Saylor.org's Early Globalizations: East Meets West (1200s-1600s)/Globalization and History

The resources in this short, introductory section will discuss some of the meanings and developments associated with the term globalization and the manner in which they have been used by historians to account for changes in the lives of peoples throughout the world over time. One of the major insights to be gained from these resources is that the cultural and political practices (laws, languages, religions, etc.) of any given society tend in some measure to reflect the effects of interactions with the larger world, whether brought about by migration, trade or conquest. Students should keep the concepts found here in mind as they progress through the course. The following units will in fact present numerous examples of the diverse forms of encounter and “interconnectedness” described in the resources below, as well as their many causes and consequences.