Download China and East Asia Chapters 12 and 13

China and East Asia
in the 600-1450 Period
Chapters 12 and 13
AP World History
Mr. Bartula
Asia and the World
Eurocentrics tend to regard the European
voyages of the 1400s and 1500s as
unprecedented “discoveries.”
 Actually, much of the world was
interconnected, centered around trade
with Asia through the Indian Ocean.
 Asia was the birthplace of many important
trade goods, inventions, and other
developments during the 600-1450 period.

Straits of Malacca and the Kra
Portage
Cotton and Indigo
Grown in Indus Valley
since ca 2300 BCE
 Spread to Middle
East, Mediterranean,
and China.
 Indigo dye supplied
the characteristic blue
cotton garb of the
Chinese
 Cotton sails enabled
the Chinese navy to
travel long distances.

India and Food Crops
India was not an important cradle for food
crops.
 India’s contribution was to accept foods
from other areas, improve them, and send
them on to the rest of the world.
 Examples: citrus fruits and sugar from
Southeast Asia; watermelon, sorghum,
and bananas from Africa.

Indian numerals and mathematics
Indians were familiar
with Greek,
Mesopotamian, and
Chinese mathematical
concepts, and went
far beyond them.
 Base 10 system
 Zero developed by
Buddhists by 499 CE.
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Silk
Silk industry dates back to Shang Dynasty
 Silk Road opened during the Han Dynasty
 The Chinese kept silk production secret
until the 6th century CE.
 Nestorian Christians smuggled silk worms
and mulberry leaves out of China.
 The silk trade led to the spread of
Buddhism out of India into China and
Central Asia.
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Spices
Black pepper grown in East Java, Sumatra,
and southern India
 Introduced to Mediterranean by 1st
century CE
 Chinese appetite for fine spices led to
trade in cloves, nutmeg, and mace from
Southeast Asia to China
 Muslims in Middle East introduced spices
to Europeans
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Champa Rice
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From Southeast Asia,
Indochina
Early ripening (more than
one crop per growing
season possible), highly
nutritious, drought
resistant
Led to population
explosion in China
Chinese introduced rice to
India, India to the Middle
East, Middle East to
Europe.
Rice Paddy
Paper, Compass, Porcelain

All Chinese inventions, transferred to
India, the Middle East, then to Europe
Printing
Invented by Buddhists in China in 7th
century C.E.
 Spread to India, then to Europe
 Not important in the Middle East because
of Islamic prohibitions against images.

Equine Collar Harness
Invented in China
during Shang Dynasty
 An improved version
developed in China
around 500 CE and
spread westward
 Played major role in
European agricultural
development and in
European population
growth during the
Medieval Era.

Themes of Chinese History
The oldest continuous civilization and the
dominant cultural center of East Asia.
 Confucianist philosophy is reflected in all
aspects of life
 The dominant strain of Confucianism in
China stresses the perfectibility of man
through self-cultivation, education, and
ritual

The Three Kingdom Period 220-589
After the collapse of the Han Dynasty
China broke up into semi-independent
warring states.
 During this period Confucianism declined
as the dominant philosophy
 It was replaced by two salvation religions:
Neo-Daoism and especially Buddhism.
 Buddhism entered China from India along
trade routes.
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The Golden Age of China 589-1217
Sui Dynasty 589-618
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Sui Wendi reunified China and
established the Sui Dynasty
Buddhism became the
dominant governing
philosophy of China for the
next several hundred years.
The Sui were responsible for
many large building projects,
including the Grand Canal
which linked northern and
southern China
High taxation and forced labor
caused peasant revolts, which
brought the Sui Dynasty to an
end.
The Grand Canal
The Grand Canal
The Grand Canal Today
Tang Dynasty 618-907
Under the Tang Dynasty China reached its
greatest geographic extent
 China, as the preeminent civilization in
East Asia, had enormous cultural influence
on Korea, Japan, and Southeast Asia
during this and succeeding periods.
 During this period Europe was
experiencing cultural decline during the
“Dark Ages.”

