Chapter 7 Guided Reading
What were East Africa's contributions to the Indian Ocean network?
East African city-states were buying items from Asia. Many residents of the city-states were willing to pay high prices for cotton, silk, and porcelain objects. These items were expensive because they were not available in Africa at the time. These were Africa's imports in the Indian Ocean Trade.
What lay behind the flourishing of Indian Ocean commerce in the post-classical millennium?
Economic and Political revival of China, especially during the Tang and Song dynasties. Chines supplied and consumed products of the Indian Ocean trading network. China had technological innovations, some of which included large ships. rise of Islam in seventh century C.E. & its spread across Afro-Eurasian world. Islam is friendly to commercial life by creating the Arab empire, bringing it together in a single political system, and creating a rang go traditions. Middle eastern gold and silver purchased pepper textiles and gemstones in India, Opportunities for trade led to production of sugar & date in Mesopotamia and Slave trade from east Africa. Conversion to Islam creates international maritime culture in Indian Ocean.
Describe the West African Islamic kingdoms of Ghana, Mali, and Songhay.
Ghana, Mali, and Songhai were three of the greatest western African trading states. Beginning with Ghana as early as 300 c.e. and ending with the conquest of the Songhai by Morocco in the 16th century c.e., they dominated the trade of gold, salt, and merchandise between North Africa and sub-Saharan Africa. Ghana, Mali, and Songhai were successful and well-organized states that overcame tribal divisions and fused traditional beliefs with the universal ambitions of Islam.
Explain the connection between governments and trade in the post classical era.
Governments also invested in exploratory expeditions to develop shorter routes to desired nations. China sought out other nations, and many European states searched for a shorter route to the East. They also funded trade organizations, developed trade infrastructure, and supported production activities. Politically, they established relations for trade and fought for trade routes with aggressive nations. Merchants exploded in population size and also carried with them the cultures of the world. Languages, art, technologies, and religions were all spread by the merchants in this time.
Describe the peoples, societies, regions, and goods that were trade in the Indian Ocean network.
Harappans were the first mariners from India who had maritime trade relations with countries outside India. They sailed up to the coast of Bahrain, Meluhha, Oman Peninsula and Mesopotamia using monsoon winds and currents, but no evidence is available in this regard. Greek and Roman mariners were able to reach the Indian coast to carry out extensive maritime trade with the help of monsoon winds. pepper trade at the Malabar coast; ports on the west coast of India and Ceylon were the centres of commerce between China, the Gulf of Persia and the Red Sea region.
What lay behind the emergence of Silk Road commerce, and what kept it going for so many centuries?
It was powered by the exchanging of products in inner Eurasia. Some Classical civilizations were even able to claim territory or pastoral people and secure sections of the silk roads. Silk Roads had continued support from some states, and demand for hard to find goods among elite or wealthy people required the Silk Roads to stay working.
Which merchant groups traveled far from their homes along trade routes and set up communities? Where?
Maritime merchants who traveled to foreign lands are the most glamorous and best known of medieval merchants. Twentieth-century scholarship focused largely on these long-distance merchants.
How did religion affect the Indian Ocean trade network?
Muslim merchants and sailors, as well as Jews and Christians living within the Islamic world, established communities of traders from east Africa to south China coast. Helped fuel the indian Ocean Trade Network.
In what ways did long-distance commerce act as a motor of change in premodern world history?
People could now travel to parts of the world that they previously would have never seen or reached, this allowed for an intermingling of cultures, societies, and beliefs. Which, in turn, created and/ or altered new cultures, societies, and beliefs.
What are the political, social, and economic effects of networks of exchange during the Post Classical Era?
Pol) governments invested in explorations, and either lost or gained large amounts of money or trade as a result. Soc) Some merchants became rich due to an ability to now reach their demand with supply. Peasants could now become rich off of silk, textiles, porcelain, etc. Eco) Economy in countries with high-demand products in previously remote parts of the world could now vastly improve, since networks of exchange allowed supply to now reach the demand. Countries could now profit off their goods.
Compare and contrast characteristics of exchange zones in the Americas with those of Afro-Eurasia.
River networks of North America, where commerce plays an important role in regions where contact was possible. Dense communication lays between, rather than within, like the regions that house the two great civilizations of the Western Hemisphere- Mesoamerica and the Andes.
What made silk such a highly desired commodity across Eurasia?
