history exam

Muhammad

central figure of Islam, widely regarded as its founder by non-Muslims. Considered to be the last prophet sent by God to restore Islam. Lived from 570-632 CE. Present-day Saudi Arabia. Muhammad turned the Islam community into an empire, which stressed a purpose to rule under God's law. Whereas in both Byzantium and the west, the emperor and the patriarch were distant, Muhammad connected religion to empire-building, allowing the capacity to spread both faith and power.

Qin

first dynasty of Imperial China. During its reign over China, the Qin sought to create an imperial state unified by highly structured political power and a stable economy able to support a large military. Legalist! Keys to success were conscious adaptation of strategies in order to enhance control and their rigorous, brutal efforts to prevent fragmentation. Rather than simply absorbing conquered territories, the Qin attacked them in order to destroy a rival's possibility of ever fighting back. Strict punishments, no trust, promotion based on merit.

Alexandria

founded by Alexander the Great. It became an important center of the Hellenistic civilization and remained the capital of the Ptolemaic Empire for almost 1000 years until the Muslim conquest of Egypt. One of the main public goals of the Ptolemies was to establish Alexandria as the new Greek cultural center, and they sought to achieve a "monopoly of Greek culture."

Humanitas

human nature, civilization and kindness. Humanitas disguised the violence of the Roman empire - pillage, enslavement, looting, destruction. Romans believed that all people, however barbarous their origins, if properly educated, could ultimately become a part of humanitas. A seductive idea of being included in the vast and universalist Roman empire. The Chinese too believed in the superiority of their civilization and also that leaders with "barbarian" origins could become the emperor's subordinates and advisors, eventually acquiring the virtues associated with good governance.

Latifundia

large plantations in ancient Rome typically worked by slaves. They were large land grants that Charlemagne dispersed to elite families or generals. The slave work allowed them to produce goods for less, making it difficult for smaller farmers to compete. Smaller farmers lost their land and had no choice but to go into the military. Military becomes the only work available to these people, but this does create a very loyal army.

Satrapies

province governed by a satrap. Satraps were typically Persian governors of the provinces of the ancient Median and Achaemenid (Persian) Empires. Meant "protector of the province." Darius required each satrapy to pay a fixed tribute. Similarly, in Rome, the task of the governors outside of Italy was to collect taxes that would pay for the Roman army.

Han

second imperial dynasty. Considered a golden age in Chinese history. an age of economic prosperity and saw a significant growth of the money economy. Key to success was sustaining multiple lines of authority and avoiding too much centralization. The Han dynasty believed that man should have integrity, righteousness, loyalty, respect tradition, and practice good manners. These values are similar to those of humanitas for Romans, both providing a framework for elite education and ideal behavior.

Niumi

19th-century. a small Mandigo kingdom at the mouth of the Gambia River in West Africa. Niumi was primed to be brought into the world system, because the river made them a trading region and gave them the ability to cultivate salt, their major trading good (also the Berbers'). Slaves were used for labor to make their lands more productive, and their engagement in trade from very early on allowed them to learn hospitality and how to deal with outsiders. Since they had a small population density, they welcomed newcomers and visitors, providing them food and shelter. Various groups would come to Niumi to live bringing different goods, cultural values, or religious practices, all altering life for Niumi people. Niumi is an example of how survival and success depended not on force of arms, but on finding a mutuality of interests and then fostering these to benefit both African states and foreign traders.

Gnostic Texts

52 texts written from 2nd-4th centuries. Believed that salvation lay not just in worshipping Christ, but seeking to free the soul from the material world by searching for answers to spiritual questions within. These texts were based upon the teachings of several spiritual leaders. Books of the bible that were left out of the official canon.

Imazighen/Berbers

A mix of Arabs and Muslim converts that settled in north Africa. "free people" or "noble men." Nomadic traders. Mastered trade across sub-Saharan Africa because they domesticated camels. Earliest converts to Islam, and as they moved and traded, they converted other people, too. However, the Berbers stayed linguistically distinct and only slowly converted to Islam. Like the Niumi people, the Berbers utilized the Gambia River for its salt commodity, trading salt with West Africans for gold.

Democracy

During the Classical era of Ancient Greece many city-states had forms of government similar to democracy, in which the free, native adult male citizens of the city took a direct part in the management of the affairs of state.

Xiongnu

Nomads who inhabited the eastern Asian Steppe from 3rd century BC to the late 1st century AD. Leader was Modu Chanyu. Enemy of/threatened Han dynasty's imperial integrity. Nomads on the edge of the Han Empire. Xiongnu were outsiders that generated political and military innovations and enhanced material and cultural connections to world areas. Hans adopted the military style and culture of the Xiongnu.

Republic

Rome's republic was ruled by elected representatives of its people. By creating a body of citizens whose decisions were the source of the law, Romans took sovereignty out of royal or celestial hands and located it in themselves. Like Greek democracy, slaves and women of Rome's republic were not participants in sovereignty. Instead of the emperor holding the empire together or determining its fate, a productive economy, extensive networks of connections, and ideological outreach attracted and compelled subjects' loyalty.