Tang Government
Organization
Chang’an, The Tang Capital of
China (modern Xian)
Cosmopolitan center of trade
 Eastern end of the Silk Road
 Temples representing Confucianism,
Daoism, Buddhism, Islam, Nestorian
Christianity, Judaism, Zoroastrianism, and
many other faiths and philosophies
 Large marketplace with wares from all
over the known world
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Mosque, showing mixed Arab and
Chinese design, in Chang’an
Chinese culture under the Tang
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Buddhism was the
dominant religion or
philosophy
Poetry, the dominant
Chinese literary form,
became the essential
form of social
communication (everyone
wrote poetry).
Calligraphy, landscape
painting also highly
developed artforms
Advances in astronomy,
chemistry, and medicine
Tang Dynasty Coin
Landscape painting
Li Po, the greatest Chinese poet
Li Po’s Poetry
IN THE MOUNTAINS ON A SUMMER DAY
Gently I stir a white feather fan,
With open shirt sitting in a green wood.
I take off my cap and hang it on a jutting atone;
A wind from the pine-trees trickles on my bare head.
IN the third month the town of Hsien-yang
Is thick-spread with a carpet of fallen flowers.
Who in Spring can bear to grieve alone?
Who, sober, look on sights like these?
Riches and Poverty, long or short life,
By the Maker of Things are portioned and disposed;
But a cup of wine levels life and death
And a thousand things obstinately hard to prove.
When I am drunk, I lose Heaven and Earth,
Motionless—I cleave to my lonely bed.
At last I forget that I exist at all,
And at that moment my joy is great indeed.
Tang Technology
Printing Press
 Altitude of the North
Pole measured
 Astronomical
observations

Sun Simiao, notable Tang doctor
Wrote textbooks and
medical guides on
gynecology,
pharmacology,
pediatrics, and
acupuncture
 Known as “The King
of Herbs”

Empress Wu (Wei) 684-705
Greatest Tang ruler
 Tang Dynasty’s height
of military power
 Disliked by Chinese
 Strong Buddhist

Decline and Fall of the Tang
Invasions by Turks and peasant rebellions
weakened the Tang Dynasty
 Chang’an was captured by invaders and
then recaptured, badly damaged
 Central government lost power
 Tang collapsed in 907
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The Song Dynasty 960-1279
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Two separate segments:
Northern Song 960-1127.
Capital Kaifeng.
Conquered by Jurchens
Southern Song 11271269. Capital Hangzhou.
Conquered by Mongols.
Compared to Tang
Dynasty, Song China was
geographically smaller
but much wealthier.
Developments Under the Song
Dynasty
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Commercial Revolution led to
development of a market
economy throughout China,
growth of international trade,
and the use of paper money
Agricultural Revolution
changed the Chinese diet and
led to a population explosion.
Technological developments
led China to the verge of
industrialization: protoindustrialization.
Developments Under the Song
Dynasty
Urbanization: Chinese cities became the
largest and most prosperous in the world
 Political changes: Emperors gained
absolute power, nobility lost power
 Confucianism regained dominance and
continued to control the examination
system. A public school system was
established to train boys in Confucianism.

Kaifeng
Hangzhou
The Song Agricultural Revolution
The conquest of the Northern
Song by the Jurchens in 1127 led
to a southward migration by the
Chinese to below the Yangtze
River.
 This meant the majority of the
Chinese now inhabited rice and
tea growing regions.
 At the same time, the Chinese
began using porcelain cooking
pots and plates.
 With healthier food, the Chinese
population began to grow
dramatically.
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Rice Cultivation
Religious and Philosophical
Changes
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By the later Tang and Song
dynasties, Buddhist
monasteries and temples had
gained enormous wealth.
This caused the later Tang and
Song Emperors to become
suspicious of Buddhists and
turn back to Confucianist
philosophy.
Confucianists believed
Buddhism, as a foreign import,
was responsible for China’s
problems
Buddhism in China began to
decline by the time of the
Song Dynasty
Neo-Confucianism
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A combination of Confucianist,
Buddhist, and some Daoist
ideas
Agriculture favored over
commerce
International trade and contact
considered harmful to China
Male dominance and patriarchy
reinforced
Considered responsible for
blocking Chinese
industrialization
China’s privileged position as
The Middle Kingdom could be
jeopardized by outside
contacts.
Foot-Binding in Song
China
 Broken
toes by 3 years of age.
 Size
5 ½ shoe
on the right
Foot-Binding in Song
China
Mothers bound their daughters’ feet.
Foot-Binding in Song
China
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This was an upper
class status symbol.
Women were crippled
The Results of Foot-Binding
Some Elderly Chinese Women
Still Have Bound Feet!
The Sinic World of East Asia
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The region historically
under Chinese cultural
influence
Japan, Korea, Southeast
Asia
Chinese language as the
language of the elite
Chinese literary culture:
Confucianism, poetry,
etc.
Bureaucracies,
examination systems,
national universities
Six Broad Themes of Japanese
History

