Glossary
This is an expanding list so please check back or let us know if there is something you cannot find or would like to see on here.
There are currently 5 terms in this directory beginning with the letter L.
L
lapis
Lapis lazuli, a deep blue stone whose primary source is the mountains of Badakshan, in what is now eastern Afghanistan. Mined, traded and used for decoration across Afro-Eurasia from the 8th millennium BC. It was also ground and used as a pigment in Buddhist paintings in south and central Asia and, later, for Christian paintings in Europe.
Latin
The language spoken in classical times around Rome which became the dominant language of the Roman Empire [q.v.]. It was written in the Latin alphabet.
Literary Sinitic
The form of Chinese that was written in classical times and from which the Han empire (206 BC–AD 220) became the dominant written language of a succession of Chinese empires and kingdoms (there remained numerous spoken Chinese languages). It was written using a non-alphabetic script, usually referred to as Chinese characters.