Answer the Key Concept Questions using your AMSCO World History Modern.

Each question has

been organized according to the units and chapters in the book. You may need to flip around through
some chapters to find the appropriate section. Respond thoroughly in your own words. The outline
below indicates the unit and the chapter from AMSCO.

2.1 The Silk Roads (Unit 2 Chapter 1 of AMSCO)

1. Explain the various circumstances that enhanced the commercialization of trade along the Silk
Road. Discuss the various luxury goods that grew in demand across Eurasia.

The crusades helped pave the way to expanding networks of exchange, as lords and their armies
of knights brought back fabrics and spices from the East. China was eager for Europe’s gold and
silver, and Europe was eager for Asia’s silk, tea, and rhubarb.

One major cause was the rise of new empires. Arab merchants from the Empire revived and
enhanced the land route of the Silk Roads. Tang China offered the trade network compass, paper,
and gunpowder. “Various luxury goods that grew in demand include Asian(Chinese) porcelain,
tea, silk, cotton, precious stones, pomegranates, dates, and grapes from other parts of Eurasia.”
The rise of the Mongol Empire also enhanced the commercialization of trade along the Silk Road.
The Mongol Empire became an authority, which respected merchants and enforced laws, unifying
parts of the Silk Road that was under the authority of different rulers in a system. The Mongols
improved roads and punished bandits, which increased the safety of travel on the Silk Roads. In
addition, new trade channels were established between Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Europe.

Another major cause was the improvements in transportation technologies. Travelers along the
Silk Road learned to travel in caravans rather than to travel alone. In addition, travelers designed
saddles for camels that greatly increased the weight of the load the animals could carry. Along the
seas, Chinese scientists in the Han Dynasty developed the magnetic compass and improved the
rudder, both of which helped aid navigation and ship control. “The Chinese junk, a boat
developed in the Han Dynasty, had tripled the size of the typical Western European ship of its
time.” “The walls that divided the hull of a junk strengthened the ship for rough voyages at sea
and made sinking less likely.”

The growing demand for luxury goods led to a corresponding increase in the supply of those
goods such as silk and other textiles and porcelains through expanded production. Increased
demand also led to the expansion of iron and steel manufactured in China, motivating its proto-
industrialization.

2. How did innovations in technology and improvements in transportation such as the

caravanserai support the increase of trade along the Silk Road?

Once the Silk Road revived, travelers learned how to design saddles for camels which greatly
increased the weight of the load the animals could carry. Another innovation was the
caravanserai, inns for travelers and their animals to rest. At the caravanserai, travelers sometimes
traded their animals for fresh ones, which supported the increase of trade along the Silk Road.
“Another innovation was that China developed a new financial system known as flying cash,
which allowed a merchant to deposit paper money under his name in one location and withdraw
the same amount at another location.” “Flying cash became a model for the banks of the modern
era, including the banking houses where a person could present a bill of exchange, a written order
without interest that binds one party to pay a fixed sum to another party at a predetermined date in
the future.” Each of these innovations encouraged and supported trade by providing convenience
and the stability of institutions.
 3. Explain the rise of new commercial practices that led to the growth of interregional trade such
as forms of credit and money economies.

A new commercial practice, flying cash, led to the growth of interregional trade because they were
wieldy to transport for everyday transactions and provided convenience and stability to institutions.
Another new commercial practice, caravanserai, led to the growth of interregional trade because
travelers could sometimes trade their horses or other livestock for fresh ones, creating a multiplier
effect of growing trade in numerous locations of caravanserai. “Another new commercial practice, the
Hanseatic League, led to the growth of interregional trade because Europeans(people in cities in
northern Germany and Scandinavia) controlled trade in the North Sea and the Baltic Sea, driving out
pirates and monopolizing trade in goods such as timber, grain, leather, and salted fish.” The
Hanseatic League would travel to the Mediterranean to pick up goods from Arab caravans, which
increased trading activities.

