16. Material culture of the medieval East

In essence, the medieval era was feudal and developed in two slightly similar versions: one - the states of the West; the other is the medieval civilizations of the east, including the Confucian civilization (China); Japan; the Indian state, the Mongol civilization and the Middle Eastern Islamic world.

1. Medieval China

Chinese civilization experienced the transition from antiquity to the Middle Ages imperceptibly, without global transformation and destruction of all foundations, as happened with the collapse of the great empires of the past in the West. Moreover, medieval China resembled ancient China in many ways. But changes still occurred. Historians date the origin of feudal relations here from the 11th to the 4th centuries. BC, although it is believed that they developed around the 3rd century. n. e. Gradually, slowly, slavery was eliminated, and new social formations arose in their original, “eastern” version. Serious changes took place in spiritual life, the state structure and its moral foundations were recreated. In this sense, the emergence of Confucianism was a turning point in Chinese history.

In the middle of the first millennium BC. e. the philosopher Confucius (551-479 BC) created a teaching that was destined to become the flesh and blood of Chinese civilization. The goal of his philosophical system was to make the state ideal, based on solid moral principles, with harmonious social relations. The ideas of Confucius, at first glance far from reality, several centuries later became the state religion and for more than two millennia, almost unchanged, retained a leading role in the spiritual life of Chinese society. Confucianism is salvation on earth. Confucianism is a very “earthly” religion. Rationality and practicality are expressed in it so strongly that some scientists do not consider it a religion in the full sense of the word. Methods of government, regulation of relations between different social strata, principles of family life, ethical standards that a person should follow - this is what primarily interested the medieval followers of Confucius.

The stage of centralization of China was carried out during the Sui dynasty, which at the end of the 6th century. united north and south, but was overthrown at the beginning of the 7th century. The era of its true heyday is associated with the Tang dynasty, which ruled for quite a long time (from the beginning of the 7th to the beginning of the 10th century) and the Song dynasty (X-XIII centuries). In that era, roads, canals and new cities were built throughout the country, crafts, trade, fine arts, and especially poetry reached extraordinary prosperity.

A weak people is a strong state: the main slogan of medieval China. The power that played the role of patron and manager in a large family was personified in the person of the emperor. All other social strata, no matter what level of the hierarchical ladder they stood at, were directly his subjects. Therefore, in feudal China, as it was in Western Europe, a system of vassalage did not arise; the only overlord was the state. In addition, the system of collective responsibility was widespread in China. So, the son, or even the whole family, could pay for the father’s crime; the headman in the village was punished if the land on his territory was not fully cultivated; District officials found themselves in the same position. However, the focus on collectivism also had a downside. In China, family-clan ties, sanctified and exalted by Confucianism, acquired enormous power.

The term "medieval China" is not so well known when compared with Western Europe, since the country's history did not have a clear division into eras as such. It is generally accepted that it began in the third century BC with the reign of the Qin dynasty and continued for more than two thousand years until the end of the Qing dynasty.

The Kingdom of Qin, which was a small state located in the northwest of the country, annexed the territories of several kingdoms on the southern and western borders, pursuing clear political goals aimed at consolidating power. In 221, the unification of the country took place, previously consisting of many disparate feudal possessions and in historiography referred to as “ancient China”. History from that time on took a different path - the development of a new united Chinese world.

Qin was the most culturally advanced among the Warring States and the most powerful militarily. Ying Zheng, known as the first emperor Qin Shi Huang, was able to unify China into the first with Xianyang (near the modern city of Xiyan) as its capital, ending the Warring States era, which had lasted for several centuries. The name that the emperor took for himself was consonant with the name of one of the main and very important characters in mythological and national history - Huangdi or the Yellow Emperor. By formalizing his title in this way, Ying Zheng raised his prestige high. “We are the First Emperor, and our heirs will be known as the Second Emperor, the Third Emperor, and so on in an endless series of generations,” he declared majestically. Medieval China in historiography is usually called the “imperial era”.

During his reign, Qin Shi Huang continued to expand the empire into

East and south, eventually reaching the borders of Vietnam. The vast empire was divided into thirty-six jun (military regions), which were jointly administered by civilian governors and military commandants, who controlled each other. This system served as the model for all dynastic governments in China until the fall of the Qing dynasty in 1911.

