Sites of Encounter
The Medieval World
This unit is organized differently from the units you have studied before. The previous units were about one region of the world, like Rome, Egypt, China or Europe. The new unit is about the connections among many regions of the world. It is called Sites of Encounter in the Medieval World. The historical investigation question is: How did sites of encounter change the medieval world?
First we need to look at what these words mean. A “site of encounter” is a place (site) where people from different cultures meet and mix together. [ students record that definition in your notes.] In the time period we’re studying, “different cultures” means groups of people that came from different places, or groups that had different languages, customs, or religions. There were thousands of different cultures in the medieval world. At sites of encounter, people do 2 things: 1) they exchange trade products, technologies, and ideas, and 2) by combining their knowledge, they create new products, technologies, and ideas and spread those to their home cultures. Sites of encounter are important because they are places where new ideas are born and shared.
Before we talk about what “the medieval world” means, let’s look at 2 dictionary definitions of the word “medieval.”
Medieval, definition #1. Of, relating to, or characteristic of the Middle Ages (500-1500). 2. Having a quality (such as cruelty) associated with the Middle Ages. 3. Extremely outmoded or antiquated
Medieval, definition #2. 1. Relating or belonging to the Middle Ages (500-1500). 2. Old-fashioned; unenlightened (Example: Her parents had a medieval attitude toward dating.)Sites of Encounter in the Medieval World we will study how people from different cultures interacted with each other. When people from different cultures meet for the first time, what kinds of reactions can they have? What are the possible forms of contact? [Solicit war, trade, coexistence, conquest.]
There was a lot of war and conquest in the Medieval World. Sometimes the wars were between people of different religions, such as the Crusades. But just as often knights and warriors fought against people of their own religion, Christians against Christians, or Muslims against Muslims. At the same time, Christian and Muslim merchants brought and sold goods from each other. In fact, the amount of trade grew tremendously as the Crusades continued.
We will find by investigating like a historian on how exchanges (of products, technologies, and ideas) at sites of encounter changed the Medieval World. Some of the products (silk, pepper, pots, etc.), technologies (a type of sail, a compass, a windmill) and ideas (scientific, religious, or intellectual information, books, artwork). The first site will be Sicily in the 12th century (1100s). The others are Quanzhou, Cairo, Mali, Majorca and Calicut.
This unit is organized differently from the units you have studied before. The previous units were about one region of the world, like Rome, Egypt, China or Europe. The new unit is about the connections among many regions of the world. It is called Sites of Encounter in the Medieval World. The historical investigation question is: How did sites of encounter change the medieval world?
First we need to look at what these words mean. A “site of encounter” is a place (site) where people from different cultures meet and mix together. [ students record that definition in your notes.] In the time period we’re studying, “different cultures” means groups of people that came from different places, or groups that had different languages, customs, or religions. There were thousands of different cultures in the medieval world. At sites of encounter, people do 2 things: 1) they exchange trade products, technologies, and ideas, and 2) by combining their knowledge, they create new products, technologies, and ideas and spread those to their home cultures. Sites of encounter are important because they are places where new ideas are born and shared.
Before we talk about what “the medieval world” means, let’s look at 2 dictionary definitions of the word “medieval.”
Medieval, definition #1. Of, relating to, or characteristic of the Middle Ages (500-1500). 2. Having a quality (such as cruelty) associated with the Middle Ages. 3. Extremely outmoded or antiquated
Medieval, definition #2. 1. Relating or belonging to the Middle Ages (500-1500). 2. Old-fashioned; unenlightened (Example: Her parents had a medieval attitude toward dating.)Sites of Encounter in the Medieval World we will study how people from different cultures interacted with each other. When people from different cultures meet for the first time, what kinds of reactions can they have? What are the possible forms of contact? [Solicit war, trade, coexistence, conquest.]
There was a lot of war and conquest in the Medieval World. Sometimes the wars were between people of different religions, such as the Crusades. But just as often knights and warriors fought against people of their own religion, Christians against Christians, or Muslims against Muslims. At the same time, Christian and Muslim merchants brought and sold goods from each other. In fact, the amount of trade grew tremendously as the Crusades continued.
We will find by investigating like a historian on how exchanges (of products, technologies, and ideas) at sites of encounter changed the Medieval World. Some of the products (silk, pepper, pots, etc.), technologies (a type of sail, a compass, a windmill) and ideas (scientific, religious, or intellectual information, books, artwork). The first site will be Sicily in the 12th century (1100s). The others are Quanzhou, Cairo, Mali, Majorca and Calicut.