history definitions

Trans-Sahara :Al-Garanati connected Africa with sub-Saharan regions (kingdoms like Mali and Ghana), Europe (Portugal mainly) and Asia, the Islamic world. It traded Gold, Ivory, Salt (slaves, mostly women and children, some men became Eunuchs, castrated to hold higher positions. Note that Muslim teachings emphasised treating slaves fairly and slaves were not based on race). They relied on Camels (Caravans) to travel longer distances (discovered by the Romans). Many populations nearby became Muslim (Muslims couldn’t be enslaved), joining armies, setting up schools, etc

Griots: Mali oral historians and storytellers, through song/poetry, detailed genealogy, traditions, history before written records, they are a source of information/historical knowledge. Ex: Simjata of Epic

Ceuta: A North African (Al-Magrib) (Morocco) city port captured by the Portuguese in 1415, marking the beginning of Portugal’s age of exploration and European expansion into Africa). The city gave the Portuguese access to Trans-Sahara/Al-Garanati for gold, ivory and slaves. Led by Prince Henry the Navigator and was inspired by motivations of reconquest (following the reconquest of Iberia from Muslims) and finding of Prester John to align and kick out Muslims from Africa)

City States: independent political entities centred around a city and its surrounding territory. Often theocratic, rules got authority to rule from divine sources. Altepetl and TENOCHTITLÁN for the Aztecs or some on the Swahili coast, Ceuta in Morocco. 

Andean culture: Civilizations in the Andes (ex: Incas and early pan-Andean cultures) who spoke Aymara and Quechua, had polytheistic religions like Pachamama, (emphasizing natural elements like the sun, mountains, and earth). They developed raised fields to prevent soil erosion, they had intricate stone work, built storehouses (qullqas) for social welfare (across various territories, lending supplies to be paid back), they practiced vertical trade; trade based on ecological niches, used Quipus for knowledge, data, censuses (knots, non-alphabetic writing), they grew society by co-opting other groups (offering food, protection, etc in exchange for helping them conquer other areas) and had a Ayllu (kin-based) society that emphasizes reciprocity, cooperation, gender complementarity. They domesticated plants like corn, potatoes and animals like llamas and alpacas. They practiced vertical trade; redistribution of niche ecological resources, depending on regions like highlands/lowlands

  • Military service was a form of tribute however they weren’t super militarized but did partake in conquests, coopting others to join their military and help in conquests in exchange for social welfare benefits like storage houses, taking care of the population (ex: the elderly or widowed) and protection

  • 1400 BCE is when the first pan-Andean cultures emerged, there had been civilizations existing in the region before this however 

  • Manco Capac was the first governor/founder of the Inca empire in the 1200s. He was said to have been the son/envoy of the sun god, created by another 

Codex/Codecies: Pictographic manuscripts by the Aztec and Maya depicting religious events, rituals, and histories, used to understand Aztec culture, most were destroyed by Spanish conquests. 

Chinampas: Aztec artificial floating gardens near lakes, allowing year-round farming by  using lake sediment to create fertile, raised fields

Confucianism: Chinese value system/philosophy emphasizing social hierarchy, propriety, charity, and moral behaviour. It believed society as a cosmic order. (everyone had their own place and could advance). It placed China as the “Middle Kingdom” (center of the world), shaping a hierarchy system in trade → tribute trade with other nations. Later, its influence stopped expeditions because it looked down upon merchants/trade expeditions as “money-grabbing”. 

Tribute trade: A system where states brought gifts or tributes to powerful empires for trading rights and political recognition. Ex: States in Asia would send gifts (bearing tribute) in exchange for lavish gifts and trade privileges in reward for showing respect. Ex: Aztecs conquered territory, forced tribute trade in luxuries like leopard skin in exchange for recognition. 

The Three Circuits: 

  • Arabian Sea: Linked Africa, the Middle East, Asia, and Europe and divided the Indian Ocean, encouraging trade stops. It was limited by monsoon, navigators used astrolabes, dhow ships and lateen sails (triangle-travelling ships). It was known for spices, stones, textiles. Swahili city-states emerged as cosmopolitan trading centers from this route and Islam spread along the routes. This area (Indian ocean) used Dhow ships as opposed to galleys and Lateen sails. 

  • Bay of Bengal: Straits of Malacca was the only route connecting China to the Indian ocean, controlling it was important, encouraging tribute trade. The region went from Hindu to Muslim from the influx of Muslim merchants and administrators settling in. It traded gems, spices, rice, sugar, cotton/textiles. This area (Indian ocean) used Dhow ships as opposed to galleys and Lateen sails

  • South China Sea: Dominated by China, many fleets under Admiral Zheng (Cheng Ho) He enforced tribute trade & Chinese domination (in 2 expeditions) and used to create relations with other nations (diplomacy). Connected with the Bay of Bengal through the Straits of Malacca. This route became important as the population moved south (as opposed to the north where the Silk Road was) so maritime trade grew. China had monopolies on goods like salt and iron in the region. This route influenced the use of paper currency (China invented paper), the compass for travel, gunpowder (revolutionized warfare). It also traded silk (something China gatekept). China was heavily involved in trade (state-wise) 

Silk Road: land trade system connecting China to the world during this period. traded silk (gatekeept by China) and other goods and spread diseases like the Black Death (later influenced them to stop trading and expeditions to trade in the maritimes). Saw the spread of paper money, gunpowder, (revolutionized warfare) and the compass (revolutionized travel) and the spread of Buddhism, Zoroastrianism and other religions/culture. 