The first emperor not only unified medieval China. He reformed, approving its new form as the official writing system (many historians believe that this is the most important reform of all), and standardized the system of weights and measures throughout the state. This was an important condition for strengthening the internal trade of the united kingdoms, each of which had its own standards.

During the reign of the Qin dynasty (221-206 BC), many philosophical schools whose teachings were in varying degrees contrary to imperial ideology were outlawed. In 213 BC, all works containing such thoughts, including those of Confucius, were burned, except for copies that were kept in the imperial library. Many researchers agree with the statement that it was during the reign of the Qin dynasty that the name of the empire appeared - China.

The sights of that period are known all over the world. During archaeological excavations at the burial site of the first (near Xi'an), begun in 1974, more than six thousand terracotta figures (warriors, horses) were discovered. They represented a vast army that guarded the tomb of Qin Shi Huang. became one of the greatest and most exciting archaeological discoveries in China. Chronological records described the emperor's burial as a micro-version of his empire, with constellations painted on the ceiling, flowing rivers created from mercury. Qin Shi Huang is credited with creating several defensive walls along the northern border during the Qin era.

Medieval China began to decline with the expansion of the European opium trade, which caused destabilization in society and ultimately led to (1840-1842; 1856-1860).

The persistent diversity of structures, the incompleteness of the processes of class formation, the preservation of remnants of patriarchal-tribal and slave relations, the uneven economic and social development of various regions of a vast territory make it difficult to accurately identify the time line from which the beginning of the medieval history of traditional China can be dated. Even in Ancient China, large private land ownership was taking shape, based on various forms of exploitation of land-poor and landless peasants who had not lost their freedom. The exploitation of the tax-paying peasantry by the state through the collection of rent-taxes is also becoming widespread.

When periodizing history of China in the Middle Ages it is necessary to take into account the periodic changes of reigning dynasties and the formation of large empires. The state was directly influenced by the frequent popular uprisings at that time, which led to various changes in the social class structure, as well as in political and legal institutions.

Collapse of the Han Empire in the 3rd century. as a result of the concentration of land in the hands of private owners and powerful popular movements of the 2nd-3rd centuries. led to a century of internal turmoil. The subsequent restoration of state unity was associated with the processes of centralization in Northern China, where it was founded Jin dynasty(265-420). Most of the land was declared imperial, i.e. state property, and independent peasants - tax holders of state plots:

• tax-payers of the first category - men and women from 16 to 60 years of age who received “allotments for use” and “taxable allotments”, the harvest from which was entirely transferred to the state as a tax and payment for land;
• Taxpayers of the second category - all other members of peasant families from 13 to 15 and from 61 to 65 years old, who received plots of half the size.

Those who had not reached tax age and those who had exceeded it did not receive any allotments. Tax-paying peasants who received state allotments also bore labor duties.

The reform did not mean an equal redistribution of land. Officials, for example, depending on their rank, received land plots from 1 to 5 thousand mu, which were not subject to taxes and duties and had to be cultivated by tenant farmers (from 1 to 15 households for each official, depending on the latter’s rank).

A new version of the allotment system (the “equal fields” system) was introduced in 485 in Northern China under Northern Wei Dynasty, and then in the 6th and 7th centuries, with Sui dynasty and who replaced her Tang Dynasty. This system was subsequently extended to all of China. Peasants from 15 to 70 years old received from the state land plots with a specific purpose - for sowing grain, hemp, and planting mulberry trees. Most of the land intended for sowing grain was provided only for temporary use and was taken by the state from the peasant after he exceeded the tax age or in the event of death. Another small part of the land plot was inherited.

The allotment system meant not only the strengthening of the traditional system of exploitation of the tax-paying peasantry. It contributed to the spread of the actual attachment of peasants to the land through the rural community with its mutual responsibility and collective tax liability to the state treasury.

This system not only did not affect the existing large private landholdings, but also contributed to its expansion.
Tang legislation formally prohibited the sale of plots, but numerous reservations (the plot could be sold if the family moved, for the purpose of performing funeral rites, etc.) contributed to the growth of concentration of land among private individuals, which later intensified when these formal prohibitions were actually lifted. This increased the property inequality of peasants and their dependence on private landowners.