1.1 Developments in East Asia (Unit 1 Chapter 1 of AMSCO)

4. Empires and states in Afro-Eurasia and the Americas demonstrated continuity, innovation,
and diversity in the 13th century. Explain how the Song dynasty in China utilized traditional
methods of Confucianism and the imperial bureaucracy to maintain and justify its rule.

China’s strength was partially the result of its imperial bureaucracy, a vast organization in which
appointed officials carried out the empire’s policies. China utilized a bureaucratic system in
education, creating a meritocracy. “One could obtain a highly desired job in the bureaucracy if he or
she scores well on the civil service exams, which were based on knowledge of Confucian texts.” This
meritocracy allowed for more upward mobility than any other hiring system of its time.

5. Explain how the Chinese economy under the Song flourished as a result of increased
productive capacity, expanding trade networks, and innovations in agriculture and manufacturing.

Expanding trade networks, such as building the Grand Canal, enabled China to become the most
populous trading area in the world. The Grand Canal supported a vibrant internal trade while
advances in naval technology allowed China to control trade in the South China Sea. Increased
productive capacity, such as the expanded agricultural production of Champa rice from Vietnam to
China, allowed farming to spread to lands where once rice could not grow, such as riverbanks, and
hills. Champa rice resulted in greater yields and allowed farmers to harvest both in summer and in
winter. Innovations in agriculture, such as putting both human and animal(manure) on the fields to
enrich the soil and building elaborate irrigation systems, allowed previously unusable land to be
cultivated. China also had the greatest manufacturing capability in the world at the time. The Chinese
people manufactured steel to build national projects and religious items. Steel strengthened the
agricultural equipment, contributing to the abundance of food production as well. During the Song
Dynasty, China experienced proto-industrialization, a set of economic changes in which people in
rural areas made more goods than they could sell. Artisans manufactured steel, porcelain, and silk,
creating a multiplier effect that strengthened the expansion of trade networks and food production.
The Chinese economy that flourished in the Song Dynasty could also be traced to taxes. The
government paid people to work on national projects, which increased the amount of money in
circulation, promoting economic growth. Another source of income was the tributary system, an
arrangement in which other states had to pay money or provide goods to honor the Chinese emperor.
The tributary system cemented China’s economic and political power over several foreign countries,
but it also created stability and stimulated trade for all parties involved. The stability of trade and
market production from expanded trade networks and the tributary system, the abundance of food
production from increased productive capacity and agricultural and manufacturing innovations, and
the increasing amount of money in circulation from the tax system led to the flourished economy in
the Song Dynasty.

6. Identify the impact of Chinese cultural traditions on East Asia

 Japan Korea Vietnam

1. A tributary state of 1. A tributary state of 1. A tributary state of

China: The Chinese China: The Chinese China: The Chinese
emperor expected emperor expected emperor expected
Japanese Korean Vietnamese
representatives to representatives to representatives to
demonstrate their demonstrate their demonstrate their
respect by respect by respect by
performing a performing a performing a
kowtow, a ritual in kowtow, a ritual in kowtow, a ritual in
which anyone which anyone which anyone
greeting the greeting the greeting the Chinese
Chinese emperor Chinese emperor emperor must bow
must bow his or her must bow his or her his or her head until
head until it head until it reaches it reaches the floor.
reaches the floor. the floor. 2. Vietnam adapted the
2. Japan promoted 2. Koreans adopted Chinese writing
Buddhism and both Confucian and system and
Confucianism Buddhist beliefs: architectural styles.
along with Japan’s the educated elite 3. Vietnam adopted a
traditional Shinto studied Confucian merit-based
religion. During classics, while bureaucracy of
this era, Japan Buddhist doctrine educated men.
learned how to do attracted the 4. Vietnam had a more
woodblock printing peasant masses. adversarial
from China. 3. Koreans adopted relationship with
3. Japan emulated the Chinese writing China.
Chinese traditions system. 5. Vietnam rejected the
in politics, art, and 4. Koreans centralized customs of foot
literature during the the government in binding and
Heian period. the style of the polygyny, the
4. Japanese feudalism, Chinese. practice of having
a similar practice to 5. Koreans had a more than one wife
European merit-based at the same time.
feudalism, featured bureaucracy but 6. Vietnam preferred
very little social were not open to nuclear families
mobility, and both peasants, which rather than the
systems were built meant that there Chinese extended
upon hereditary was no truly merit- families.
hierarchies. based system for
5. Japan was under entering the
the control of a bureaucracy.
land-owning family
rather than a
centralized
government and
emperor like the
Chinese after the
Heian court
 declined.

