Deck 12: State Power and Expanding Networks of Exchange, 750-1000 C.E

Question 1

The art of making paper originated in which country?

A) Egypt
B) China
C) Babylonia
D) Greece

Answer 1

China

Question 2

The Abbasids set up their capitol in which city?

A) Damascus
B) Jerusalem
C) Ctesiphon
D) Baghdad

Answer 2

Baghdad

Question 3

Abbasid rule was modeled to a great degree after which of the following?

A) the Sasanids
B) the Chinese
C) the Türks
D) the Greeks

Answer 3

the Sasanids

Question 4

Which of the following best describes the relationship between Abbasid rulers and the majority of their subjects?

A) Abbasid rulers proved to be particularly accessible for monarchs of their time.
B) After the Persian model, Abbasid rulers cloaked themselves in an aura of mystery and divinity.
C) Abbasid rulers tended to rely more on the support of common people than elites.
D) In an effort to seem humble and modest before their subjects, Abbasid rulers lived simply and denied themselves the luxury that other Southwest Asian monarchs preferred.

Question 5

The term barid refers to which of the following?

A) the main advisor of the Abbasid monarch
B) the top religious position in the Abbasid Caliphate
C) the intelligence network set up by the Abbasids to stay informed about matters throughout the vast empire
D) an underground network of rebellious factions that sought to overthrow the Abbasids and restore the Umayyads

Question 6

Which of the following is an accurate statement regarding the relationship between the Abbasids and Islam?

A) The Abbasids often found themselves at odds with Islamic religious leaders and engaged in practices contrary to Islamic ideals.
B) The Abbasids declared themselves to be the leaders of Islam and controlled all aspects of religious life throughout the empire.
C) The Abbasids interfered little in religious affairs and permitted Islamic leaders to govern themselves.
D) The Abbasids attempted to blend many values of Islam with those of Zoroastrianism, in keeping with their efforts to imitate the Sasanids.

Question 7

Which of the following was NOT a perennial problem of the Abbasids?

A) battles over succession to the throne
B) inflation
C) threats from Christian Byzantium
D) ecological pressures

Question 8

Which of the following was a consequence of the Zanj Rebellion?

A) The Abbasids abolished slavery throughout their empire.
B) The Abbasid regime collapsed.
C) Slaves gained increased rights throughout the Abbasid empire.
D) The Abbasids further drained their already overtaxed resources.

Question 9

Which of the following is an accurate definition of the term mamluk?

A) the peasant army that the Abbasids created to defend the empire
B) the class of military slaves created by the Abbasids to defend the realm
C) a rebellious faction within the Abbasid military
D) the highest rank achievable in the Abbasid military

Question 10

The use of mamluks led to which of the following?

A) the formation of a group of highly loyal soldiers within the Abbasid military whose prowess was unparalleled in Southwest Asia
B) slave rebellions throughout the Abbasid empire
C) the spread of Christianity among Abbasid soldiers
D) an independent, self-motivated, and highly armed faction within the Abbasid army

Question 11

n 929 C.E., Abd al-Rahman III proclaimed himself to be the rightful leader of Islam. What does this event tell us about Islamic societies at the end of the first millennium C.E.?

A) There were many religious as well as political divisions within the Islamic world.
B) After decades of turmoil and internal strife, Islam was reunited under strong leadership.
C) Islam was spreading rapidly throughout Europe.
D) Islam began to model itself after the Byzantine church.

Question 12

The Fatimids followed which branch of Islam?

A) Sunni
B) Arian
C) Shi'a
D) Sufi

Question 13

The Fatimids ruled from which of the following important cities?

A) Mecca
B) Damascus
C) Alexandria
D) Cairo

Question 14

The Macedonian dynasty is responsible for which of the following?

A) the expansion of the Byzantine state into Muslim-controlled territories
B) the mass conversion of the Byzantine citizenry from Christianity to Islam
C) the collapse of the Byzantine state
D) the collapse of the Abbasid empire

Question 15

All of the following were tactics of Basil II EXCEPT

A) the suppression of Greek aristocratic families.
B) an enormous military campaign to take Jerusalem.
C) an increased reliance on the educated bureaucratic class of Byzantium.
D) incursions into the fringes of the Abbasid empire.

Question 16

Islam appealed to large numbers of individuals because it

A) promised wealth to those who followed the prophet Muhammad.
B) was easier to understand and follow than Christianity and Buddhism.
C) used Arabic as its language of prayer.
D) provided a framework for different groups of people to form bonds of social trust.

