World History 1 Blog - Fall 2019

The 15th century CE is the most interesting time in human history. It was a time before Columbu's exchange, and it is a time of Renaissance. One of the cool things I read was the advancement of trade between countries. Many people went on pilgrimages, traveling thousands of miles to trade. High-status goods were transported from shore to shore. European lands had, silk from China, China had spices from Asia, and brought to Europe via the middle east.

For this blog, I decided to talk about The Mongols, and their lifestyle and military set up. Military: Their military was easily mobilized because they were pastoral (mobile). Homes: They lived in Yurts, which were easily mobile, and they could easily move whichever way they wanted at any time. Civilization: Their civilization was the largest overland empire, their gov't and empire were very organized as well. They didn't make people conform to a religion or a language. They recruited people basked on special skills and talents. Females: Were sought after for advice/opinions and leadership. They were able to participate in warfare. The women overall had a lot of opportunities with the Mongols.

Christendom was a new kind of empire/kingdom. It took place during the classical era, and the area was known as "Land of Christians." This was a new era of empires building what parts of Christianity they wanted to follow. It was a time where Christianity was easier to conform to.

For this blog, I'm going to be talking about Muhammad, which we read about in chapter 9. His followers spread the teachings of Islam, Muhammad was a prophet who led the people of the Arabian peninsula. Muhammad was born in Mecca. At the age of 40 he is visited by the angel Gabriel, he learns he is one of gods prophets. Islam began to spread throughout North Africa in 655 C.E. and continued to spread through Asia, from Malaysian traders who interacted with Muslims about Islam, in 1120 C.E.

For chapter 8 we learned about China. For this blog, I will be listing some of China's key features and what made it a superpower throughout history. Why was China such a superpower throughout history? Dominated the Indian Ocean trade network (sea roads) China had a renaissance during its golden age China had a cosmopolitan urban center (a place where people come from all over the world, to meet mingle, have social interactions, business, trade. It also brought a lot of new people, cultures, religions, and food in).  the gov't supported the infrastructure of different kinds, ex. canals, agriculture, ships(trade) the rebirth of Confucianism brought back order and stability Examination System: to make sure the people getting jobs are qualified to maintain those roles, it demonstrated competence, and careers were open to those with talent and merit not just people with connections. 

For this chapter, we learned about the three main roads of trade, which were the Silk Road, Sand Road, & Sea Road. Silk Road: Where: Europe, Egypt, Arabia, India, China Goods: silk gunpowder ginger textiles dyes oils jewelry Sand Roads: Where: Africa - Saharan/Subsaharan, Atlantic, Red, and Mediterranean Sea, Europe Goods: glass gold clothing ores camels salt ivory spices slaves Sea Roads: Where: Indian Ocean, China, Europe, Eurasian Countries Goods: textiles rice sugar wheat timber ceramics glassware silk

For chapter 6 we learned about commonalities and variations between Africa and the Americas. For this blog, I am going to be focusing on Africa specifically to detail their commonalities and variations. Time period: b/w 300 BCE - 100 BCE Commonalities & Variations: hosted many civilizations human communities domesticated animals most tropical of the world and supercontinents insects and parasites exist here b/c of the hot weather     For trade they used camels, and deforestation opened up their trade network between the Egyptians and Kingdom of Monroe THree of there civilizations flourished and they were, Upper Now Valley Northern Ethiopia Niger River Valley

For chapter 5, I decided to focus on India's Social Caste System, and the difference between their caste system and China's. The caste system heavily focused on one's religious status, and their purity. China's elite was based on its political power and occupational position. I believe this had a lot to do with money because money brings on more power than if you were poor. India's society was divided into multiple social groups, that were distinct in wealth, and people were not allowed to communicate between groups, it was isolating, and meaning. It wasn't as harsh as China's social caste system which provided even less social mobility than India, but they were both systems based on inequality, and things people could not control.

Buddhism & India's Social Caste System: Although Buddhism could never dislodge Brahmanism from its high position, it certainly jolted it and inspired institutional changes in Indian society. Promotion of social equality and social justice helped Buddhism to cross the frontiers of the Indian sub-continent and became a world religion. Buddha argued you can reach enlightenment in this lifetime, rather than in reincarnation. "Much of the Buddha's teachings reflected the Hindu tradition from which it sprang. The idea that ordinary life is an illusion, the concepts of karma and rebirth, the goal of overcoming the incessant demands of the ego,"(160). Buddha's message appealed to those in the lower caste groups because of their despair in this lifetime. Also to women who were specifically treated poorly and without value in this country and religion of Brahmanism.

For Chapter 3 - I decided to focus on the Persian Empire. (Classical Era) A key thing about the Persian Empire is that it brought together all the major ancient civilizations of Afro-Eurasia into one big empire. The empire was very short-lived and ended after the Greeks. They formed complex empires and cosmopolitan urban centers.  Their empire was comprised around an "elaborate cult of kingship." The death of a king was a big deal and required a sacred ritual days after of shaving off one's hair and the main of the horses. 

Source 2.3: Dancing Girl What specific features of the statue can you point out? the statue is made out of some bronze material The bronze was probably brought int through trade It is a nude woman she has bangles on both her arm and a longer stack on the left This could have been a statue of a real woman

For Chapter 2 I decided to look at the differenced between Egypt and Mesopotamia. Egypt: River: Nile river, regularly flooded Geography: Surrounded by deserts Religion: centralized, polytheistic, hierarchy Gov't/State: Pharoah (considered to be a god) ---> civilizations Outlook: positive Mesopotamia: River:  unpredictable, constant flooding Geography:  open geography Religion:  dispersed - local priests Gov't/State:  dispersed ---> city-states Outlook:  negative

Part two of chapter one talked about the Breakthroughs to Agriculture. This began what was known as the "Neolithic (New Stone Age) Revolution,"(26). The new way of living created the cultivation of plants and the breeding of animals. This transformed our migrating civilizations into stabilized, settled, and growing population.  Farmers began to shape crops and reinvent ways to use the things they grew. Animals were domesticated and tamed to help the agricultural movement advance and be a little easier. Agriculture grew and expanded to different parts of the world, and was used in their own societies way. The animals were different in countries, and the animals native to the land were used in the best way. For example in China, the domestication of pigs and chickens, and rice was huge. We also saw new tools and resources being made from copper and bronze. The Agricultural Revolution opened up possibilities for societies to grow, and stabilize.

While reading the Prologue, and the first section of Chapter 1 we learned about the first homo sapiens and humans in Africa, Europe, Asia, and Australia. We learned about the migration of homo sapiens out of Africa and creating a network of travel through other countries. I thought it was cool to see how they adapted the conditions of the Ice Age they had made layered clothing out of bones, and tusks of a mammoth. One of the captions on the map says that the homo sapiens "migrated to every environmental setting on the planet over the past 100,000 years,"(16). The Paleolithic societies were small and were connected through their relationships. Their societies and technology were not very advanced, so this made it hard to sustain and grow a population. What I understood overall that being just gatherers without agriculture civilizations cannot grow. Our technology was also lacking because of our migrating societies.