7. Buddhism had a significant impact in shaping East Asian societies. What are the three major
branches of Buddhism?

The three major branches of Buddhism are Theravada Buddhism, Mahayana Buddhism, and
Tibetan Buddhism. “Theravada Buddhism focused on personal spiritual growth through silent
meditation and self-discipline.” “Mahayana Buddhism focuses on spiritual growth for all beings
and on service. Mahayana Buddhism became strongest in China and Korea.” “Tibetan Buddhism
focused on chanting.” Tibetan Buddhism became the strongest in Tibet.

8. Explain the syncretic nature of Buddhism in China, specifically Chan Buddhism and Neo-
Confucianism.

Monks introduced Buddhism to the Chinese by relating its beliefs to Daoist principles. For
instance, Buddhism’s idea of dharma was translated as dao (“the way”). Buddhist doctrines
combined with elements of Daoist traditions to create the syncretic, or fused, faith Chan
Buddhism, also known as Zen Buddhism. Like Daoism, Zen Buddhism emphasized direct
experience and meditation as opposed to formal learning based on studying scripture. Neo-
Confucianism was a syncretic system, combining rational thought with the more abstract ideas of
Daoism and Buddhism. This new incarnation of Confucianism emphasized ethics rather than the
mysteries of God and nature. Mahayana Buddhism particularly combined Buddhist teachings with
Confucian, Daoist, and Shinto teachings, which are also known as the Triple Religion.

1.2 Developments in Dar al-Islam

9. By 1200 the Abbasid Empire began to fragment with many challenges. Identify the various
pressures confronting the Arabic world by outsiders and people groups.

The Abbasid Empire confronted political challenges both from nomadic groups in Central Asia
and European invaders. For example, one Turkic group in Central Asia, the Mamluks, took
control of the Egyptian government as they became enslaved. Another challenge that the Abbasid
Empire confronted was the Central Asian Seljuk Turks. The Seljuk Turks conquered many parts
of the Middle East and some parts of Western China. The Seljuk reduced the role of Islamic
caliph to chief Sunni religious authority as the Seljuk’s leader called himself sultan. Additionally,
the Selkuk Turks limited Christians from accessing Muslim holy sites around Jerusalem, which
made European Christians organize Crusaders, or groups of soldiers, to reopen access by force.
Besides the Seljuk Turks, Mongols conquered the Abbasid Empire. They ended the Seljuk rule
and pushed their reign westward but were stopped in Egypt by the Mamluks. The Abbasid Empire
also confronted economic challenges. Baghdad, a traditional trade route and economic center
controlled by the Abbasid Empire, lost wealth and population as trade patterns shifted to routes
farther north. Therefore, once the great city Badgdad fell into decay.

10. Although the Islamic world fragmented by 1200, what are the cultural continuities shared by
the mostly Turkic empires?

Turkic Muslim scholars preserved Muhammad’s principle: “Go in quest of knowledge even unto
China.” One example of continuity is that the Turkic Empires translated Greek literature into
Arabic, protecting Aristotle's works and other Greek thinkers from oblivion. Another example of
continuity is that the Turkic Empires studied Indian mathematics texts and delivered the
knowledge to Europeans. Another example of continuity is that the Turkic Empires adopted
techniques for paper-making from China. Europeans learned to make paper through the Turkic
Empires.

