Duke of Tang; minister for Yangdi; took over empire after assassination of Yangdi; 1st Tang ruler.

One of the founders of the Tang Empire and its second emperor (r. 626-649). He led the expansion of the empire into Central Asia.

Another name for Li Shimin. He reconquered the northern and western land that China had sine the decline of the Han Dynasty. He started the achievements of the Tang Dynasty.

(618-907 CE) The Chinese dynasty that was much like the Han, who used Confucianism. This dynasty had the equal-field system, a bureaucracy based on merit, and a Confucian education system.

Became Empress in 690. She assumed the title herself- the only woman in China to do so.

the last Tang emperor

(960-1279 CE) The Chinese dynasty that placed much more emphasis on civil administration, industry, education, and arts other than military.

A general term for a class of prosperous families, sometimes including but often ranked below the rural aristocrats.

property or money brought by a bride to her husband on their marriage

A multistoried Chinese tower, usually associated with a Buddhist temple, having a multiplicity of projecting eaves.

one of the most popular poets of the Tang era, famous for his commentary on Chinese social life

Mongol khanate founded by Genghis Khan's grandson Batu. It was based in southern Russia and quickly adopted both the Turkic language and Islam.

one of several separate territories into which Genghis Khan's empire was split, each under the rule of one of his sons

Treeless plains, especially the high, flat expanses of northern Eurasia, which usually have little rain and are covered with coarse grass. They are good lands for nomads and their herds. Good for breeding horses: essential to Mongol military.

A Mongolian general and emperor of the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries, known for his military leadership and great cruelty. He conquered vast portions of northern China and southwestern Asia.

Money paid by one country to another in return for protection

An ancient trade route between China and the Mediterranean Sea extending some 6,440 km (4,000 mi) and linking China with the Roman Empire. Marco Polo followed the route on his journey to Cathay.

Grandson of Genghis Khan and founder of the Mongol Yuan Dynasty in China.

Moroccan Muslim scholar, the most widely traveled individual of his time. He wrote a detailed account of his visits to Islamic lands from China to Spain and the western Sudan.

a medieval engine of war with a sling for hurling missiles.

Venetian merchant and traveler. His accounts of his travels to China offered Europeans a firsthand view of Asian lands and stimulated interest in Asian trade.

Founded the Ming Dynasty after overthrowing the Mongol Dynasty.

Succeeded Mongol Yuan dynasty in China in 1368; lasted until 1644; initially mounted huge trade expeditions to southern Asia and elsewhere, but later concentrated efforts on internal development within China.

art of beautiful handwriting

Chinese naval explorer who sailed along most of the coast of Asia, Japan, and half way down the east coast of Africa before his death.

Breakup of large agricultural holdings for redistribution among peasants

To force or strongly persuade; coerce

China's greatest female poet

a famous Chinese poet who wrote "spring landscape" and his poems were base on the suffering of his own life

a thin, beautiful pottery invented in China

A chain of islands

A giant wave usually caused by an earthquake beneath the ocean floor.

A Japanese religion whose followers believe that all things in the natural world are filled with divine spirits

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A Japanese religion whose followers believe that all things in the natural world are filled with divine spirits

Any sacred being worshipped in Shinto including nature spirits and ancestors

a person sent on a special mission, usually as a diplomatic representative

Japan's first capital city, modeled on the Chinese capital of Chang'an.

A tropical cyclone occurring in the western Pacific or Indian oceans

The 'divine wind,' which the Japanese credited with blowing Mongol invaders away from their shores in 1281.

The era in Japanese history from A.D. 794-1185, arts and writing flourished during this time

Perhaps Japan's greatest author, a woman active at the Heian court who is best known for The Tale of Genji, which she wrote around 1000 C.E.

written by Murasaki Shikibu

written by Lady Murasaki; relates life history of prominent and amorous son of the Japanese emperor's son; evidence for mannered style of the Japanese society.

society in Japan led by an emperor but power in the hands of the shoguns

In feudal Japan, a noble similar to a duke. They were the military commanders and the actual rulers of Japan for many centuries while the Emperor was a powerless spiritual figure.

The Japanese system of centralized government under a shogun, who exercised actual power while the emperor was reduced to a figurehead.

A Japanese feudal lord who commanded a private army of samurai

Class of warriors in feudal Japan who pledged loyalty to a noble in return for land.

The Feudal Japanese code of honor among the warrior class.

local military rulers

The second of Japan's military governments headed by a shogun (a military ruler). Sometimes called the Muromachi Shogunate.

united under the leader Toyotomi Hideyoshi after the Ashikaga Shogunate

General under Nobanga; succeeded as leading military power in Japan; continued efforts to break power of daimyos; constructed a series of military alliances that made him the military master of Japan in 1590; died in 1598.

was a semi-feudal government of Japan in which one of the shoguns unified the country under his family's rule. They moved the capital to Edo, which now is called Tokyo. This family ruled from Edo 1868, when it was abolished during the Meiji Restoration.

a Japanese school of Mahayana Buddhism emphasizing the value of meditation and intuition.

Highest mountain in Japan

A philosophy that adheres to the teachings of the Chinese philosopher Confucius. It shows the way to ensure a stable government and an orderly society in the present world and stresses a moral code of conduct.

The dynasty in Korea that rallied to prevent Chinese domination in the seventh century CE.

Korean dynasty that ruled from 935-1392, Replaced the Silla Dynasty in Korea capital was Songak metal type print led to mass production of books also produced celadon

porcelain with an unusual blue-green glaze

powerful general who gained control of Korea and established the Choson kingdom.

Korean dynasty that ruled from 1392 to 1910, the longest-lived of Korea's three dynasties

alphabet that uses symbols to represent the sounds of spoken Korean

Flourishing trading city in Malaya; established a trading empire after the fall of Shrivijaya.

the oldest of the two major branches of Buddhism. Practiced mainly in Sri Lanka, Thailand, Burma, and Cambodia, its beliefs are relatively conservative, holding close to the original teachings of the Buddha

early southeast Asia empire that occupied most of modern-day Myanmar

king of the kingdom of Pagan; credited for bringing Buddhism to the Burman people

Buddhist shrine that is shaped like a dome or mound

Most powerful empire in Southeast Asia of its time

A temple complex built in the Khmer Empire and dedicated to the Hindu God, Vishnu.

A maritime empire that controlled the Sunda strait the strait of Malacca between India and China.

Also known as popular Buddhism, is allows people more ways to reach enlightenment and boddhisatvas can help you reach enlightenment.

two noble Vietnamese sisters who led an uprising against the Chinese and drove them out temporarily

Three kingdoms of Korea

Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore, Brunei, and others

A religion and philosophy developed in ancient India, characterized by a belief in reincarnation and a supreme being who takes many forms

The Malay word for wet rice, increasingly used to describe a flooded field.

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Built by King Anawrhata, although the pagoda was built for Theravada Buddhist worship, it also houses statues of the 37 royal nats who are portrayed in the temple as worshipping the Buddha.

adopting or adapting some cultural traits but discarding others

in the Japanese writing system, phonetic symbols representing syllables