Quipus: Inca method of record keeping based on knots and coloured strings. It kept census on births, deaths, taxes, crops etc and could only be interpreted by few people. They would be brought to Cusco, the capital, and could be used to distribute resources to storage houses and know how many people were ready for war. 

Altepetl: Aztec city-states based on the location, translated to water-mountain, semi-independent political entities part of a larger Aztec empire 

Cape Bojador: cape off the coast of Africa, infamous for its scary weather phenomenon, so it was often avoided. In 1434, a Portuguese expedition by Gil Eanes was successful and provided more motivation to explore, influencing the age of European exploration. The Portuguese wanted to explore for numerous reasons, finding a better route to India, exploring more of Africa after seeing the wealth/gold of sub-saharan regions like Mali, the myth of Prester John. This expedition opened new trade routes and discovered islands like the Azores, Cape Verde, Madrinas, Canaries etc. this was the Portuguese's first experimentation with colonization. 

Zheng He: Chinese admiral who led 2 major naval expeditions in the South China Sea (1402 with 62 ships and 1408 with 48 ships) during the Ming dynasty across major ports to establish trade relations and tribute trade to "barbarian nations” across the region. 

Arawaks/Taino: Indigenous people from the greater Antilles(Caribbean)/South America (Guyana). First groups encountered by Columbus in 1492, either in San Salvador or Guanahani (Caribbean). Columbus had little respect for them (due to their lack of clothing and seeming lack of religion compared to the Aztecs with recognizable priests and more clothing) 

Columbian Exchange: the exchange of plants, animals, diseases and culture between the Western and Eastern hemisphere. It included plants like wheat, olives, sugar (some accidental like seeds in clothing or in feces), (note: without proper techniques, plants like corn caused mal nutrition for colonists) animals like horses, cattle, pigs and goats (who without natural predators, grew exponentially and ate most native grasses/planted weeds and led to soil erosion), diseases like smallpox and measles (from Eurasia), malaria, black and yellow fever (from Africa) and syphilis, TB, Hepatitis from the Americas. (note: Eurasians had a long history of contact and exchange of germs, leading to higher immunity compared to Indigenous peoples whose population decreased by 90% over 100 years. This decrease and less labour saw the introduction of slaves into the Americas who brought other diseases and plants like mangoes, bananas, papayas etc) The exchange saw dietary changes, (new plants and more widely available meat), changes in agriculture (using animals for plows)  

Prince Henry the Navigator: Portuguese Prince who sponsored naval expeditions to Africa (planted trees to help with ship-building), Invaded the city-state of Ceuta in 1415 and seeing caravans bringing gold, was impressed/inspired to continue expeditions to get rich (but without local knowledge it went poorly). He was also inspired by reconquests (following the reconquests of Iberia from Muslims) and the myth of Prester John, a christian king rumored to live in Africa (possibly Ethiopia that was christian and known for churches) (they had little knowledge of anything below North Africa like Mali or Ghana) the Portuguese could align with to kick out Muslims in the region. He financed conquests to Cape Bojar, the Azores, Cape Verde, Madira, Canaries etc (note: because Portugal was close to the sea, it was naturally oriented to sea trade, ex with the English or experience with trade from the Mediterranean)  

Mali Empire: Hierarchical, spoke Mande, included peoples like the Sonike, used Griots before written records to recount history, genealogy, traditions etc, very powerful through tribute trade and gold mining, cola nuts and cowrie shells, Timbuktu was very powerful, known for Mansa Musa in the 1300s

Mansa Musa: King of Mali in the 1300s, used the country’s gold mines to make the country and himself rich and finance his pilgrimage to Mecca in 1324 where in Cairo, he devalued the price of gold with his generosity. He was known to be very religious (Muslim) and virtuous (courage, manliness), refusing to kiss the grown when meeting the Sultan. 

Lateen sails: used on dhow ships in the Indian ocean, they used to wind (as opposed to rowing in the Mediterranean) running fore and aft direction to get to a destination. They were triangle sails.

Caravel: ship design adopted by the Portuguese, using the lateen sails. They were wider and deeper in the water unlike other ship types like the cog (better for weathering Atlantic storms) and unlike rowing or galleys, used less people and had more storage. It enabled long-distance voyages for Europeans, contributing to further expeditions. (this was the ship types Columbus used) 

Portolan charts: navigational charts focused on edges (where the ports were, as ports were access points for ships) to make them, one had to travel and sail, understanding where ships could enter. Essentially, a map focused on the coast and ports.