An inevitable manifestation of the growth of large land ownership in the Tang Empire was the trend of clan separatism. This trend intensified due to the introduction of the positions of military governors (jiedushi), vested with enormous military powers to combat the incessant raids of nomads, etc. Governors turned over time into all-powerful governors, large landowners, who had little regard for the central government.

The system of allotment land use suffered a complete collapse in the 8th century. in connection with the massive dispossession of peasants and a decrease in reserves of government lands intended for distribution to the rural population. In order to somehow restore the disturbed balance and prevent a social explosion, in 780 a new “two-time tax” system was introduced in China, in which all households, strictly depending on their property status, were divided into categories and had to pay a tax according to the size of their land ownership . At the same time, bans on sales were lifted, land redistributions were cancelled, which created new opportunities for the growth of large-scale land ownership based on the exploitation of land-poor and landless peasant tenants and various categories of dependent workers.

Starting from the second half of the 8th century. About half of the total number of farmers in China existed by cultivating other people's land and were subject to private exploitation. The other half was made up of a wide layer of independent small producers who gave their surplus product in the form of a tax to the state.
Mass dispossession of small landowners led to social explosions, uprisings, and wars, during which the ruling dynasties died. As a result, the share of independent peasant farms and the traditional system of their exploitation were cyclically restored.

At the end of the 13th century. China was conquered by the Mongols. In 1279, rule was established Mongol Yuan dynasty. The Mongol conquest led to dire consequences for the economy and culture of China, but did not undermine the foundations of the traditional economic system. The Mongols put into their service a Chinese organization designed to extract taxes from the tax-paying peasantry. It is interesting to note that it was at this time that the number of slaves and quitrent slaves in China sharply increased.

Under the pressure of the national liberation struggle and the powerful peasant movement of the 14th century. Mongol rule fell. The country has established a new All China Ming Dynasty(1368-1644), which did its best to maintain a balance of public and private land ownership.

In the 17th century China was invaded by the Manchus, who established the Manchu dynasty there, which ruled until the revolution of 1911-1913. Before the revolution, slavery also existed in China, which was abolished at that time by legislation.

The class structure of China in the Middle Ages

Throughout the medieval history of China, self-government bodies were maintained in the lower territorial units. Community elders kept order and the cultivation of the land. All residents of the village community were bound by mutual responsibility thanks to the ten-yard system created for collecting taxes, carrying out labor duties, etc.

The Ming Empire included appanage principalities assigned to the sons and grandsons of the emperor. They had neither administrative nor judicial power, and under some Ming emperors they had only military powers. A certain portion of local taxes went to them.
In a special position in the empire were some self-governing provinces inhabited by representatives of other peoples. The local chiefs of these territories, located along the southwestern borders of China, remained rulers after they were confirmed by the Chinese emperor. They were thus included in a special group of local officials who, following the example of Chinese officials, were assigned ranks, but were not paid a salary by the emperor.

Court in medieval China

In medieval China, court cases were considered both in the judicial authorities themselves and in administrative bodies performing judicial functions. In Ming China, a relatively orderly hierarchical judicial ladder developed, with the emperor himself at the highest level and the elected village elder at the lowest.

Most cases were resolved in district administrations-yamenya, where the district chief held court.

If there was insufficient evidence, the case was either postponed or transferred to a special investigative judge for criminal cases, who, in terms of his official rank, was equal to the district chief. Cases related to serious crimes - murder, grand theft, extortion - were received to a region or province where they operated special judicial and government bodies:

• “the department of administrative affairs”, which exercised control over the correct execution of administrative affairs;
• the “military affairs department,” where military affairs were investigated;
• "department for the consideration of judicial cases", i.e. on the affairs of other people.

This stage was, in principle, the final stage for the consideration of most court cases. Only if the case was not finally resolved in the region or province was it sent to one or another metropolitan judicial investigative body. Here decisions were made on behalf of the emperor, to whom all death sentences were reported. The emperor had the right to declare and also commute punishment.

Army of a medieval state in China

The principles of army organization changed at different stages of the development of the medieval state in China under the influence of both domestic and foreign political factors.

To Tan Men under the age of 60 were considered liable for military service and were recruited to serve in the army, as well as to perform other duties. Desertion and evasion from a military campaign to the battlefield were punishable by death.

