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East Asia and Southeast Asia

Geography and History Activity

The Silk Road The Silk Road was a transcontinen-

tal trade route that eventually stretched from China to Europe. The main part of the "road" originated in Xi an (Chang'an), China, crossing Asia and Southwest Asia to Antioch on the Mediterranean Sea.

Although the Silk Road was used for . travel and trade as early as 200 B.C., it did not become a major trade route until the 1200s. European merchants realized they could make their fortunes trading for exotic items like silk and spices from East Asia. Trading companies organized, with many individual traders responsible for a different segment of the Silk Road.

Silk was the most precious trade item from China. From East Asian traders, European merchants also bought spices such as cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and ginger. These spices were used for flavor­ings, drugs, and perfumes. India traded

pepper, pearls, coral, and ivory. Mediter­ranean merchants traded precious metals, gems, glassware, and wine.

The Silk Road was a treacherous, time­consuming, and expensive route. Thieves were common in the deserts and mountain passes, and trading caravans often had to pay bribes for safe passage along the way.

Mongols Protect the Road In northern Asia, the land was too poor

and the climate too harsh for agriculture. Nomadic tribes there traded a valuable item-horses-throughout Southeast Asia for goods they needed. One nomadic group, the Mongols, began expanding their trade routes from their homeland in Mongolia across Central Asia in the early 1200s. Under the leadership of Genghis Khan, the Mongols used their superior riding skills to defeat less-skilled armies

The Silk Road Wine Woven Goods

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ARABIAN SEA \

- Main Silk Road

....... Eurasian Steppe Route

Main Connecting Routes

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Name ______________ ------' ___ Date ____ Class ____ _

Geography and History Activity continued

throughout Asia. Genghis Khan was able to fashion the fiercest fighters in Asia from the once-scattered tribes of nomads. He and his sons and grandson built an empire that stretched from the Black Sea to the Pacific Ocean.

As generations of Khan rulers expanded their Mongol Empire, the Silk Road was also expanded for transport and communications systems. Trade caravans were made safer as alliances were forged with the powerful Mongol rulers. The rulers were even tolerant of different cul­tures and religions. Buddhism, Islam, and Christianity spread along the Silk Road. Ideas such as using paper money came out of the Mongol trade empire. This period came to be known to historians as the Pax Mongolica, or Mongol Peace.

The Silk Road served as the greatest trade route in the world until about 1360. At that time, the Mongol Empire disinte­grated, and sea routes became a safer and faster way to travel.

t(J Applying Geography to History Directions: Read the information about the Silk Road and e~amine the map. Then answer the questions below.

1. Listing What-goods were traded along the Silk Road? List at least five items.

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2. Explaining How important was the Silk Road to Europe and Asia?

3. Explaining In what ways did the Silk Road spread cultural ideas?

4. Identifying Who invaded Asia and expanded the Silk Road for their own use? Who was their leader?

s. Determining Cause and Effect What impact did the Pax Mongolica have on the Silk Road?

6. Mapping Activity Think about the many products that you buy, such as clothing, food, and ga,mes. Choose one product, and create a map or dia­gram showing the route taken by that product to get to your home. Consider where the product was manufactured, the port or city at which it entered the United States, and the store where you bought it. If the product was made in the United States, it still may have made many stops within the country before arriving in your home.