Chapter 11: Crises and Recovery in Afro-Eurasia, 1300-1500 CE Vocab Flashcards
Black Death
Plague pandemic that ravaged Europe, East Asia, and North Africa in the fourteenth century, killing large numbers of people, including perhaps as much as one-third of the European population.
devshirme
The Ottoman system of taking non-Muslim children in place of taxes in order to educate them in Muslim ways and prepare them for service in the sultan’s bureaucracy.
Ottoman Empire
A Turkish warrior band that transformed itself into a vast, multicultural, bureaucratic empire that lasted from the early fourteenth century through the early twentieth century and encompassed Anatolia, the Arab world, and large swaths of southern and eastern Europe.
Topkapi Palace
Palace complex located in Istanbul that served as both the residence of the sultan, along with his harem and larger household, and the political headquarters of the Ottoman Empire.
dynasty
Hereditary ruling family that passed control from one generation to the next.
Monarchy
Political system in which one individual holds supreme power and passes that power on to his or her next of kin.
Inquisition
General term for a tribunal of the Roman Catholic Church that enforced religious orthodoxy. Several inquisitions took place over centuries, seeking to punish heretics, witches, Jews, and those whose conversion to Christianity was called into doubt.
Renaissance
Term meaning “rebirth” used by historians to characterize the cultural flourishing of European nations between 1430 and 1550, which emphasized a break from the church-centered medieval world and a new concept of humankind as the center of the world
humanism
The Renaissance aspiration to develop a greater understanding of the human experience than the Christian scriptures offered by reaching back into ancient Greek and Roman texts.
printing press
A machine used to print text or pictures from type or plates, dramatically increasing the speed at which information could be copied and disseminated. The spread of printing press technology in the 1450s created a revolution in communication around the world.
Ming dynasty
Successor to the Mongol Yuan dynasty that reinstituted and reinforced Han Chinese ceremonies and ideals, including rule by an ethnically Han bureaucracy.
Red Turban movement
Diverse religious movement in China during the fourteenth century that spread the belief that the world was drawing to an end as Mongol rule was collapsing.
Zheng He
Ming naval commander who, from 1405 to 1433, led seven massive naval expeditions to impress other peoples with Ming might and to establish tributary relations with Southeast Asia, Indian Ocean ports, the Persian Gulf, and the east coast of Africa.