From the 8th century emperors increasingly began to resort to the services mercenary army, maintain cavalry staffed from Turks, Uyghurs, etc. Wang Anshi’s reforms in the 11th century, the main purpose of which was to create a strong centralized state, instead of hiring, conscription of troops was introduced, with the help of which a regular army was created, supported by the state. Recruitment also existed in later times.

In the Ming Empire the old system of “district troops” and border garrisons was preserved, the main composition of which was formed from military settlers who had an allotment and served until old age, and sometimes until death.
At all times, regular troops relied on the support of local military detachments and community formations designed to maintain order. Consisting mainly of wealthy peasants, these detachments were especially active during peasant unrest. The Ming emperors widely resorted to auxiliary military formations of the allied states, which they either hired or forced to serve in front-line areas.
During the Ming, the army grew continuously, in the 17th century. it numbered 4 million people. Regional military formations were located across provinces and in vital military areas. From the base military formations, special troops were periodically selected and specially trained to serve in the capital, among which stood out detachments of the personal imperial guard, called upon to guard the imperial palace. Another special category of military units were the escort troops assigned to each prince.

For control purposes, all military units were distributed among five military districts, led by the main military commissariats located in the capital. The heads of the main military commissariats, who exercised control over the military-territorial districts, were part of the government.

There was no permanent commander-in-chief in the army. In the event of the outbreak of hostilities, one of the highest military ranks or dignitaries was appointed general or even generalissimo. Gradually, however, a system of permanent tactical command developed, with personnel concentrated along borders, ports and other strategic points.

Chapter XI. The peoples of Asia, America and Africa in the Middle Ages.

1. Tang Empire. At the beginning of the 7th century, the Tang dynasty established itself in China, ruling the country for about 300 years. The unified state was headed by an emperor with unlimited power: he was considered the “Son of Heaven.” He had a large army and many officials at his disposal.

The Tang Empire sought to subjugate its neighbors. Korea and Vietnam temporarily became dependent on China, and the Chinese army captured the Great Silk Road all the way to Central Asia. After defeat by the Arabs in the mid-8th century, China lost complete control over it. But trade along this route with Iran, Central Asia and Byzantium continued.

China also conducted maritime trade with countries located along the shores of the Indian Ocean. Arabs and Persians created their permanent settlements in the coastal cities of China. To facilitate transportation within the country, the Grand Canal, 1,700 km long, was built. It connected the mighty Yangtze and Yellow Rivers, connected them with the southeastern sea coast, and later it was extended far to the north. The canal was also used to irrigate fields.

At first, land in China was considered the property of the emperor. Peasants received small plots from the state. They paid taxes to the treasury and worked on the construction of palaces, fortresses and temples. Later, military leaders and officials began to appropriate the lands with the peasants living on them and imposed heavy taxes on them. Estates with hundreds of peasant households arose. Many peasants fled from their native villages to the mountains and forests, where they gathered in large detachments.

2. Peasant war at the end of the 9th century. In 874, an uprising began in northeast China. The peasant detachments united into a large army led by the salt merchant, the brave and decisive Huang Chao. An army of peasants crossed the country from north to south and stormed the large trading port of Guangzhou (Canton), where bloody clashes between the rebels and foreigners living in the port took place.

From here the rebels headed to the capital of China - the city of Chang'an. Their army reached 500 thousand people. As she approached, the imperial troops fled, and the emperor and his court left the capital. Having entered Chang'an, the rebels declared Huang Chao emperor. He abolished heavy taxes and ordered the distribution of bread from the imperial barns to the poor. The rebels killed noble people and high officials, and divided their wealth and valuables among the poor.

The emperor managed to gather an army, and it besieged Chang'an. Famine began in the city, and the rebels had to leave the capital. The authorities called in cruel nomads from the north to help them; People called them “black crows.”

Only in 884 were the rebels defeated. They were scattered, and their leader committed suicide. But even after this, for many years, the peasants continued the guerrilla war in various parts of the empire, defending their rights to the land.

3. Song Empire. Conquests of the Mongols. For half a century, civil strife did not stop in the country. Weakened by uprisings and warriors, the Tang dynasty was overthrown. Five dynasties succeeded in northern China: this time was called the “Period of Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms.” In 960, the Song Dynasty established itself in China. Her reign was spent in struggle with neighbors and popular uprisings.