All societies interact,
but major
transformations in
Japanese history were
distinguished by
deliberate, massive
cultural borrowings,
followed by
“Japanization” or
adaption of foreign
ways.
Six Broad Themes of Japanese
History
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Japanese society
accomodates
aggressive pursuit of
change within a
framework of
continuity. In other
words, they change
while maintaining
tradition.
Six Broad Themes of Japanese
History
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Japan’s insularity and
isolation has fostered
a social closeness.
This is also a
reflection of
Confucianist values
imported from China.
Six Broad Themes of Japanese
History
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An inclination toward
political and social
stability is reflected in
the longevity of
political institutions
like the monarchy. A
preference for
evolutionary rather
than revolutionary
change.
Six Broad Themes of Japanese
History

Japan’s size and lack
of natural resources
makes the
relationship between
domestic production
and imported goods a
critical factor in its
economy.
Six Broad Themes of Japanese
History
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Throughout its history
Japan has
experienced periods
of reclusive
withdrawal alternating
with periods of active
engagement with the
outside world.
Japan’s Classical Period ca 5501185
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The first period of
deliberate cultural
borrowing and
adaptation.
The Japanese studied and
borrowed from Chinese
culture, introduced to
them by the Koreans.
Among the cultural
imports were Buddhism,
Confucianist social and
political values, and the
Chinese written and
spoken languages.
Shinto
Buddhism co-existed
alongside the native
Japanese religion, Shinto.
 Shinto is a religion based
on the worship of deities
called Kami, who are
considered benign and
helpful to humans.
 Shinto recognizes many
sacred places: mountains,
lakes, springs, etc.
 84% of modern Japanese
practice both Shinto and
Buddhism
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Mount Fuji
Japan’s Classical (Heian) Period ca
550-1185
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Japan adopted a Confucianist
style government, with an
Emperor and an examination
system for the bureaucracy in
the Capital, Hei-an (modern
Kyoto).
Although Japanese was very
different from Chinese, the
Chinese writing system was
adapted for use with Japanese.
Japanese literature,
particularly poetry, flourished
in this period.
Japanese Writing
Japanese adapted about 1500 Chinese
characters and supplemented them with
additional characters representing phonetics.
 Japanese has fewer sounds than English and all
syllables are pronounced equally.
 A change of pitch (tone) is used to indicate
differences between two otherwise identical
words.
 Gairago or loan words have flooded the
Japanese language: violin: biorin, beefsteak:
bifuteki

Japanese Classical Literature
Women made many literary contributions
during the classical period.
 Women did not work in government and
therefore did not have to use the Chinese
language, allowing them to experiment
with the Japanese spoken and written
language.
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The Pillow Book of Sei Shonagon,
ca 996
Sei Shonagon was a lady of the court of
the Japanese imperial family.
 She was known for her quick wit, sunny
disposition, and knowledge of the Chinese
classics.
 Her pillow book was partly a diary, partly
a book of observations and poetry.
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The Tale of Genji, by the Lady
Murasaki Shikibu ca 973-1025
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Often called the first novel, the
story is centered on the life
and adventures of Hikaru
Genji, born to a Heian Emperor
Lady Murasaki was the
daughter of a court official
who allowed her to study
alongside her brother and
learn Chinese.
Little else is known of her life.
Medieval Japan 1185-1600
Japan’s medieval period began as the
central government gradually lost power
to several noble families.
 Warfare and destruction characterized the
medieval period.
 Europe’s medieval period occurred during
the same general time period, and the
similarities are striking, particularly in the
development of feudalism.

