Genghis Khan
The name of Genghis Khan is often associated with destruction, although the image of Genghis Khan has been rehabilitated somewhat in the west. The western world, saturated in media distortion and a reluctance to accept changes in perceptions of history, has been rather averse in accepting Genghis Khan's activities as pivotal in world history and the shaping of the modern world. Thus, the publication of Jack Weatherford's book, Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World, is a welcome addition to the literature on the Mongols.
The book is organized into an introduction, and then three sections of the text itself, and concluding with an epilogue, notes, glossary, and bibliography. Preceding all of these is a genealogical table showing Genghis …show more content…
Weatherford states that the title "Genghis Khan", means strong, firm, fearless. Genghis (or more properly, Chinggis) comes from the middle Mongolian "ching"; Weatherford uses the modern Mongolian equivalent, "chin." Weatherford then associates it with the Mongolian word for wolf, chino, which was also the male ancestor of the Mongols (the female ancestor was a deer).
While other examples exist, one final example of these linguistic errors must be brought forth, particularly as it pertains to a subject that has been in the news in the recent years: the Hazara people of Afghanistan. Weatherford is correct in that the Hazara trace their existence back to a Mongol regiment that was stationed in Afghanistan; however Hazara does not mean "ten thousand" in Persian as Weatherford states, but rather "a thousand", which was the essential unit for military and civil operations. The overall thrust of the book is on target and may promote new discourse on the influence of the Mongols in history. Weatherford overstates his case in his enthusiasm for the Mongols, making connections that are often tenuous. Did the Mongols contribute to the modern world? Definitely yes, the evidence (even considering the errors) assembled makes this very clear. It is too much to say that Renaissance would not have happened without the Mongols. Indeed, eventually artists would have had contact with new styles and Chinese technology would have crept into Europe at any rate via the Middle East, albeit perhaps at a slower rate. More importantly the great period of translation of Greek material conducted by the Arabs is of equal
The book is organized into an introduction, and then three sections of the text itself, and concluding with an epilogue, notes, glossary, and bibliography. Preceding all of these is a genealogical table showing Genghis …show more content…
Weatherford states that the title "Genghis Khan", means strong, firm, fearless. Genghis (or more properly, Chinggis) comes from the middle Mongolian "ching"; Weatherford uses the modern Mongolian equivalent, "chin." Weatherford then associates it with the Mongolian word for wolf, chino, which was also the male ancestor of the Mongols (the female ancestor was a deer).
While other examples exist, one final example of these linguistic errors must be brought forth, particularly as it pertains to a subject that has been in the news in the recent years: the Hazara people of Afghanistan. Weatherford is correct in that the Hazara trace their existence back to a Mongol regiment that was stationed in Afghanistan; however Hazara does not mean "ten thousand" in Persian as Weatherford states, but rather "a thousand", which was the essential unit for military and civil operations. The overall thrust of the book is on target and may promote new discourse on the influence of the Mongols in history. Weatherford overstates his case in his enthusiasm for the Mongols, making connections that are often tenuous. Did the Mongols contribute to the modern world? Definitely yes, the evidence (even considering the errors) assembled makes this very clear. It is too much to say that Renaissance would not have happened without the Mongols. Indeed, eventually artists would have had contact with new styles and Chinese technology would have crept into Europe at any rate via the Middle East, albeit perhaps at a slower rate. More importantly the great period of translation of Greek material conducted by the Arabs is of equal