Museum

The Museum was a research centre located in the royal sector of Alexandria. Included the Library of Alexandria. the home of music or poetry, a philosophical school and library, also a storehouse of texts. brought together some of the best scholars of the Hellenistic world, analogous to a modern university. A center for learning.

Jihad

This concept has been considered to mean anything from the religious duty of Muslims to maintain and spread the religion, an inner struggle for personal perfection, or the implication that anyone who resists the faith must be punished. The concept is similar to the Crusader ideology.

Perpetua

a Christian martyr in Carthage 202/203 CE. Significant because her journals recount her trial and imprisonment providing a perspective on how the Christians of her time were treated. Christians were looked down upon, but also seemed to be feared, which is why non-Christians felt the need to persecute and kill them.

Shi'i

a branch of Islam which believes Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib (4th caliph and husband of Muhammad's daughter) as his successor. Believe successors should be descendants of Ali.

Sunni

a branch of Islam which believes Muhammad did not appoint a successor. They consider Abu Bakr (the 1st caliph) who was appointed through a Shura to be the correct caliph. Began the reign of the Umayyads and Abbasids Caliphate. Sunnis believe leaders should be chosen based on loyalty and community.

Cleisthenes

a noble Athenian of the Alcmaeonid family. The father of Athenian democracy. At the end of the sixth century b.c.e., he implemented various reforms that changed politics as well as life in general for the Athenian citizenry. he was credited with increasing the power of the Athenian citizens' assembly and for reducing the power of the nobility over Athenian politics.

Athens

a powerful city-state. A centre for the arts, learning, and philosophy. It is widely referred to as the cradle of Western civilization and the birthplace of democracy, largely because of its cultural and political impact on the European continent, and in particular the Romans.

Crusades

a series of religious wars sanctioned by the Latin Church between the 11th and 16th centuries in order to capture Jerusalem from Islamic rule. Crusades were also fought to recapture Christian territory or defend Christians in non-Christian lands, resolve conflict among rival Roman Catholic groups, gain political/territorial advantage, or combat paganism and heresy. Crusader ideology implied Christianity could and should be adopted by everyone, and those who did not convert should be killed, similar to certain interpretations of Jihad.

Charlemagne

aka Charles the Great was the King of the Franks, a Germanic tribe. He was the first Holy Roman Emperor and first recognized emperor in Western Europe since the fall of the Western Roman Empire. Converted his subjects to Christianity. Crowned emperor by the pope, and this ceremony tied worldly and religious authority in ways that helped both Charlemagne and the pope. His administrative system was similar to that of the Chinese emperor in that it relied on multiple channels of information.

Jesus

aka Jesus of Nazareth, Jewish preacher, central figure of Christianity. Lived from 4 BC to AD 30. Significant because Christians believed him to be the Son of God. A prophet who was born in a time of political turmoil and emerged as a critic of the Roman state.

Caliphate

an Islamic state led by a caliph, a political and religious leader who is a successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad. After the death of the four caliphs, there was a debate about who would be the next leader splitting the Islam community into two branches: Shi'i and Sunni.

Cyrus cylinder

an ancient clay cylinder on which is written a declaration in in the name of Persia's Achaemenid king Cyrus the Great. Dates from 6th century BCE, found in the ruins of Babylon/modern Iraq. The text praises Cyrus and portrays him as a king from a line of kings. Includes an account of Cyrus' laws after he took over Babylon. He welcomed back anyone who was exiled from Babylon including the Jews, abolished slavery, and punished oppressors. Both Cyrus and his successor Darius pursued a policy of toleration and took care to respect the values and cultural traditions of the people they ruled.

Mansa Musa

tenth sultan/emperor of the wealthy African Mali Empire. It was the role of the mansa to settle disputes, coordinate agriculture, oversee relations with traders/strangers, intercede with spirits or ancestors of the land, and deal with warfare-related matters.

Sufism

the inner mystical dimension of Islam. Sufism involves an enlightened inner being, not intellectual proof; revelation and witnessing, not logic.

Colonialism

the policy or practice of acquiring full or partial political control over another country, occupying it with settlers, and exploiting it economically. Beginning with Alexander the Great's conquest, Egypt was ruled for three centuries by a Greek foreign dynasty, the Ptolemies who took over the political center of the state.

Darius

the third king of the Persian Empire. He was the greatest of the Achaemenid emperors and ruled the empire at its peak. He conquered vast lands while also pioneering administrative techniques that would later influence political life in Asia for centuries. He organized the empire into satrapies (provinces), established a tax-collection system, allowed locals to keep their customs and religions, and built a system of roads and 2 new capital cities.

Umma

the unity of political and religious communities. Umma originally meant early Muslims aspired to a high degree of equality, resulting in Islam appealing to many in a world that was becoming increasingly interconnected. As the Islamic empire grew, Umma later came to mean a community egalitarian within itself and seeking to absorb or combat outsiders.

