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Big Idea

The Silk Road connects civilizations in Europe, Africa and Asia.

Essential Question

What was the Silk Road?

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Words To Know

Silk Road – a group of trade routes that went across Asia

to the Mediterranean Sea. This let China trade with the

Middle East and the Mediterranean world.

Cultural Diffusion – the exchange and spread of goods and

ideas through contact between people from different

cultures.

Let’s Set The Stage…

The Silk Road was not actually a road. It was not paved. It was not even a single route. The Silk Road was a name given to any route that led across China to Rome. It was a 4000-mile trip. At one end was China. At the other end was Rome. Each had something the other wanted. Rome had gold and silver and precious gems. China had silk and spices and ivory. Ideas also traveled along the Silk Road, ideas that affected everyone.

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The Silk Road was a group of trade routes that went across and connected Asia to the Mediterranean Sea.

The Silk Road

It was called the Silk Road because silk was traded along it. At the time, silk was only made in China, and it was a valuable material.

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The Silk Road not only earned China a lot of money, but all along the route cities prospered and markets flourished.

Trade on the Silk Road played a big part in the growth of the ancient cultures of China, Egypt, Mesopotamia, Persia, India and Rome.It helped to make the beginning of today's world.

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Trade along the Silk Road included fruits and vegetables, animals, grain, leather, tools, religious objects, artwork, precious stones and metals.

Paper and gunpowder, both invented by the Chinese during the Han Dynasty, had obvious and lasting impacts on culture and history in the West.

The Silk Road: Trading

Chinese gun powder

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Many other things were also traded, even ideas. Since traders came from many places, different ideas were brought to China, and China's ideas were taken to other places.This is called cultural diffusion.

Language, culture, religious beliefs, philosophy and science were also traded or shared along the Silk Road (cultural diffusion).

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Buddhism which began in India spread (diffused) to Japan from trading on the Silk Road.

The Silk Road: Cultural Diffusion

Islam which began in the Middle East (Saudi Arabia) spread (diffused) to Africa, Europe and parts of Asia.

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Islam spread from trading on the Silk Road and on the Indian Ocean trading route.

The Silk Road also opened a way for explorers to better understand the culture and geography of the Far East.

The Silk Road: ExplorersT

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Trading on the Silk Road did have unintended (by accident) effects on the regions of the world that were connected to it.

The Silk Road: Diseases

Traders accidentally brought infectious diseases with them as they traveled. Smallpox, measles and the bubonic plague spread as a result of the Silk Road.

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How do we know the Silk Road existed?Archeologists have found convincing evidence.

The Silk Road: Trading

Chinese silk was found in ancient Rome and the region of the Mediterranean Sea.

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Ceramics from Southeast Asia was found in parts of India.

All throughout Asia, Europe and Africa objects and ideas that were shared and traded on the Silk Road have been found by archeologists.

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The Silk Road brought people far across Asia and Europe, bringing different parts of their culture with them.

The Silk Road of Today

With these people came items and goods from different cultures that some people had never seen before.

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Although it’s been nearly 600 years since the Silk Road has been used for trade, it has had a lasting impact on commerce (business), culture and history that effects us even today.

Today, we have shipping routes that cover the entire globe.

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Essential Question Answered

What was the Silk Road?

The Silk Road was a group of trade routes that went across and connected Asia to the Mediterranean Sea.

Trade along the Silk Road included fruits and vegetables, animals, grain, leather, tools, religious objects, artwork, precious stones and metals.

Essential Question Answered

What was the Silk Road?

Many other things were traded or shared, even ideas and beliefs (religion). This is called cultural diffusion.

The Silk Road also made exploring places like China and India possible.

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Diseases were accidentally transmitted (shared) among traders from different parts of the world. Traders would then take these diseases home or to other parts of the world.

Essential Question Answered

What was the Silk Road?

Trade on the Silk Road played a big part in the growth of the ancient cultures of China, Egypt, Mesopotamia, Persia, India, and Rome and helped to make the beginning of today's world.

Essential Question Answered

What was the Silk Road?