At the beginning of the 13th century, Mongol tribes appeared on the northern border of China. The Mongols first lived in the territory of what is now Mongolia. They were nomadic herders, engaged in hunting and fishing. The Mongols were divided into tribes and clans. Among their relatives, nobles rose to prominence. At the head of the tribe was a khan - a military leader who transferred power by inheritance in his family.

In 1206, a congress of representatives of the Mongol tribes elected Genghis Khan as ruler of all Mongols. He was a skilled commander and found many talented military leaders in his circle. Genghis Khan created a large, disciplined army, mostly cavalry, which he sent on long campaigns of conquest. The army was clearly organized: it was divided into units of 10 thousand warriors (“darkness” - led by a “temnik”), each of which was divided into thousands (with “tysyatsky”), hundreds (with “centurion”) and tens. This division, in a certain sense reminiscent of the Roman army, made the Mongol army well-controlled and mobile (mobile).

An Arab historian wrote about the conquests of the Mongols: “Since the creation of the world there has not been a catastrophe more terrible for humanity, and there will be nothing like it until the end of time.” And in fact, invading countries with ancient culture, Mongol horsemen trampled cultivated fields, plundered and destroyed cities. Everyone who resisted was exterminated; masses of people, especially artisans, were turned into slaves. The Mongols took children, especially boys, into their families to raise them in their traditions and to fill the number of warriors, of whom they needed a lot.

In 1211, Genghis Khan's army attacked Northern China. Within four years, it captured part of the Jin Empire, along with the capital Beijing. The Mongols adopted siege weapons from the Chinese and learned to storm fortresses. In the following years, Genghis Khan and his commanders made a campaign to the west: Central Asia, the Volga region, the North Caucasus and part of Transcaucasia, and part of Iran were conquered. In all the conquered territories, Genghis Khan forced able-bodied men to join his army, which became numerous and multilingual. But the commanders were only Mongols, and the most militant and loyal detachments to the khan consisted of them. After the death of Genghis Khan, the Mongols conquered Eastern Europe and moved west, but, having already exhausted their strength and encountering stubborn resistance, retreated. The Mongols continued their conquest of China for about 70 years. They occupied the capital of the Song Empire and from the end of the 13th century China became the main part of the Mongol state with its capital in Beijing. The Mongolian nobility captured many lands in China. Gradually, the great khans adopted Chinese customs and allowed educated Chinese to govern.

In the middle of the 13th century, the Mongol state broke up into four states - uluses. They were ruled by the descendants of Genghis Khan - the Genghis-sids. They stopped recognizing the power of the Great Khan.

4. Liberation of China from the rule of the Mongols.

In the middle of the 14th century, a rebellion broke out against the Mongols in China. It was named after the insignia of the rebels, the Red Turban Rebellion. The peasants began the struggle, and the townspeople joined them. A liberation war began, which lasted about 20 years.

The rebels marched north and occupied Beijing. The last Mongol emperor with the remnants of his army fled to the northern steppes. In 1368, China achieved independence.

After the liberation from the Mongols, China experienced economic growth. Destroyed cities were rebuilt. The lands taken from the Mongol nobility were divided into plots and given to the peasants for use. Everyone who cultivated abandoned lands was exempt from duties for three years.

5. Artistic crafts. China was famous for its silk production. Clothes and sails were made from silk, umbrellas and strings of musical instruments were made. Scenes from fairy tales and pictures of native nature were embroidered on silk.

The Chinese learned to make porcelain from a mixture of special types of clay. Chinese masters said that porcelain dishes should be “shiny like a mirror, thin like paper, ringing like a gong, smooth and shining like a lake on a sunny day.” The production of porcelain required a lot of experience, knowledge and skill, and, like the production of silk, it was kept strictly secret. China exported many porcelain products to distant countries: Byzantium, the Baghdad Caliphate, and European states, where they were highly valued.

The master made wonderful works from bronze, ivory, precious stones and wood. Vases and boxes were covered with carvings, varnish, drawings, and mother-of-pearl.

6. Inventions. The Chinese learned to print books before the Europeans: craftsmen made them by cutting text on wooden boards (see § 30), and each new text had to be cut out on a new board. In the 11th century, a collapsible font was invented, consisting of individual hieroglyphs. But this invention did not find widespread use in China and in the countries of the Far East in general, since thousands of hieroglyphs were required to print books.