11. Explain the significant intellectual innovations and transfers established by Muslim states.
Discuss how they borrowed from previous and existing societies and enhanced their scholarship.

One Islamic scholar Nasir al-Din al-Tusi inspired people to build an observatory, which produced
the most accurate astronomical charts. Furthermore, he laid the foundation for making
trigonometry a separate subject as he studied the relationship between the lengths of the sides of a
triangle and the angles. Another well-known Islamic scholar Ibn Khaldun pioneered works in the
fields of historiography and sociology, Ibn Khaldun’s most notable accomplishment has been the
book One Thousand and One Nights. Sufi (Significant Arabic missionaries) poet and mystic
A'ishah al-Ba’uniyyah’s poem “Clear Inspiration, on Praise of the Trusted on,” which honored
Muhammad, referred to many poets, reflecting her broad learning. During the Islamic Golden
Age, astronomy, law, logic, ethics, mathematics, philosophy, and medicine were developed.
Healthcare was improved. People prioritized education and the mightiness of Islam as Islam
spread to other regions of the world quickly.

12. Explain the cultural and scholarly transfer in Islamic Spain known as al-Andalus.

Al-Andalus, the Islamic state in Spain, became a center of learning. For instance, works on law,
secular philosophy, and the nature sciences were transferred frequently. Al-Andalus also became
a center of cultural interaction. The Muslims, Christians, and Jews tolerated one another but also
influenced one another. For instance, the Muslims, Christians, and Jews were inspired by one
another’s perception of Aristotelian philosophies. Islamic scholarship and scientific innovations,
along with the knowledge transferred from India and China, laid the groundwork for the
Renaissance and Scientific Revolution in Europe. For instance, the Islamic world learned Chinese
paper-making and taught this technique to Europeans.

1.3 Developments in South and Southeast Asia

13. After the fall of the Gupta Empire in 550 CE, disunity returned to the Indian subcontinent.
Explain the fragmented kingdoms of the south and of the north.

Northern and southern India developed separate political structures. Southern India was more
stable than Northern India. South India had two kingdoms: the Chola Dynasty and the
Vijayanagara Empire. Northern India experienced a great deal more upheaval than did southern
India. The Rajput kingdoms gradually formed in northern India and present-day Pakistan. These
kingdoms were clans who were constantly fighting each other. Because of the competition among
clans, no centralized government arose, once again demonstrating the diversity and the
regionalism of South Asia. The lack of a centralized power left the Rajput kingdoms vulnerable to
Muslim attacks. For instance, Islamic forces plundered northern India’s Hindu temples and
Buddhist holy sites.

14. Explain the political structure and governance with the rise of the Delhi Sultanate. What were
the challenges that impeded the centralization of power?

Delhi Sultanate brought Islam into India, facilitating the interaction of Islam and Hinduism in
northern India. Delhi Sultanate imposed a tax, called the jizya, on all non-Muslim subjects of the
empire, leading to the resentment of Muslims from some Hindus. One challenge that impeded the
centralization of power was that the Delhi Sultanate never organized an efficient bureaucracy in
the style of the Chinese, leading to difficulties for sultans to impose their policies in a land as vast
 and diverse as India. Local kingdoms continued to play a major role in India’s decentralized
political landscape. Another challenge was that the Sultans wanted to extend their empire
southward while they were defending themselves from the Mongols. The sultans soon became
exhausted, and they lost power to a new empire, the Mughals, whose leaders did trace their
ancestry to the Mongols.

15. How did Islam impact the social structure of South Asia?

Islam did little to alter India’s caste system. However, the arrival of Islam lent stability to a
politically decentralized land. The caste system was flexible and able to accommodate
newcomers. Muslim merchants and migrants found a place for themselves within the caste
hierarchy based on their occupation. These subcastes based on occupation operated like workers’
guilds, soon becoming absorbed into the social fabric of Indian society.

Muslims varied how they applied its core teachings depending on their culture before converting.
For instance, Islam did little to alter Hindu women’s social status and confined Hindu women to a
separate social sphere.