Feudalism
A political, economic, and social
system based on loyalty, the
holding of land, and military
service.
Japan:
Shogun
Land - Shoen
Land - Shoen
Protection
Samurai
Peasant
Daimyo
Loyalty
Daimyo
Samurai
Peasant
Loyalty
Samurai
Peasant
Food
Peasant
Code of Bushido
* Fidelity
* Politeness
* Virility
* Simplicity
Seppuku:
Ritual Suicide
It is honorable to
die in this way.
Kaishaku – his
“seconds”
Full Samurai Attire
Samurai Sword
Osaka Castle
Main Gate of
Hiroshima Castle
Similarities Between European and
Japanese Feudalism
Hierarchies
 Codes of Loyalty and Conduct
 Constant warfare
 Weak central governments
 Peasants made up vast majority of the
population
 Large fortresses (castles)
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Differences Between European and
Japanese Feudalism
Europeans used formal contracts of loyalty
(led to contract law, parliamentary
government, etc.)
 Japanese used informal agreements and
pledges of loyalty.
 In Europe feudalism ended as urbanization
developed.
 In Japan, urbanization did not end
feudalism.
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The Kamakura Shogunate 11801333
Shogun: Barbarian conquering great
general.
 Bakufu: tent government
 The Kamakura shoguns held the real
power in Japan. The Emperors in Kyoto
were only figureheads.
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Attempted Mongol Invasions
The Mongols had
conquered China and
established a vast
empire.
 In 1272 and 1281
Mongol fleets carrying
gunpowder weapons
were sent to invade
and conquer Japan.
 Both fleets were
destroyed by storms
in the Sea of Japan:
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The Ashikaga Shogunate 13331467
Took power after conflict among the
daimyo overthrew the Kamakura
Shogunate.
 Weaker than the Kamakura Shogunate, it
controlled only parts of some islands.
 The Onin War of 1467-1477 ended the
Ashikaga Shogunate and led to a century
of civil war within Japan.
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Zen Buddhism
A version of
Mahayana Buddhism
which developed in
Tang China and was
later introduced to
Japan.
 It focuses on personal
enlightenment and
self-discipline through
meditation.
 Popular among the
samurai in the
medieval period.
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Zen Buddhist dry garden
Amida or Pure Land Buddhism
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Another version of
Mahayana Buddhism
imported from China.
A more democratic
version of Buddhism
which taught that all
people were eligible to
reach the “Pure Land” as
envisioned by the
Bhoddisatva Amida.
Popular among the
peasants during the
medieval period in Japan.
Four Themes of Korean History
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A sense of cultural
closeness to China
The transformation of
borrowed traditions
The limiting of outside
influences and a
tendency towards
seclusion
Social stability and
hierarchy (Confucianist)
in a homogenous society.
Korea’s Early and Classical Periods
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According to Korean mythology,
Korea was founded in 2,333 BCE
and named Choson.
From 50 BCE to 668 CE Korea was
divided into three kingdoms, all
strongly influenced by China
Although the Korean language is
very different, Korea adopted the
Chinese writing system, modifying
some characters and inventing
others.
Chinese culture and Buddhism
entered Korea during the Tang
Dynasty. The native Korean folk
religion of shamanism survived
Korea then transmitted this
culture to Japan.
Korean Religion
Korean Society
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Korea was part of China’s East
Asian trading system
At times Korea’s rulers were
vassals of the Chinese
Emperors
Korea rarely had a powerful
military.
Korean society was proud of
its homogeneity and preferred
seclusion to outside contact
(except China). Traditionally
called “The Hermit Kingdom”
Animosity towards Japan is
ancient and reciprocated.