Eliana Abboud's World History Blog

Mecca was the sight of the Kaaba, which is the most prominent religious shrine and housed representations of 360 deities. Muhammad Ibn Abdullah 9570-632 C.E) was born in Mecca to a Quraysh family. He married a prosperous merchant by the name Khadija and fathered six children. Some people fled their hometowns to avoid Muslim rule, while others like 80% of the Persians converted to Islam. The Quran preaches that women are inferior to men and men have authority over women because Allah made one gender superior. The practice of women marrying multiple men which had been practiced in pre-Islamic arabs was prohibited. Even though this may be true, the practice of polygyny (the practice of having multiple wives) was permitted. Men were limited to four wives and required to treat all of them equally.

China dominated the Indian Ocean trade network. It would not be surprising if China becomes the next superpower for several reasons America's military is eventually going to start leaving their bases in foreign countries, since the focus is becoming more on improving circumstances in America rather than foreign countries. This will give China the perfect opportunity to send their military to countries where the citizens will become dependent on them. They will slowly become integrated in the world. China's "golden age" was a renaissance for multiple reasons. Cosmopolitan Urban Centers: trade is thriving people are coming and going to these cities bringing language, food, and religions with them. China was wealthy Revival or rebirth of Confucian ideas Examination System: During that time once you get a job, you keep it for your entire life. For this reason boys were encouraged to get good jobs from a young age. Only wealthy people were able to...

The sea roads impacted Europe the most. Products that traveled along the sea roads included: Buddhism black death/germs spices silk incense walrus tusks ivory Impact: spread of goods spread of Buddhism spread of Black death Who used the products: merchants  China Buddhists People traveled on the sea roads by donkey, camel or carts being pulled or carried Sand roads impacted Africa the most Products that traveled along the sea roads included: Islam gold salt slaves ivory horses clothes trade across the Saharan carried new political structures People traveled on donkeys and camels Who benefited: wealthy people  merchants slaves The sand roads helped with the development of West African civilizations Sea Roads products (in bulk): textiles pepper timber rice sugar porcelain cotton ivory Islam Who benefited: merchants sailors everyday people Port towns surrounded by markets developed...

What I found most interesting about the Mongolian Empire is that they sent Mongols to China and Chinese people went to Mongolia. I did not know that such an exchange of ideas ever occurred in such a way. Mongolians brought the concept of astrology and the study of the sky to China. On the other hand, Chinese people brought the concept of acupuncture to the Mongolians. This was not accepted by the Mongolians due to the fact that it involves a lot of physical contact. Many Mongolians followed the Muslim religion, so it was against their religious beliefs for there to be so much contact between people, especially between unmarried men and women. Although this may be true, I still found this method of exchanging ideas and concepts very effective and interesting to learn about.