Question 17

One important difference between Islam and Christianity was that

A) Islam had extremely formal structures through which the religion spread, while Christianity diffused in a more inconsistent and unpredictable manner.
B) Islam lacked the hierarchical structure that Christianity possessed and spread through more informal channels.
C) Islamic societies encouraged a strict division between matters of religion and matters of state, while Christianity regularly blended the two together.
D) Islam relied on an educated elite to spread the teachings of the Quran, while Christianity made regular use of merchant missionaries to spread the teachings of the New Testament.

Question 18

Which of the following best describes the relationship between the spread of Islam and agriculture from the eighth to eleventh centuries C.E.?

A) Agricultural output in Muslim-controlled territories tended to decline due to rapid population growth and mounting ecological pressures.
B) The types of crops grown in Muslim-controlled territories changed to accommodate the dietary laws of Islam.
C) Muslim rulers devoted more time and energy to building religious structures and seizing new territory than to agricultural infrastructure.
D) The spread of Islam coincided with a great bump in the types and quantities of crops grown throughout Southwest Asia.

Question 19

The term ulama refers to which of the following?

A) the political leader of Islam
B) the Islamic clergy
C) Islam's religious scholars
D) Islam's legal code

Question 20

Which of the following is an accurate statement regarding the social structure of Muslim states?

A) Though Islam encouraged equality among all of its followers, Muslim cities were marked by great disparities between rich and poor.
B) In most Muslim cities, the wealthy were strictly barred from flaunting their wealth in public.
C) Slavery was outlawed in all Muslim cities and towns.
D) Women played an important role in the public affairs of Muslim urban centers.

Question 21

Non-Muslim populations, such as Jews and Christians, often lived in separate quarters of a city from their Muslim neighbors

A) because the Quran forbids Muslims from living alongside non-Muslims.
B) in order to provide protection for non-Muslim communities and allow their leaders a degree of independence.
C) in order to discourage the mixing of Muslim and non-Muslim religious beliefs.
D) so that the activities of non-Muslim communities could be closely monitored and regulated.

Question 22

Which of the following is NOT an accurate statement regarding the Dar al-Islam?

A) The Dar al-Islam was composed of the many Muslim kingdoms that sprung up throughout Afroeurasia.
B) The Dar al-Islam served as a type of network of constant intellectual, artistic, religious, and economic exchange.
C) Only Muslims travelled throughout the Dar al-Islam.
D) Arabic was the lingua franca of the Dar al-Islam.

Question 23

Which of the following is an important consequence of the Dar al-Islam?

A) A great flourishing of the arts and sciences swept across Afroeurasia, leading to a larger accumulation of old and new knowledge.
B) Texts written in languages other than Arabic were discarded and thought to be irrelevant to the new Muslim faith.
C) Christians and Jews came to be widely persecuted.
D) Warfare arose as different Muslim rulers sought to claim their right to represent the religion as a whole.

Question 24

The life and work of Abu Bakr al-Razi tells us what about Islamic society at the end of the first millennium C.E.?

A) Muslim thinkers focused primarily on religious texts and paid little attention to the sciences.
B) Muslim physicians relied heavily on religious rituals to diagnose and treat illnesses.
C) Muslim thinkers knew little of classical Greek and Roman works.
D) Muslim thinkers made many advances in the fields of science and medicine, but relied heavily on the works of earlier Greeks and Romans.

Question 25

Which of the following best describes the relationship between science and religion in the Islamic world beginning in the eleventh century?

A) Science and religion constituted two entirely separate spheres for most Muslims.
B) Muslims were forbidden to study the sciences because of their tendency to cause people to reject religious teachings.
C) While many Muslims continued to engage in scientific inquiry, authorities expected obedience to religious values in the public arena.
D) Muslim authorities encouraged open investigation of the sciences even if findings contradicted ideas expressed in the Quran.

Question 26

Which of the following did NOT contribute to the rise of maritime trade in Southern India from the sixth to eleventh centuries C.E.?

A) A period of global warming made it far easier to sail across the Arabian seas.
B) Mariners gained increased knowledge regarding monsoon winds, making travel far more reliable and safer.
C) Under the rule of the Pallava dynasty, parts of India's agricultural output increased.
D) The region of Gujarat continued to grow as a center of cloth production.

Question 27

The fact that Arab geographers referred to the Arabian Sea as the Sea of China during the end of the first millennium C.E. suggests what about trade during this time?

A) China was the center of all Afroeurasian trade.
B) Merchants were able to make the trip from the heart of Muslim Southwest Asia to China on a regular and reliable basis.
C) The Chinese controlled much of the Arabian Sea at this time.
D) Goods from China were far more valuable than goods originating in Southwest Asia.