Silk was used as a currency, and was symbolic for wealth. It became associated with sacristy in religions that were widely expanding, such as Christianity, and Buddhism.
What typed of goods were traded along the Silk Roads? Why Those?
Silk, Textiles, Porcelain, Iron, Spices. These were in demand products.
Analyze coercive labor during the Post Classical Era.
Slavery continued to persist throughout the post-classical period and it's hold on economic success didn't waver. unfree and coerced labor supported the governments and states that inflicted it onto others the only changes are the various developments and increase in the use of slaves. Slavery continued and grew during the post-classical era. They were formerly used for war and domestic jobs
What was the role of Swahili civilization in the world of Indian Ocean commerce?
Swahili cities provide commercial centers that accumulate good from interior sub-saharan Africa and exchange them for products of the Indian Ocean trading network. Swahili civilization also participated in the larger Indian Ocean world. Most important, merchants visited and sometime permanently settled in Swahili cities. Rules often claim Arab or Persian origins to support their authority. Swahili language was grammatically a Bantu tongue, but was written in Arabic script and contain multiple Arabic origins
Describe the Swahili and Great Zimbabwe civilizations in East Africa.
Swahili lived on the east African coast and engaged in Indian ocean trade. These people obtained gold, slaves, ivory, and exotic local products from the interior regions of east Africa and traded them for pottery, glass, and textiles brough by Muslim merchants from Persia, India, and China. Great Zimbabwe served as the capital of Zimbabwe, and had large stone walls, towers, palaces, and public buildings. Kings controlled and taxed trade between the interior and coastal regions, which allowed them to make alliances with local leaders and profit from commercial transactions.
Why is the Black Death important? What were the short term and long term effect across Afro-Eurasia?
Swept away almost a third of the populations in Europe, China, and Middle East.
How were the ways that the American trade network was similar to and different from the Sand, Sea, and Silk Roads?
The American Web less intense and complete than the Afro-Eurasian trade networks, this web nonetheless provided a means of exchange for luxury goods and ideas over large area.
Explain all of the goods, ideas, technology, and peoples that traveled the Silk Roads, and their effects on Eurasian cultures.
The Chinese Four Great Inventions (paper making, printing, gunpowder and compass) as well as the skills of silkworm breeding and silk spinning were transmitted to the West. This greatly sped up the development of the entire world. Arab muslims traveled to China by the Silk Road or the sea route to spread Islam. religions of the West were introduced into China via the world-famous route. European travelers reached China through the Silk Road and brought back Printing Technique to Europe. In 1444, Gutenberg, a German inventor of letterpress printing, printed the Bible using a similar printing technique.
Explain the roles of Southeast Asian societies in the Indian Ocean network.
The Hangzhou society in Southeast Asia made many innovations to revolutionize Indian Ocean network, including the Grand Canal. The development of the compass and plotted wind patterns gave travelers better sailing abilities and confidence to make longer routes. Ship improvements came, too. Multiple masts, larger sails, better rudders, and thicker hulls all gave the ships more sailing power and greater storage.
What technological developments aided Indian Ocean trade?
The development of the compass and plotted wind patterns gave travelers better sailing abilities and confidence to make longer routes. Multiple masts, larger sails, better rudders, and thicker hulls all gave the ships more sailing power and increased storage.
How did the major religions change as they spread? Give specific examples.
The three major world religions — Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam — changed over time and were transmitted across cultures. ... During that time, believers spread their faith to rulers of diverse states as well as to merchants, travelers, and local communities who adopted and promoted the new religions.
What were the major economic, social, and cultural consequences of Silk Road commerce?
Trade over considerable distance could change the lives of farmers, who could give up farming for food and produce silk, textiles, or other high demand good, and make a much larger fortune.
In what ways did Indian influence register in Southeast Asia?
Trade stimulated political change as rulers used the wealth derived from commerce to construct larger and more centrally governed states or cities. Also experiences cultural change as local people were attracted to foreign religious ideas from Confucian, Hindu, Buddhist, or Islamic sources. Trade was a conduit for culture.
Explain the effects of the monsoon winds on trade in Indian Ocean.
Use of the monsoon wind in the Indian Ocean for maritime trade was a boon to sailing ships to reach overseas countries. Mariners from Orissa, India used to set out on their journey to Southeast Asian countries during the northeast monsoon (trade wind) and return during the southwest monsoon. The flow of wind and current was favourable for both the onward and return journey. With this development came the ability to reach new places with new goods, and increased trade.
