3 credits
Fall 2025 Lecture Upper Division
This course introduces the history of the Silk Road - a complex network of trade routes that connected China with the rest of Eurasia over land and sea - and its role in fostering cultural and material exchanges between the peoples it connected. It will revisit key moments of the Silk Road in pre-modern history to understand how Eurasia was connected through vast networks of traders and caravans, and will situate temporally and geographically the main states, actors, objects, religions, and ideas that have populated the roads, oasis towns, and steppe territories constituting the Silk Road.
Learning Outcomes1Demonstrate a basic understanding of historical contexts, major concepts, and theoretical perspectives in the history of pre-modern Silk Road trading routes across time and place.
2Identify diverse historical groups, cultures, and commercial interests on Silk Road networks.
3Compare and contrast the strengths and weaknesses of contending scholarly interpretations of the conflicts and connections along the Silk Road.
4Develop advanced skills through source evaluation, analytical thinking, and academic writing through choosing appropriate primary sources and scholarly literature.
5Evaluate how historical knowledge informs and can shape global decisions and responsibilities in today's world.
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