16. Identify the various ways in which Islam and Hinduism merged together to reflect cultural
interactions in South Asia.

Islam and Hinduism merged together through architecture. “Rulers from the Delhi Sultanate built
an elaborate mosque on top of a Hindu temple with the Qutub Minar towering over the mosque.”
This tower exemplifies that Islam has influenced northern India. Islam and Hinduism also merged
together through the language system. Urdu, a new language developed among Muslims of South
Asia, combined the grammatical pattern of Hindi and the vocabulary of Arabic and some
elements of Farsi. Additionally, Islam and Hinduism merged through religious movements. The
Bhaktis, who focused on developing a strong attachment to a particular deity, were similar to
Muslim Sufis who also emphasized inner reflection in order to obtain a personal relationship with
a deity. As the Bhaktis and Sufis appealed to people outside of Hinduism and Islam, respectively,
they helped spread the two religions.

17. Explain the impact South Asia had on the developing empires of Southeast Asia. Include the
political, economic, and cultural traditions that spread to Southeast Asia.

South Asian merchants sold gold, silver, metal goods, and textiles to the Khmer Empire and other
Southeast Asian Kingdoms, leading to the Khmer Empire’s economic prosperity and making it
one of the most prosperous kingdoms in Southeast Asia. Trade voyages also introduced the Indian
religions of Hinduism and Buddhism to Southeast Asia. For instance, the Majapahit Kingdom was
a Hindu kingdom. Another example is that Hindu artwork and sculptures of deities abounded in
the Khmer Empire. The great temple complex at Angkor Wat in modern-day Cambodia reflects
the interaction between Hinduism and Buddhism in Southeast Asia.

The Sinhala dynasties in Sri Lanka had large chunks of North Indian immigrants in the dynasties’
roots. Additionally, Buddhism was so deeply embedded in the dynasties that Buddhist priests
often served as advisors to the monarchs. One of the Sinhala dynasties in Sri Lanka oversaw the
construction of a network of reservoirs and canals to create an advanced irrigation system.
Besides Hinduism and Buddhism, South Asian Islam impacted Southeast Asia. The first
Southeast Asian Muslims were local merchants, who converted on account of developing better
diplomatic relations with the Islamic merchants who arrived on the Southeast Asian shores.
Today, Indonesia includes more Muslims than any other country.

1.6 Developments in Europe

18. Explain the rise of feudalism and the manor system in Europe during the Middle Ages.
 European civilization in the Middle Ages was characterized by a decentralized political
organization based on a system of exchanges of land for loyalty known as feudalism. “Feudalism
had three obligations: one, a monarch granted land to lords, and lords became a king’s vassal who
owed service to another person of higher status; two, lords granted land to knights and knights
became a lord’s vassal; three, lords granted land to peasants and peasants in return farmed the
lord’s land and aided lords with crops.” Feudalism was popular in Europe during the Middle
Ages because it was economically and politically stable. Feudalism helped peasants to make a
living in agriculture. Feudalism included rules to resolve disputes.

Manors were large lands or estates. The manor system was similar to feudalism. Peasants known
as serfs were tied to their lords’ land. The lords in fact controlled the lives of serfs. Serfs also
needed to pay tribute in the form of crops, labor, or coins in exchange for lords’ protection. The
manor system was popular in Europe during the Middle Ages since the manor produced so many
things that trade or contact with outsiders was unnecessary. This stabilized the social and
economic status of many households. However, the manor system decentralized power because as
one household started gaining too much power, political infringements were inevitable as justified
by the Crusades.

19. Western Europe was also known as Christendom. How did the spread of Christianity in the
early Middle Ages shape European states and society?