What were the Salt and Iron Debates about? How did they illustrate the differences between Confucianist and Legalist views of human nature?

• Discourses on Salt and Iron were debates on government fiscal policy during the Han dynasty on economic policies regarding state monopolies of iron, salt, and liquor. • The debate was characterized by two opposing factions: reformists/Confucians and modernists/legalists • Legalists: supported the continuation of Emperor Wu's policies in order to appropriate the profits of private merchants to fund the government's military and colonization campaigns. Regulating the markets will create an equalizing factor in the economy. believed people needed strict leadership and laws passed in order to control their behavior. • Confucians: argued that government sponsorship of business enterprises encouraged immoral behavior and distorted individuals' decision-making processes. They wished to abolish the salt, iron, and liquor monopolies and the system of equable marketing. Believed people should stick to one occupation, allowing agriculture to prosper. Confucians believed the state "should not compete with the people for profit." Believed people would be able to make the right choice as long as they had a good leader. Believed the policies would bring about corruption and greediness. • However, abolishment of monopolies would require finding new ways to pay to protect border patrol on the frontier. Confucians responded by stating a benevolent government would have no enemies, and therefore, require no troops. • Legalists argued the Xiongnu was "savage and cunning," thus funding border patrol was necessary to defend China from barbarian incursions. Legalists also believed maintaining the monopolies would allow for stabilization of prices of many essential goods. • Only the liquor monopoly was abolished.

What role do epic stories play in the creation of states and empires? (Be sure to discuss Sundiata and other examples from class in your answer.)

• Epic stories can be used to convey information about the history of a certain empire, and following similarities from multiple epics can show a pattern in the way different states and empires were created. • The Epic of Sundiata specifically provides information about the history of the Mali Empire. During his exile, Sundiata forms alliances with old friends and neighboring kingdoms in order to return to Mali and become king. Therefore, the Epic of Sundiata demonstrates how alliances and being able to unite different groups of people were pertinent in the process of state-making. • Both the Odyssey and Sundiata share a theme of predestination, or a belief that each man has a fixed destiny. Odysseus and Sundiata both faced long journeys returning to their empires during which they were greeted with hospitality and alliances. • Also, the epic of Gilgamesh and Sundiata are both examples of how people believed kings typically had some special knowledge or advantage given to them by the gods. • Cyrus and Sundiata both lived out a prophecy that involved exile and a return to the center of power. People in both stories attempted to prevent the two heroes from coming into power. • The epic stories would also influence future political leaders, such as Cleisthenes who was heavily inspired by the Homeric epics.

How do the lives of Khadija and Aisha illustrate shifting ideas about women in the Islamic world in the time of Muhammed? Were those shifts complete?

• Gender inequality was varied in Arabia. Some women held more authoritative positions, whereas some lived within a patriarchal structure. • Both wives, particularly Khadija, had an unexpected and quite uncommon amount of power. • Khadija was the first wife of Muhammad and regarded as the "Mother of the Believers." Khadija was a wealthy business woman who chose to marry Muhammad, indicating she had control over her sexuality. He even remained faithful to her during their marriage. Her economic independence, sexual control, and monogamous marriage are reflections of Jahilia society rather than Islamic practice. • Aisha was one of Muhammad's wives following Khadija's death. During her time, Islam instituted a hierarchical type of marriage that granted men control over women and the Islamic period marked the decline of women's role in central affairs of the community. Aisha had to follow the new custom of veiling and was eventually forced to cease to be in public. However, Aisha and the other wives pushed back against any sort of restraints that would limit their freedom and access to power. • The difference between Khadija's and Aisha's lives foreshadows Islam's future changes towards a more patriarchal structure.

Briefly describe life in Egypt during the Ptolemaic Period. How was it experienced differently by Egyptians and Greeks?

• The Greeks formed the upper classes in Egypt, replacing the old native aristocracy, but it is crucial to note that racism during the Ptolemaic time period can distort and prevent an accurate representation of identities during that time. • During the Ptolemaic Period, ethnicity could be identified by name, but also by occupation. For example, a position such as banker was considered Greek, while the position of village scribe was considered Egyptian. Tax exemptions were solely granted to those with "Greek" occupations. • The Greeks became a privileged minority in Ptolemaic Egypt that kept themselves separate from the Egyptians. They lived under Greek law, received a Greek education, were tried in Greek courts, and were citizens of Greek cities, just as they had been in Greece. • The Greeks often discriminated against Egyptians, and in Greek literature, the Egyptians were depicted as dangerous thieves, pick-pockets, and a persistent public threat. • While the Ptolemies adopted the outward display of the Pharaohs, the Ptolemies promoted an emphasis on Greek culture. • The Egyptians rarely had access to these higher levels of Greek culture, and in order to be admitted, they had to adopt Greek characteristics. Therefore, life in Ptolemaic Egypt resulted in fluidity of ethnicity, specifically Egyptians crossing into the category of Greek.