"The Silk Road (Chinese: 絲綢之路) was a network of Eurasian trade routes active from the second century BCE until the mid-15th century."
The routes used by European traders to transport goods, such as spices, silk, and gold, from Asia and Africa to Europe.
Navigation: Understanding how sailors navigated the seas during the Age of Exploration, including the use of tools like astrolabes and compasses.
Mercantilism: The economic theory that dominated during the Age of Exploration, emphasizing the acquisition of wealth through trade and colonization.
Colonialism: The practice of establishing colonies in foreign lands for economic and political gain.
Silk Road: A network of trade routes connecting Europe, Asia, and Africa that played a significant role in promoting cultural exchange and economic activity during the Medieval period.
Triangular Trade: The system of trade routes connecting Europe, Africa, and the Americas during the 16th to 19th centuries, which involved the transportation of goods, slaves, and crops.
European Explorers: Famous explorers who played a crucial role in expanding trade routes during the Age of Exploration, such as Christopher Columbus, Vasco da Gama, and Ferdinand Magellan.
Spice Trade: The trade of spices and other luxury goods from Asia during the Age of Exploration that was in high demand in Europe.
Transatlantic Slave Trade: The transportation of African slaves overseas to work as laborers on plantations in the Americas, which had a significant impact on trade routes and the global economy.
Gold and Silver trade: The trade of precious metals from the Americas to Europe during the Age of Exploration.
Routes: The different trade routes that developed during the Age of Exploration, including the Atlantic Slave Trade, the Columbian Exchange, and the Portuguese trade routes.
Trans-Saharan Trade Routes: The exchange of goods between kingdoms of West Africa and the Middle East, primarily in gold and salt.
Silk Road: A network of trade routes connecting Europe, Asia, and Africa that facilitated the exchange of goods such as silk, spices, and precious metals.
Indian Ocean Trade Routes: A system of maritime trade routes connecting the East Coast of Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, India, Southeast Asia, and China, transporting precious metals, spices, textiles, and timber.
Spice Routes: Maritime trade routes in the Indian Ocean and Red Sea that connected Europe and Asia, allowing for the exchange of spices such as pepper, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
Atlantic Trade Routes: The shipping of enslaved Africans (the Middle Passage), as well as commodities like sugar, tobacco, and cotton, between Europe, Africa, and the Americas.
Northwest Passage: A mythical sea route linking the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans through the Arctic. It inspired several expeditions to find a navigable route for trade and transportation.
Cape Route: A sea route rounding the southern tip of Africa, connecting the Indian Ocean with the Atlantic Ocean.
Magellan Strait: A sea route linking the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans through the southern tip of South America, discovered by Ferdinand Magellan's expedition.
China Trade Routes: The exchange of goods between China and other parts of Asia, as well as Europe and the Middle East, primarily in silk, tea, porcelain, and jade.
Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade: The forced transportation of millions of Africans from West and Central Africa to the New World, primarily to work on sugar plantations.
"Spanning over 6,400 kilometers (4,000 miles)..."
"...it played a central role in facilitating economic, cultural, political, and religious interactions between the East and West."
"The name 'Silk Road', first coined in the late 19th century, has fallen into disuse among some modern historians in favor of Silk Routes..."
"Chinese silk textiles... tea, dyes, perfumes, porcelain... horses, camels, honey, wine, and gold."
"The network began with the Han dynasty's expansion into Central Asia around 114 BCE... The Parthian Empire provided a bridge to East Africa and the Mediterranean."
"By the early first century CE, Chinese silk was widely sought-after in Rome, Egypt, and Greece."
"Aside from generating substantial wealth for emerging mercantile classes, the proliferation of goods such as paper and gunpowder greatly altered the trajectory of various realms, if not world history."
"Travelers faced constant threats of banditry and nomadic raiders, and long expanses of inhospitable terrain."
"Few individuals crossed the entirety of the Silk Road, instead relying on a succession of middlemen based at various stopping points along the way."
"In addition to goods, the network facilitated an unprecedented exchange of ideas, religions (especially Buddhism), philosophies, and scientific discoveries..."
"Diseases such as plague also spread along the Silk Road, possibly contributing to the Black Death."
"...the Silk Road abruptly lost its importance with the rise of the Ottoman Empire in 1453, which almost immediately severed trade between East and West."
"This prompted European efforts to seek alternative routes to Eastern riches, thereby ushering the Age of Discovery, European colonialism, and a more intensified process of globalization..."
"...the name 'New Silk Road' is used to describe several large infrastructure projects along many of the historic trade routes; among the best known include the Eurasian Land Bridge and the Chinese Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)."
"In June 2014, UNESCO designated the Chang'an-Tianshan corridor of the Silk Road as a World Heritage Site..." Study question 17: Which portion of the Silk Road remains on the tentative site list? "While the Indian portion remains on the tentative site list."
"[The Silk Road] endured the rise and fall of numerous empires and major events such as the Black Death and the Mongol conquests."
"...on the grounds that it more accurately describes the intricate web of land and sea routes connecting Central, East, South, and Southeast Asia, the Middle East, East Africa, and Southern Europe."
"During its roughly 1,500 years of existence, the Silk Road..."