Question 28

The rulers of Srivijaya benefited from their adoption of Buddhism in which of the following ways?

A) The spread of Buddhism legitimized the relatively weak Srivijayan state.
B) Buddhist teachings brought an end to a decades-long civil war within Srivijayan territory.
C) Buddhist teachings permitted the Srivijayan kings to engage in trade where their previous religious beliefs had prohibited its followers from earning profits.
D) Srivijayan kings were able to form profitable alliances with other Buddhist states in the region.

Question 29

Which of the following is NOT a true statement regarding the collapse of the Tang dynasty?

A) Trade came to a virtual standstill with the collapse of the Tang dynasty.
B) The equal-field system, instituted by the Tang, fell apart due to the government's inability to manage it properly.
C) The Tang lost much-needed revenue from Buddhist estates that were not required to pay taxes.
D) The Tang faced continual threats from various clans in Inner Eurasia.

Question 30

Which of the following best describes the belief system known as Shinto?

A) a type of monotheistic derivative of Christianity and Islam
B) a philosophical system based on reason and experimentation similar to that practiced by the ancient Greeks
C) a belief system in which ancestral and other spirits inhabit the natural world and have a great deal of influence over events
D) a polytheistic system similar in character to Hinduism

Question 31

Which of the following best describes the relationship between Japanese and Chinese culture beginning in the third century C.E.?

A) Though the Japanese were eager to adopt many aspects of Chinese culture and society, they eventually developed their own distinct blend of Japanese and Chinese culture.
B) In an effort to distinguish themselves from China, Japan's elites rejected all forms of Chinese civilization.
C) Japan was a type of cultural satellite of China, and its elites slavishly copied all aspects of Chinese art and culture.
D) Because of its relative isolation, Japan developed independently of China.

Question 32

The task of developing a distinct Japanese writing system fell to which of the following groups?

A) male aristocrats
B) elite women
C) Chinese scholars
D) Shinto priests

Question 33

Which of the following best describes the relationship between Buddhism and Shinto in Japan?

A) When Buddhist monks arrived in Japan, they attempted to rid the region of all Shinto beliefs and rituals.
B) Most practitioners of Shinto rejected Buddhism as an alien faith.
C) Buddhism spread among the rural peasantry, while Shinto remained the main belief system of Japan's elite.
D) Most Japanese adopted a type of blend between Buddhism and Shinto.

Question 34

Which of the following enabled north-south travel across the Sahara Desert during the first millennium C.E.?

A) a period of climatic cooling
B) technological innovations that enabled travelers to extract water in the desert
C) the introduction of the dromedary
D) the adoption of vehicles that could traverse the desert in half the time

Question 35

Which of the following likely contributed to the rise of states in West Africa from the third to the eleventh centuries C.E.?

A) an extended period of increased rainfall
B) a shrinking of the Sahara Desert due to climatic shifts
C) the spread of Islam to the region
D) the ability of Chinese mariners to reach the territory by sea

Question 36

West Africa's chief export during the first millennium C.E. was

A) rice.
B) gold.
C) silk.
D) spices.

Question 37

Which of the following best summarizes the trans-Saharan trade during the first millennium C.E.?

A) Though easier than in earlier times, the arduous journey across the Sahara made trade extremely difficult.
B) Trade was weighted far more from south to north than north to south.
C) Muslim states at the northern end of the trade route would not permit the sale of slaves in their lands.
D) Trade increased significantly during this time period, and both the northern and southern ends of the route benefited greatly from the influx of goods.

Question 38

Which of the following is an accurate description of the kingdom of Ghana during the first millennium C.E.?

A) The Ghana state was small and often fell victim to foreign attacks.
B) Ghana was a matriarchal society, and all of its rulers were women.
C) Ghana was a strong and important state whose ruler was believed to possess semi-divine powers.
D) Ghana was a highly centralized state that was able to control all of its gold exports across the Sahara.

Question 39

One important consequence of the trans-Saharan trade was the

A) spread of Islam into West Africa.
B) spread of West African religions into North Africa.
C) introduction of Ghana's writing system into Muslim culture.
D) end of matriarchy in Ghana.

Question 40

Based on new evidence, scholars have begun to revise which of the following prevailing notions about European society from the eighth to eleventh centuries C.E.?

A) From their stronghold in Spain, the Umayyads began to bring Islam to much of western Europe.
B) After Charlemagne's reign, Europe continued its economic and cultural resurgence.
C) The Byzantine state continued to wield a great deal of power in western European affairs.
D) After Charlemagne's reign, Europe plunged into centuries of economic and cultural decline.

