Indian Ocean trade
connected Africa, South Asia, Southeast Asia and China; richest maritime trading network in the 13th and 14th centuries ; spread of compass, rudder, astrolabe, and Islam and Buddhism
Trans-Saharan trade
across the Sahara desert; traded gold, enslaved people, ivory and salt; camels, camel caravans and camel saddles
magnetic compass
Chinese invention that aided navigation; use spread through trade networks like Silk Roads and Indian Ocean trade
rudder
steering device, usually a vertical blade attached to a post at the stern of the boat
junk ship
large flat-bottom sailing ship produced int eh Tang and Song empires; specifically for long-stance commercial travel
Kashgar
a central Asian city where the western and the eastern Silk Roads met
Samarkand
Ruled by Timur Lane and was the most influential capital city; known for decorated mosques and tombs
paper money
currency developed in China; facilitated trade
caravanserai
an inn with a central courtyard for travelers in the desert regions of Asia or North Africa
monsoon winds
season wind in India, the winter monsoon brings hot, dry weather and the summer monsoon brings rain
diaspora
a dispersion of people from their homeland; merchant communities of Muslim spread Islam throughout Southeast Asia
dhow ships
Arab sailing vessels with triangular or lateen sails
Mansa Musa
Muslim ruler of Mali (1312-1337); extravagant pilgrimage through Egypt to Mecca in 1324-1325 established empire's reputation for wealth
Timbuktu
Mali trading city that became a center of wealth and learning thanks to its location in the trans-Saharan trade networks
camel saddle
invented somewhere between 500 and 100 BCE by Bedouin tribes
caravan
group of traveling merchants and animals; facilitated trade along the Silk Roads and the Trans-saharan trade
Khan
name for a Mongol ruler
Khanates
four regional Mongol kingdoms that arose following the death of Ghengis Khan
Golden Horde
Mongol khanate founded by Genghis Khan; quickly adopted the Turkic language and Islam
Il-Khanate
Mongol empire that ruled over Iran and the Middle East
Yuan dynasty
Chinese dynasty under Mongol rule by Kublai Khan; did not emphasize Confucianism and the civil service exams
Bubonic plague
deadly disease that spread through Asia and Europe and killed more than a third of the population in some areas; spread increased thanks to the Silk Roads
gunpowder
became a dominating military technology used to expand European and Asian empires
Ibn Battuta
Moroccan Muslim scholar; wrote a detailed account of his visits to Islamic lands from China to Spain
Marco Polo
Italian explorer; responsible for much of the knowledge exchanged between Europe and China during this time period
Swahili city-states
cities along the coast of East Africa; blended traditional central African beliefs with Islam and Arabic
Zheng He
Chinese Ming dynasty naval explorer who sailed along most of the coast of Asia, Japan and half way down the east coast of Africa