Ibn Battuta
Moroccan Muslim scholar, the most widely traveled individual of his time. He wrote a detailed account of his visits to Islamic lands from China to Spa...
Zheng He
(1371-1433?) Chinese naval explorer who sailed along most of the coast of Asia, Japan, and half way down the east coast of Africa before his death.
Song Dynasty
The Chinese dynasty that placed much more emphasis on civil administration, industry, education, and arts other than the military.
steppes
Treeless plains, especially the high, flat expanses of northern Eurasia, which usually have little rain and are covered with coarse grass. They are go...
land reform
Breakup of large agricultural holdings for redistribution among peasants
Kublai Khan
Grandson of Genghis Khan and founder of the Mongol Yuan Dynasty in China.
Li Bai
one of the most popular poets of the Tang era, famous for his commentary on Chinese social life
Ming Dynasty
Succeeded Mongol Yuan dynasty in China in 1368; lasted until 1644; initially mounted huge trade expeditions to southern Asia and elsewhere, but later...
Tang Dynasty
(618-907 CE) The Chinese dynasty that was much like the Han, who used Confucianism. This dynasty had the equal-field system, a bureaucracy based on me...
dowry
property or money brought by a bride to her husband on their marriage
trebuchet
A machine used in medieval siege warfare for hurling large stones or other missiles
Li Shimin
One of the founders of the Tang Empire and its second emperor (r. 626-649). He led the expansion of the empire into Central Asia.
Silk Road
An ancient trade route between China and the Mediterranean Sea extending some 6,440 km (4,000 mi) and linking China with the Roman Empire. Marco Polo...
porcelain
A thin, beautiful type of pottery
Marco Polo
Venetian merchant and traveler. His accounts of his travels to China offered Europeans a firsthand view of Asian lands and stimulated interest in Asia...
Tang Taizong
Another name for Li Shimin. He reconquered the northern and western land that China had since the decline of the Han Dynasty. He started the achieveme...
Zhu Wangzhang
Founded the Ming Dynasty after overthrowing the Mongol dynasty
gentry
A general term for a class of prosperous families, sometimes including but often ranked below the rural aristocrats.
Genghis Khan
A Mongolian general and emperor of the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries, known for his military leadership and great cruelty. He conquered...
Li Qingzhao
China's greatest female poet
tribute
Money paid by one country to another in return for protection
Du Fu
a famous Chinese poet who wrote "spring landscape" and his poems were base on the suffering of his own life
calligraphy
art of beautiful handwriting
Emperor Ai
the last Tang emperor
khanate
one of several separate territories into which Genghis Khan's empire was split, each under the rule of one of his sons
pagoda
A multistoried Chinese tower, usually associated with a Buddhist temple, having a multiplicity of projecting eaves.
compel
To force or strongly persuade; coerce
Li Yuan
Duke of Tang; minister for Yangdi; took over empire after assassination of Yangdi; 1st Tang ruler.
The Golden Horde
Mongol khanate founded by Genghis Khan's. It was based in southern Russia and quickly adopted both the Turkic language and Islam.
Wu Zhao
Became Empress in 690. She assumed the title herself- the only woman in China to do so.