Asia

1. Asia

2. China Reunified The Sui, Tang, and Song dynasties restored peace to China in between periods of chaos and disorder • In 581 the Sui dynasty was established • It is known for unifying China under one emperor • Sui Yangdi was the second ruler of the dynasty • He was a cruel ruler, and used forced labor to build the Grand Canal, connecting the Huang He (Yellow River) and Chang Jiang (Yangtze River) • Sui Yangdi’s oppressive policies led to a rebellion that ended the empire

4. The Tang dynasty came to power in 618 • Tang rulers restored civil service exams for government positions • The Tang dynasty extended the borders of the empire to Tibet in the southwest • Emperor Tang Xuanzang and other Tang rulers were unable to prevent plotting and corruption in the government • Tang rulers hired Uighurs to put down rebellions but continued unrest led to the fall of the dynasty in 907

5. In 960 the Song dynasty came to power • The Song ruled during a period of economic prosperity and cultural achievement • Because of threats from nomadic warriors to the north, the Song moved their capital farther south to Hangzhou

6. Chinese Government and Economy For 700 years, the Chinese economy grew in size and sophistication • During the rule of the Sui, Tang, and Song dynasties, the Chinese government and economy grew in size and complexity • The Song government weakened the power of large landholders and helped poor peasants get their own land • which led to an abundance of food • The economy was still based on agriculture, but technological advances led to development of steel and gunpowder • International and domestic trade also increased and the Silk Road was renewed • Changan became the wealthiest city in the world during the Tang era

7. Chinese Society The political stability established by the three dynasties allowed Chinese society to grow in complexity • In the late 1200s, the Italian merchant Marco Polo described Hangzhou as one of the largest and most beautiful cities in the world The Liuhe Pagoda of Hangzhou, built in 1165 during the Song Dynasty

8. Chinese society developed into a complex mixture of landowners, free peasants, sharecroppers, and landless laborers • Most significant was the rise of the landed gentry • called the scholar-gentry • became the political and economic elite of Chinese society • Few women had any power • An exception was Wu Zhao, known as Empress Wu, who ruled for half a century • When a woman was married, her family was expected to give a dowry to the husband • Poor families sold their daughters

9. The Mongols and China The Mongols created the world’s largest land empire by conquering all of China • The Mongols under Genghis Khan created the largest land empire ever • Mongols were a pastoral people from the Gobi in what is present-day Mongolia • In 1206 Genghis Khan was elected the ruler of the Mongols • He immediately devoted his life to conquest • Upon Genghis Khan’s death in 1227, the empire was divided into khanates

10. In 1279, Kublai Khan, the grandson of Genghis Khan, conquered the Song dynasty and established the Yuan dynasty in China • Kublai Khan established his capital at Khanbalik, in what is present-day Beijing • While the Mongols were successful in ruling China, they were unsuccessful in attacking Southwest Asia • The Mongols were finally unseated by internal instability, political corruption, and excessive military spending • In 1368 an uprising by Zhu Yuanzhang led to the Ming dynasty

12. Religion and Government Between the Han and Yuan dynasties, religion’s role in Chinese government changed • Buddhism and Daoism became increasingly popular during the Tang dynasty • Buddhist monasteries acquired thousands of acres of lands and serfs • Buddhists taught that everything in the material world is an illusion • This was contrary to Confucian teachings of devotion to family and work • Beginning in the Song dynasty, government officials supported neo-Confucianism • the world is real and satisfaction comes from participation

13. A Golden Age in Literature and Art With the invention of printing, a golden age of literature and art emerged in China • The golden age of Chinese literature occurred during the Tang and Ming dynasties • The invention of the printing press helped to make literature more available to people • Poetry, as expressed by Tang-era poets Li Bo and Du Fu, was especially important to Chinese literature

14. Painting was an important art form during imperial China • Influenced by the Daoist vision,landscape painting reached its height • Tang artisans perfected the making of porcelain

15. Early Japan Japan’s history has been marked by power struggles between rulers and independent families • Early Japanese society was made up of a small ruling class of aristocrats and a large population of farmers • The people lived in clans in the Yamato Plain near what are now the cities of Ōsaka and Kyōto • Prince ShōtokuTaishi tried to unify the clans of Japan • He emulated the Chinese system of government and established centralized power

17. In the Nara Period, the emperor began to call himself the “Son of Heaven.” • The aristocrats kept tax revenuesfor themselves • the centralized national government lost power and influence • During the Heian Period there was little centralized power • The aristocratic families sought the protection of samurai • The samurai lived by a warrior code known as Bushido

19. MinamotoYoritomodefeated the rival clans and set up a centralized government under the control of a shogun • Fighting the Mongols put a strain on the political system and the shogunate was overthrown • The collapse of central rule coincided with the rise of daimyo • Noble lords • The noble families constantly warred with each other • by 1500 Japan was in chaos