Christianity impacted European states and society in many aspects. The Roman Catholic Church
was considered the definitive authority of Christianity, and the small branches of the church
provided people with a shared identity even as vernacular languages, even spoken by the people
in a region, emerged to replace Latin. The Roman Catholic Church emphasized education, so
philosophers, writers, and other thinkers of the Middle Ages were religious leaders. Artworks also
reflected religious themes, which helped peasants to understand the Bible visually. Additionally,
the Roman Catholic Church was an influential player in politics. For instance, the Church held
great power in the feudal system. If a lord displeased the Church, it could pressure the lord in
various ways. Moreover, the Roman Catholic Church and Christianity established monasticism, or
practicing meditation and prayer. Monasticism was the ideal form of religious life in European
states and society in the early Middle Ages.

20. Explain Europe’s agricultural society based on serfdom.

Europe’s agricultural society based on serfdom was mainly feudalism, the manor system, and many
other small systems. In feudalism, a monarch granted land to lords who in turn served the monarch;
lords granted land to knights and peasants who in turn fought for the lords and farmed the lords’ land,
respectively. Since feudalism involved agriculture, wealth was measured in land rather than in cash.
In feudalism, women did not have many rights since lords would usually not invest them with
significant importance. With its institutionalized rules, feudalism decentralized power. Likewise, the
manor system decentralized power. In addition, the manor system enhanced economic self-sufficiency
since the manor produced so many things that trade with outsiders was unnecessary. In the manor
system, peasants known as serfs were controlled by their lords who in exchange protected the
peasants.

21. Explain the innovative techniques that arose in Europe to support its agricultural
developments and the rise in population.

One agricultural development was the three-field system, in which crops were rotated through three
fields, came into use. “The first field was planted with wheat or rye, crops that provided food; the
second field was planted with legumes such as peas, lentils, or beans, which made the soil more fertile
by adding nitrogen to it; the third field remained fallow, or unused, each year.” This crop rotation
increased food security and enhanced population growth. Other technological developments included
windmills and new types of plows. Heaver plows with wheels worked well in the dense soil north of
the Alps, while lighter plows worked better in southern Europe. These changes promoted population
growth as well.

22. Although Europe was dominated by Christianity, explain the political fragmentation that
existed in Europe by various monarchies.

One factor that led to the political fragmentation was the reformation of Christianity. Although some
Christian clergy took vows of poverty and supported charities in their communities, the clergy also
wielded considerable political influence, and some monasteries became quite wealthy. Wealth and
political power led to corruption during the 13th and 14th centuries. Eventually, corruption, as well as
theological disagreements, drove reformers such as Martin Luther to take stands that would shatter the
unity of the Roman Catholic Church in the 16th century, which broke the unity Christianity brought to
Europe in the Middle Ages. Another factor that led to the political fragmentation was the desire to
take over lands and access trade routes. Rules of primogeniture, under which the eldest son in a family
inherited the entire estate, left a generation of younger sons with little access to wealth and land. The
landed nobles saw a military campaign as a way to divert the ambitions of these restless nobles as
well as unemployed peasants, who often pillaged the lands of neighboring lords. Furthermore,
merchants desired unfettered access to trade routes through the Middle East. Religious, economic, and
social pressures led to the Crusades, a series of warfare, which revolutionized Christian Europe.

Additionally, there were many disagreements on whether the Church or the kings should be the
authority of European states and society in the Middle Ages. There were also disagreements on
who should succeed the legitimate ruler after his death. Such tensions led to political
fragmentation that broke the unity Christianity brought to Europe.

23. How did this impact the social structure?

Political fragmentation impacted social structure since as the feudal and manor system demonstrated,
social structure in European states and society was divided into kings or monarchs, lords, knights, and
vassals such as peasants. Each household became so economically self-sufficient that many
households cut trade networks and isolated themselves from other households. Simultaneously,
agricultural developments such as crop rotation increased food supply and enhanced population
growth in each household. As time passed by, each household became independently powerful and
initiated economic and social infringements(looting) and even political infringements, which were
seen by the Crusades. This divided social hierarchy ultimately formed a cycle that the lower class,
middle class, and upper class seldom integrated. This disintegration under feudalism and the manor
system led to more fragmented states and societies eventually in Europe in the Middle Ages.