Song dynasty
Chinese dynasty; golden age; invention of magnetic compass, paper money, and gun powder
Confucianism
A philosophy by the Chinese philosopher Confucius; ensures a stable government, orderly society and moral code of conduct
Filial piety
One of the virtues by Confucian; a respect and love for one's parents and ancestors
Neo-Confucianism
Confucian response to Buddhism by combining both beliefs
Theravada Buddhism
Oldest of the variations; holds close to the original teachings of the Buddha
Tibetan Buddhism
Includes elements from India; teaches people to use special techniques to harness spiritual energy and achieve nirvana
Champa rice
Quick-maturing rice that can allow two harvests in one growing season; increased populations in Song dynasty.
Grand canal
The 1,100-mile waterway in China linking the Yellow and Yangzi rivers; began during Han period and completed in Sui dynasty
Flying money
Chinese credit instrument that provided credit vouchers
Seljuk Empire
Turkic empire ruled by sultans in Persia; demonstrated weakness of Abbasid caliphate in later years; sultans held real power
Delhi sultanate
First Islamic government established within India from 1205 to 1520
Abbasid Caliphate
Focused more on administration than conquering; (750-1258 CE); bureaucracy that any Muslim could be a part of
Bhakti movement
An immensely popular development in Hinduism advocating intense devotion towards a particular deity
Sufism
Islamic tradition that desired a person union with God; focused on intuition rather than rational deduction and studying
Feudalism
Political system in which nobles are granted the use of lands that legally belonged to their king in exchange for loyalty
Vassal
a person under protection of a feudal lord to whom they owe allegiance
serf
an agricultural laborer bound under the feudal system to work in an estate
Manorialism
Revolved around self-sufficient farming estates
Great Zimbabwe
Powerful state in the African interior that emerged from the growing trade in gold the East African coast
Cahokia
Dominant center of an important Mississippi valley mound-building culture
Maya city-states
Culture in Southern Mexico and Central America; featured architecture, written language, calendar system and mathematical system
Meritocracy
government or the holding of power by people selected on the basis of their ability
Syncretism
The unification or blending of opposing people, ideas, or practices; mostly religion
Mita system
economic system in Inca society where people paid taxes with their labor and what they produced
Chinampas
Floating garden constructed along lake shores by the Mexica/Aztecs
Waru Waru
A form of farming used in the Inca empire; divided the hills into terraces or flat steps; could control the amount of water being put into specific places
Crusades
A series of holy wars from 1096-1270 AD undertaken by European Christians to free the Holy Land from Muslim rule
Renaissance
Rebirth following the Middle Ages; movement that centered on the revival of interest in the classical learning of Greece and Rome
Great Schism
Divided medieval Christianity into Greek and Latin branches; Eastern Orthodox Church and Roman Catholic Church
Fief
land granted by a lord to a vassal in exchange for loyalty and service