In the 8th century, the daily newspaper “Capital Bulletin” began to be published in the capital of China. It contained the emperor's decrees and messages about the most important events. The newspaper was reproduced from text cut out on boards.

Gunpowder was invented in China. At first it was used for fireworks, and then in military affairs. Incendiary shells were filled with gunpowder. In the 13th century, guns in the form of bamboo tubes were invented, and in the 14th century, metal cannons that were loaded with stone and iron cannonballs were invented.

Chinese sailors, earlier than others, began to use a compass in navigation, which was invented in ancient times. The Arabs took the compass from China to the west, and the Europeans borrowed it from them.

7. Education and scientific knowledge. To govern a huge country, many competent people were needed. Only those who passed difficult exams could become officials and enter a special class of service nobles. Officials were trained in the cities in special schools.

Medieval China advanced further than Europeans in a number of branches of science. Astronomers measured the length of the meridian degree. Long before the Europeans, they discovered sunspots, and in the 13th century they created a calendar in which the length of the year diverged from the true value by only 27 seconds. The Chinese imagined the universe as an egg, with the Earth resembling the yolk and the sky a shell rotating around it; The sun, moon and stars are attached to the sky. Astronomers knew the causes of solar and lunar eclipses and knew how to predict them.

Doctors knew well the medicinal properties of plants. They have long used ginseng root to treat fatigue and debility. A great achievement of Chinese medicine was vaccination against smallpox. Acupuncture and moxibustion were used to treat many diseases.

The Chinese carefully studied the history of their country. They said: “Don’t forget the past, it is the teacher of the future.” During the reign of each emperor, his decrees and other documents were collected and stored in order to facilitate the work of historians in the future. Scientists compiled a detailed, multi-volume history of the reign of the former dynasty.

Chinese travelers visited Central Asia, India and Indonesia, and described the life and customs of many peoples.

The Chinese wanted to seize the sea route along the southern coast of Asia. At the beginning of the 15th century, the emperor equipped 7 expeditions led by the experienced navigator Zheng He. The Chinese fleet of 50-60 ships with 30 thousand sailors, warriors and merchants visited the Sunda and Moluccas Islands, India, Iran, and southern Arabia. During one of the voyages, the ships reached the eastern coast of Africa. Detailed maps of the sea coasts of Southeast and South Asia were compiled.

8. Literature and art. The 8th-9th centuries were the “golden age” of Chinese poetry: about 2 thousand poets worked at that time.

The art of the historical novel flourished in the 14th century. The novels “The Three Kingdoms” and “River Backwaters” were especially famous and loved. They are still read today.

Chinese buildings were closely related to the surrounding landscape. Architects built pagodas - Buddhist temples in the form of tall multi-story towers made of wood, stone, bronze and iron, decorated with skillful carvings. The upward curved edges of the roofs created the impression of lightness and upward direction; they seemed to reproduce the silhouettes of the surrounding hills and trees.

After China was liberated from Mongol rule, Beijing was completely rebuilt. The Temple of Heaven was erected in the center of the square territory. This building, which has a circle in plan - a sign of the Sun or the sky, with blue pointed roofs in the shape of cones, recalls the continuous movement of natural elements.

Statues and reliefs - images of deities - were placed in pagodas. The images of the Buddha, his disciples and followers are distinguished by clarity and purity, they represent the beauty of the sage man in his greatness and tranquility.

In medieval China, the main form of art was painting. Artists were educated in special schools, and a painting academy was opened in the capital. Exhibitions of paintings by the best artists were often held here.

Painters painted pictures with paints or ink on long silk or paper scrolls. They depicted landscapes - views of nature that the Chinese called “mountains and waters.” In Tang times, nature was represented as a fairy-tale world, colorful, festive and bright. The upheavals experienced by the country during the Song era brought aching sadness into the landscapes, chanting of peace and quiet. Nature appears as the only reliable refuge for man in a world of wars, rebellions and disasters.

The landscape has always been closely connected with man, expressing his feelings; The mood of the master was also conveyed through the state of nature. In addition to landscapes, artists also painted fruits, delicate flowers and leaves, animals and birds. Such paintings were called “flowers and birds.” Beautifully written and arranged hieroglyphs played an important role in the paintings.

In the Middle Ages, Chinese culture was very high. She had a great influence on the culture of Korea, Indochina, and Japan.