AP World History Unit 2 Vocab List

The Silk Roads

interconnected network of overland trade routes spanning Afro-Eurasia that linked East Asia, Central Asia, the Middle East, and the Mediterranean

Caravanserai

a fortified roadside inn or rest stop built at regular intervals (about 20–25 miles apart) along ancient trade routes like the Silk Road

Kashgar & Samarkand

Key examples of powerful new trading cities that grew wealthy and culturally diverse because of their strategic locations along the Silk Roads after 1200

Flying Cash

a paper-based credit and promissory system created during the Tang dynasty in China

Hanseatic League

a commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and market towns in Northern Europe

Indian Ocean Trade

the world’s largest maritime exchange network from 1200 to 1450

Monsoon Winds

predictable seasonal wind patterns over the Indian Ocean that reverse direction twice a year

Lateen Sail

a triangular sail on a long pole

Stern Rudder

a flat piece of wood or metal placed vertically at the rear (stern) of a ship to steer it

Swahili City-States

a network of independent, merchant-ruled urban centers along the East African coast

Malacca

a wealthy Muslim maritime trade state (c. 1400–1511) on the Malay Peninsula

Diasporic Communities

a group of people who leave their original homeland and scatter to other parts of the world while maintaining their distinct cultural identity, language, religion, and traditions in their new locations

Zheng He

a 15th-century Chinese Muslim admiral and imperial eunuch during the Ming Dynasty who led seven massive treasure fleet expeditions across the Indian Ocean from 1405 to 1433

Calicut

a major thriving port city located on the southwestern (Malabar) coast of India

Trans-Saharan Trade Routes

the commercial routes crossing the Sahara Desert that connected interior West Africa to North Africa and the Mediterranean world

Camel Saddles

a specialized transportation technology developed to let riders securely control camels and strap heavy cargo onto their backs

Gold-Salt Trade

the economic foundation of the Trans-Saharan trade network

Mali Empire

a powerful West African state that achieved massive wealth by dominating the trans-Saharan gold and salt trade

Mansa Musa

Mali Empire who ruled from 1312 to 1337 CE. Widely considered the wealthiest individual in history, he expanded West African state-building, promoted Islam, and transformed cities like Timbuktu into legendary hubs of trans-Saharan trade and Islamic scholarship.

Timbuktu

a wealthy West African city in the Mali and Songhai empires

Mongol Empire

Genghis Khan

Genghis Khan

a pastoral nomad leader who united rival Central Asian tribes and founded the Mongol Empire in 1206. Earning the title "universal ruler", he built the largest contiguous land empire in world history and initiated a massive era of cross-Eurasian trade and integration.

Khanates

the regional kingdoms or states that the vast Mongol Empire split into after the death of Genghis Khan

Pax Mongolica

(latin for Mongol Peace) the 13th- and 14th-century period of political stability and economic safety across Eurasia achieved under the unified rule of the Mongol Empire

Yuan Dynasty

the Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China founded by Kublai Khan. It marked the first time all of China was ruled by a foreign power, bridging the Song and Ming dynasties under the larger umbrella of the Mongol Empire.

Il-Khanate

a regional Mongol empire that ruled over Persia and parts of the Middle East (modern-day Iran, Iraq, and Azerbaijan) from the mid-13th to the 14th century

White Lotus Society

a secret religious and political movement in China that originated as a Buddhist sect

Cultural Diffusion

the spread of cultural beliefs, languages, technologies, and religious traditions from one group of people to another

Syncretism

the blending of different religious, cultural, or philosophical traditions to create a new, unified belief system

Marco Polo

a Venetian merchant and traveler who journeyed along the Silk Road to Yuan ChinaIbn Battuta

Ibn Battuta

a 14th-century Moroccan Muslim scholar and traveler who journeyed roughly 75,000 miles across Dar al-Islam (the Islamic world) and beyond

Margery Kempe

an English Christian mystic and pilgrim who dictated The Book of Margery Kempe, widely considered the earliest autobiography in the English language

Papermaking and Printing Technology

foundational Chinese innovations that diffused westward across Afro-Eurasia via trade routes like the Silk Roads

Overgrazing

when farm animals eat grass and plants faster than the plants can grow back

Environmental Degradation

the deterioration of the natural environment through the depletion of resources like air, water, and soil, as well as the destruction of ecosystems and wildlife

Little Ice Age

a prolonged period of cooler global temperatures—lasting from roughly 1300 to the mid-1800s—that resulted in harsher winters, shorter growing seasons, and widespread agricultural failures across the Northern Hemisphere