WHAP Sui, Song, and Tang dynasty notes

First emperor of the Sui dynasty

2nd Sui ruler; restored Confucian examination system; constructed canal system; assassinated in 618.

Capital of later Sui dynasty

Founder of the Tang Dynasty

Great emperor of the Tang Dynasty; Helped his father (Li Yuan) take over Sui dynasty

Tang rulers

Emperor who in 668 sent armies to take over Korea, created a vassal kingdom called Silla

A vassal kingdom established by Tang Dynasty in Korea. Remained loyal to China and paid tribute.

Capital of Tang dynasty; most populated city in the world at the time.

administered the examinations for state office during the Tang dynasty.

Title granted to those students who passed the most difficult Chinese examination on all of Chinese literature; became immediate dignitaries and eligible for high office.

Known as Zen in Japan; stressed meditation and appreciation of natural and artistic beauty; popular with members of elite Chinese society

emphasized salvationist aspects of Chinese Buddhism; popular among the masses in East Asia

the only woman to rule China in her own name, expanded the empire and supported Buddhism during the Tang Dynasty.

Chinese emperor of Tang dynasty who openly persecuted Buddhism by destroying monasteries in 840s; reduced influence of Chinese Buddhism in favor of Confucian ideology

Leading Chinese emperor of the Tang dynasty who encouraged overexpansion

Royal concubine of Tang emperor Xuanzong; introduction of relatives into administration led to revolt.

Foreign-born general who led a major revolt against the Tang dynasty in 755-763, perhaps provoking China's turn to xenophobia

Empire in southern China after the Tang Dynasty.

Founder of Song dynasty; originally a general following fall of Tang; took title of Taizu; failed to overcome northern Liao dynasty that remained independent.

A nomadic people in northern China who were not taken over by the Song dynasty.

Most prominent neo-Confucian scholar during the Song dynasty; stressed importance of applying philosophical principles to everyday life.

Rump state of Song dynasty from 1127 to 1279; carved out of much larger domains ruled by the Tang and northern Song; culturally one of the most glorious reigns in Chinese history

Founders of Qin kingdom that succeeded the Liao in northern China; annexed most of the Yellow River basin and forced Song to flee to south.

The 1,100-mile waterway linking the Yellow and the Yangzi Rivers. It was begun in the Han period and completed during the Sui Empire.

Chinese ships equipped with watertight bulkheads, sternpost rudders, compasses, and bamboo fenders; dominant force in Asian seas east of the Malayan peninsula

Chinese credit instrument that provided credit vouchers to merchants to be redeemed at the end of the voyage; reduced danger of robbery; early form of currency

Capital of later Song dynasty; located near East China Sea; permitted overseas trading; population exceeded 1 million.

Practice in Chinese society to mutilate women's feet in order to make them smaller; produced pain and restricted women's movement; made it easier to confine women to the household.

Most famous poet of the Tang era; blended images of the mundane world with philosophical musings.