20. Life in Early Japan Japan’s small size and relative isolation have had a major effect on the development of its economy, religion, and culture • Farming provided the basis of the Japanese economy • although only about 11% of the land was tillable • Trade between regions began to increase • Japan traded raw materials and manufactured items in return for silk, porcelain, books, and copper coins • Women were subordinate to men • Aristocratic women were active in society and the arts

21. Japanese religion was centered around the worship of spirits and became known as Shinto • Among aristocrats, a sect of Buddhism known as Zen became popular • Zen would be adopted by the samurai as well • In early Japan, it was considered beneath men to write fiction • Thus, women such as MursakiShikibu rose to prominence

22. The Emergence of Korea The early history of Korea was marked by the presence of dominating neighbors • Korea is a mountainous peninsula • Its proximity to China and Japan has greatly influenced Korean history • The Koryo dynasty emulated Chinese political systems • The Koryo accepted Mongol rule in the thirteenth century • This led to the fall of the dynasty • In 1392 Yi Sŏng-gye seized power and founded the Yi dynasty

24. India after the Guptas Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam all influenced the development of India • The people of India retaineda widespread acceptance of Buddhism for centuries • People did not always agree on the teachings of Buddha and a split occurred • The followers who believed Buddhism was a life philosophy became known as the school of Theravada • The followers who believed Buddhism was a religion became known as the school of Mahayana • Buddhism eventually lost influence in India although it was transported abroad with much success

26. Early in the eighth century Arab armies brought Islam to northwest India • In the tenth century rebellious Turkish slaves founded the Islamic state of Ghazna (Ghaznī) • In 997, Mahmūd of Ghazna attacked Hindu kingdoms to the southeast • Mahmūd’s forces defeated the Rajputs and extended Muslim power to the new state of the sultanate of Delhi

27. Mahmud of Ghanzi at court

28. TimurLenk (Tamerlane) ruled a Mongol state called Samarqand • He attacked the capital of Delhi in 1398 • He massacred as many as 100,000 Hindu prisoners at the gates of the city • His death in 1405 rid India and Asia of a tyrannical ruler • This allowed the Moguls and Portuguese to gain influence in the region

29. TimurLenk

30. Indian Society and Culture The ruling class of India was made up of Muslims, but some members of the Hindu population also prospered. The rich culture of India was reflected in its art, literature, architecture, and technological advances • Muslim rulers in India maintained strict separation between Muslims and Hindus • This relationship led to suspicion and distrust between the two groups • India’s location and traditional trade routes made it a center for trade between Southwest and East Asia

31. Between 500 and 1500, religious architecture in India developed from caves to magnificent structures such as Hindu temples and towers • The use of prose in fiction was established in India by the sixth and seventh centuries • much earlier than most civilizations • One of the greatest authors of Sanskrit prose was Dandin, who penned The Adventures of Ten Princes

32. The PeruvudaiyarKoyilTemple,the world's first complete granite temple, one of India's most prized architectural sites

33. The Formation of States The geography of Southeast Asia led to the development of distinct cultures throughout the region • Between 500 and 1500, a number of organized states developed throughout Southeast Asia • These states were influenced by the unique geography of Southeast Asia • The region is dominated by a mainland that extends from China to the Malay Peninsula, and an archipelago which includes Indonesia and the Philippines • The area contains a vast array of races, cultures, and religions • The geographical barriers of the region encouraged the development of separate cultures

35. Vietnam was one of the first states to develop its own identity • Vietnam was heavily influenced by China • Vietnam warred with its neighbor and eventually copied its system of government

36. Jayavarman II united the Khmer people and created the kingdom of Angkor (present-day Cambodia) in the ninth century • The proximity to enemies, such as the Burmese kingdom of Pagan and the arrival of the Thai people in 1300, signaled the end of the Angkor Kingdom

37. The Thai people established their empire on the Chao Phraya River • They were influenced by a combination of Hindu and Buddhist beliefs which became the modern culture of Thailand • The inhabitants of Burma were a pastoral people who grew wealthy and influential from trade in the region

38. The Malay region was divided between the mainland peninsula and the islands of Indonesia • This kingdom was never unified because of geographical barriers • The people of the Malay kingdom grew wealthy from controlling trade passing through the Strait of Malacca • The Muslim city of Melaka became an important trading post on the peninsula • It was also influential in the spread of Islam in the region

39. Life in Southeast Asia The growth of the states of Southeast Asia depended largely on trade and agriculture • The states of Southeast Asia can be categorized into two groups: • agricultural societies and trading societies • Economic and political power in Southeast Asia was held by hereditary aristocrats • Farmers, fishermen, artisans, and merchants comprised the rest of the society

40. Women in Southeast Asia received more rights than in proximate regions • Hinduism and Buddhism were both popular in Southeast Asia • Theravada Buddhism eventually became the religion of the masses Standing Buddha