Compare features of Han China to those of Imperial Rome.
both the Han and Roman empires fully exploited the ecological limits of their economic base and human resources, they became more interested in consolidating power within these limits than expanding them. Each empire brought the provinces of their domains together into regimes of unprecedented scale and thereby enhanced the integration of local worlds into a common legal and cultural framework.
What goods were carried within and out of Africa along the Sand Roads? (trans-Saharan)
salt, gold, slaves, manufactured goods
Give 5 specific examples of architecture influenced by religion. Name the monument, the location, and the religion that influenced it.
1. Taj Mahal, India, Islam 2. Lakshmana Temple, India, Hinduism 3. The Great Stupa at Sanchi, India, Buddhism 4. Parthenon, Greece, Greek Mythology 5. Pantheon, Rome, Roman Mythology 6. Hagia Sophia, Turkey, Christianity
Was the disappearance of the wheel an advance in terms of transportation in the Middle East? What impact did the Arabian camel have on long distance trade in Eurasia and Africa? How might reliance on the camel rather than the wheel affect human settlements?
A) Yes, most of the Middle East had a desert terrain, where the wheel would merely sink through sand once weighted. Therefore, it was pretty ineffective. B) The camel did for Eurasia and Africa what the wheel did for pretty much everywhere else. people no longer had to walk impossible distance, and could ride on the backs of animals, or load the backs with goods. Revolutionary to transportation of trade items. C) A camel can carry more weight and go farther distance than a person, so this increased trade and developed economic standings that hadn't been seen in some settlements before.
Explain the relationships between governments and trade routes during the Post Classical Era
Aided the rise of African empires and kingdoms in West Africa and Brought prosperity to East Africa through the development of trading networks into the interior of the continent; set stage for the rise of African trading cities such as Sofala and Kilwa
What is the significance of the introduction of the camel into Africa from South-west Asia?
Allowed transportation of goods since camels had toes that could move through the sand, unlike horses and wheels which would sink in sand, especially under weight.
In what ways did networks of interaction in the Western Hemisphere differ from those in the Eastern Hemisphere?
American civilizations aren't nearly as densely settled as the Afro-Eurasian due to innovations already made by their time of discovery. No equivalent to silk, sea or sand roads. Spread of agriculture was slower and less pro-owned on the Americas, spread of distinct cultural traditions like Buddhism, Christianity, or Islam. Americas did have interaction zones.
To what extent did the Silk roads and the Sea Roads operate in a similar fashion? How did they differ?
Both were revolutionary to the world's trade industry, and created an intermingling of cultures and societies that hadn't previously been seen before, or at least not on such a dramatic scale. They differ obviously in the fact that one is on land, and one overseas. While one can increase trade between nations, another can create trade between continents. transportation costs were cheaper on the sea roads, the sea roads could carry bulk good for mass sale, and relied on monsoons.
What accounted for the spread of Buddhism along the Silk Roads?
Buddhism had high appeal to Indian merchants. Luxurious cities in Central Asia were founded in Buddhism quite often, and it became associated with wealthy and prestigious civilizations. Buddhists built monasteries and supported monks so they could earn religious credit, and soon became a religion for foreign merchants or rules for many centuries. Buddhism picked up elements from multiple cultures, allowing it to appeal to a variety of people.
How and where did the major religions spread?
Buddhism was the first of the great missionary faiths to take advantage of the mobility provided by the Silk Road to extend its reach far beyond its native ground. Buddhist merchants from those areas built temples and shrines along the Silk Road everywhere they went; the priests and monks who staffed those religious establishments preached to local populations and passing travelers, spreading the faith rapidly.
What was the impact of disease along the Silk Roads?
Communicable diseases became widespread and pandemic due to a lack of immunity or cures.
What changes did trans-Saharan trade bring to West Africa?
Construction of bigger political structures, sudanic states establish mainly urban and commercial centers. some become manufacturing centers. Islam accompanied trade and became important.
Explain the spread of diseases across trade routes in different places during the Post Classical Era. Be Specific.
Continuing a phenomenon from the classical age, trade routes would also spread communicable diseases by the intermingling of people. people would come to a trade post for foreign goods, where they would contract a disease not native to their region, and take it back with them. Since these diseases were going to regions they weren't native to, they were spread to people who hadn't developed immunities to them, thus making them even more widespread and epic than before.
