century BC

Theravada Buddhism

focused on personal spiritual growth through

silent meditation and self-discipline

Mahayana Buddhism

focused on spiritual growth for all beings and on service

Tibetan Buddhism

focused on chanting

syncretic

fused

Chan (Zen) Buddhism

emphasized direct experience and meditation as opposed to formal learning based on studying scripture

Neo-Confucianism

a melding of Confucian, Buddhist, and Daoist philosophies that had begun under the Tang

Heian period

(794-1185) Japan emulated Chinese traditions in politics, art, and literature

nuclear families

just a wife, husband, and their children

polygyny

the practice of having more than one wife at the same time

Mamluk Sultanate

a medieval Islamic state that emerged in the 13th century and lasted until the early 16th century

Seljuk Turks

starting in the 11th century, they began conquering parts of the Middle East, eventually extending their power almost as far east as Western China

sultan

the Seljuk leader

Mongols

a group of nomads from Central Asia, they conquered lands from central Europe to the Pacific Ocean, creating the largest land empire in human history

Abbasid Caliphate

the most influential rulers in Dar al-Islam. Under them, Islamic culture experienced a golden age

Mamluks

enslaved people purchased by Arabs who were frequently ethnic Turks from Central Asia, to serve as soldiers and later as bureaucrats

Muhammad

A merchant who lived on the Arabian Peninsula and believed that he had received revelations from God

Crusaders

groups of soldiers organized by European Christians to reopen access to holy sites in and around Jerusalem

Sufis

a Muslim ascetic and mystic

House of Wisdom

Under the Abbasid Empire, scholars traveled from far away to Baghdad to study at a renowned center of learning

Baghdad

capital and largest city of Iraq

Nasir al-Din al-Tusi

one of the most celebrated Islamic scholars: contributed to astronomy, law, logic, ethics, mathematics, philosophy, and medicine

‘A’ishah al-Ba’uniyyah

Sufi poet and mystic; may be the most prolific female Muslim writer before the 20th century

Vijayanagara Empire

ruled over most of South India and was established by Harihara in 1336 CE alongside his brother Bukka of the Sangama Dynasty

Rajput kingdoms

Hindu kingdoms led by leaders of numerous clans who were often at war with one another

Delhi Sultanate

a Medieval Indian state centered around the city of Delhi

Srivijaya Empire

a Hindu kingdom based on Sumatra. It built up its navy and prospered by charging fees for ships traveling between India and China

Majapahit Kingdom

based on Java had 98 tributaries at its height. Like Srivijaya, it sustained its power by controlling sea routes

Sinhala dynasties

Sinhalese kingdoms that existed in what is today Sri Lanka

Khmer Empire/Angkor kingdom

was situated near the Mekong River and also did not depend on maritime prowess for its power

Sukhothai Kingdom

a post-classical Siamese kingdom in Mainland Southeast Asia surrounding the ancient capital city of Sukhothai in present-day north-central Thailand

proselytize

to actively seek converts

Bhakti Movement

rather than emphasizing on studying texts or performing rituals, Hindus focused on developing a strong attachment to a particular deity

Qutub Minar

a gigantic leaning tower, the tallest structure in India today

Urdu

a language that melded the grammatical pattern of Hindi and with the vocabulary of Arabic and some elements of Farsi

Mississippian

a civilization that flourished between the 8th century and the 16th century. Its city of Cahokia was a major trade hub with a population larger than that of London

matrilineal society

social standing was determined by the woman’s side of the family

Cahokia

a major trade hub near present-day St. Louis with a population larger than that of London

city-states

an independent state made up of a city and its surrounding territory

Mexica

were originally hunter-gatherers who migrated to central Mexico from the north in the 1200s

theocracy

a government ruled by religious leaders

human sacrifice

the offering of the life of a human being to a deity

Pachacuti

a tribal leader who began conquering the tribes living near what is now Cuzco, Peru

Incan Empire

established by Pachacuti in the early 15th century and expanded rapidly under subsequent leaders like his son, Tupac Inca Yupanqui

mit’a system

men between the ages of 15 and 50 provided agricultural and other forms of labor, including the construction of roads

Carpa Nan

a massive roadway system called with some 25,000 miles of roads used mainly by the government and military

Temple of the Sun

an Incan temple honoring the sun and royal ancestor veneration

Animism

a reverence for deities associated with features of nature, such as animals or specific mountains or rivers