Ch. 12

Tang Taizong

The “Great Ancestor” (626-649) who extended China’s borders and reformed government and the law code.

Wu Zhoa

The strong Tang ruler who expanded into Korea; the only

woman ever to assume the title of “empress” in China.

Genghis Khan

The title taken by the Mongol ruler Temujin; a terrorizing strategist who conquered much of Asia.

Kublai Khan

The Great Khan who ruled Mongolia and China, founded the Yuan Dynasty (1279) and united

China.

Marco Polo

The Venetian trader who took the Silk Road to China and served the

Great Khan for 17 years.

Shinto

Japan’s earliest religion, which is based on the worship of

ancestors and respect for the forces of nature.

Angkor Wat

An extensive city-and-temple complex built by the Khmer and

dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu.

Koryu Dynasty

Celadon pottery and blocks for printing Buddhist scripture developed under this Asian

dynasty (935-1392).

Movable Type

The blocks of individual characters set in a frame and used to make a

page for printing.

Gentry

Upper class scholar-officials in the Tang and Song periods whose

status came from education and civil service.

pastoralists

Nomadic people who herd domesticated animals; they

usually follow a seasonal pattern of movement.

Clan

A kinship group in which the members are descended from a

common ancestor.

Pax Mongolica

The period ( mid 1200’s to mid 1300s) that was characterized by stability and law across much of

Eurasia.

Samurai

“One who serves”, a member of Japan’s warrior class who was a

loyal bodyguard of a warlord.

Bushido

“The way of the warrior”, a code that required reckless courage,

fairness, reverence, and generosity.

Shogun

A “ supreme general of the emperor’s army”, a Japanese title

that conveyed the powers of a military dictator.

Khmer Empire

A powerful kingdom on the Southeast Asian mainland that

peaked around 1200; prosperous from rice farming.

Dai Viet

A Southeast Asia kingdom that broke away from China in 939,

they preserved their own cultural identity.

Archipelago

An island group, such as the approximately 4,000 islands that

make up Japan.

Porcelain

Bone-hard, white ceramic made of special clay and a mineral found

only in China.