Question 41

Which of the following was one important consequence of Aghlabid incursions into western Europe?

A) European merchants became increasingly involved in trans-hemispheric trade.
B) A strong centralized state arose in Italy to defend against Aghlabid raids.
C) European merchants became increasingly removed from maritime Mediterranean trade.
D) Charlemagne's descendants attempted to revive a European-wide Christian empire.

Question 42

The Magyars originated from which region?

A) Southwest Asia
B) the Inner Eurasian steppes
C) South Asia
D) Hungary

Question 43

Which of the following best describes the religious beliefs of the Vikings?

A) They practiced a religion similar to the Shinto belief system in Japan and worshiped dozens of ancestral and natural spirits.
B) They were among the earliest converts to Manichaeism.
C) They worshiped a pantheon of both male and female deities.
D) They adopted the religious beliefs of the ancient Greeks.

Question 44

Which of the following is NOT an explanation for the expansion of Viking forces at the end of the first millennium C.E.?

A) A period of climatic cooling forced Vikings to seek out new land to inhabit.
B) The rise of centralized states may have forced Viking rebels to seek their fortunes elsewhere.
C) Vikings were adept sailors and had traded frequently with Romans.
D) A period of climatic warming caused Viking populations to rise, resulting in the need for new sources of supplies to sustain the larger number of people.

Question 45

Which of the following best describes Viking incursions into other parts of Europe?

A) The Vikings attacked as a highly unified and well-organized military unit.
B) While some Vikings raided and looted, others remained and founded new settlements throughout northern Europe.
C) While Vikings readily attacked and looted aristocratic estates, they refrained from attacking religious institutions.
D) The Vikings readily permitted their women to participate in raids and attacks.

Question 46

The Vikings were the first to colonize which of the following territories?

A) Ireland
B) Scotland
C) New Finland
D) Greenland

Question 47

The discovery of Norwegian coins in North America has confirmed which of the following theories?

A) Vikings discovered and settled for a time in North American during the eleventh century C.E.
B) Vikings had regular contact with Native Americans from North America.
C) The maritime journey from Scandinavia to North America was easier during the eleventh century C.E. due to a period of climatic warming.
D) Vikings should be credited with the European discovery of the Americas.

Question 48

One important consequence of Viking incursions into eastern Europe was

A) the adoption of Scandinavian tongues by Slavic inhabitants.
B) the absorption of eastern Europe into the Byzantine state.
C) the melding of Viking, Slavic, and Turkic cultures and the rise of centralized states in the region.
D) a long delay in the spread of Christianity to the region.

Question 49

Which of the following is an accurate definition of the term feudalism?

A) a political system based on a well-organized bureaucracy and highly centralized states
B) a system in which a landed aristocrat provides protection for those individuals and families that serve him or her in a variety of capacities
C) a system in which wealthy aristocrats maintain large estates mostly through slave labor
D) an agricultural system in which peasants divide up land according to the size and needs of each family

Question 50

Which of the following best describes the role of women in feudal society?

A) Women exerted virtually no influence in matters of state and were regularly segregated socially from men.
B) Unusual for its time, peasant women wielded far more power than their elite counterparts.
C) Though politically weak, women were known far and wide in feudal Europe for their scholarship.
D) Women exerted a great deal of influence in feudal European society through the marriage alliances they helped to cement.

Question 51

Describe the structure of the Abbasid state. What was the relationship of the Abbasid ruler to his subjects? What was the role of Islam and Islamic leaders in Abbasid society? What were some of the major consequences of Abbasid rule throughout Afroeurasia?

Question 52

Examine the rise of competing Muslim states at the end of the first millennium C.E. What were the major similarities and differences among these states? How did the growth of these states affect Islam and Islamic society?

Question 53

Describe the Dar al-Islam. How did the community of Islamic societies affect the cultural and intellectual trends of Afroeurasia? What were some of the major achievements of Islamic society at the end of the first millennium C.E.?

Question 54

Discuss Japanese society at the end of the first millennium C.E. What were some of the key features of Japan's political, social, religious, and cultural life?

Question 55

Explore the rise of the trans-Saharan trade route. What were some of the major political, economic, and cultural consequences of increased contact between North and West Africa?

Question 56

How did the Vikings from the eighth to eleventh centuries C.E. transform European society? What does archaeological evidence tell us about the scope of Viking activity during this time?

Question 57

Discuss the rise of feudalism in western Europe toward the end of the first millennium C.E. What were some of the key structural elements of feudal society? Who held power in feudal Europe, and in what ways did they wield it?