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zeteticzymurgy's review
5.0
I've had my eye on this one for a while, and it absolutely lived up to my high expectations. I learned a ton about steppe nomads and the silk road, which I barely knew anything about previously. The silk road in particular seemed like a myth or something fictitous, so it was interesting to learn about what it actually was. It was also fascinating to realize how big an impact steppe nomads had on the sedentary peoples around them, ranging from China to Rome and everything in between. This course worked great as a standalone series, to be clear, but along the way it made me want to learn more about the histories of China, India, Russia, Islam, Byzantium, Persia, and more. Really, really good.
cactussambal's review
5.0
Kenneth Harl makes every subject he teachers come alive. I thoroughly enjoyed his talks on the Vikings. That led me to listen to The Barbarian Empires of the Steppes. This was such a blind spot for me. I was somewhat familiar with European and East Asian history, but it is arguably the people of the steppes who influenced the Eurasian continent the most. Harl answered so many questions: Who were the Alans? The Huns? The Turkic tribes? The Mongols? The Mughals? The Tocharians? The Hittites? The Indo-Europeans? What were each of their relationships with the major empires of the Romans, Greeks, Persians, Chinese, India, The Fertile Crescent, etc.? Fascinating topic and great delivery by Professor Harl.
mishab's review
This was one of a Great Courses series. I watched or listened to a lot and then I stopped when access wasn’t as easily come by.
nibellarin's review
3.0
Great information, led to lots of solo research and image hunting. Wish the contributions of the Mongols to the modern world was more clearly discussed but the history is great too. They are responsible for so much of what we have today and yet this didn't touch on much of those contributions except at the end. Great survey course, but I want more. The use of misinformation today in creating havoc can be attributed to the Mongols in some ways because that was how Genghis Khan often subdued whole cities, by scaring them with stories of what the Mongols did to other cities. Sometimes it was true, sometimes it was pure fabrication. I want to see more of the connections between what they introduced to the world and what we have today. I hope to find out more.
crzyarrow's review
5.0
I love this lecturer. You can tell he loves the material, which for me makes it so much more fun to listen to, and he knows it well. I knew a decent amount about the Mongols already, but I didn't know much about any of the other groups from the steppes. The sections about the Shuang Nu (sp? Sorry guys, downside of lectures is not learning the spelling...) were really interesting and different. It also blew my mind that the barbarian empires had dealings with the Crusaders. I don't know why, but for some reason I never really placed those groups in the same time period before. And the fact that the barbarians are a large part of the eventual fall of the Roman Empire/ Byzantine Empire is really cool. All in all, great lecture, if you want something different I highly recommend this (and also his lecture on the Vikings).
leyaruth42's review
5.0
Kenneth Harl is always an excellent lecturer. I learned a great deal about cultures and societies I never even knew existed. This series really helps to explain how the east and west are linked, in large part by the different "barbarian" tribes.
annelives's review
4.0
3.5/5 stars
I liked the topic and thought the course was structured well. I didn't care for the lecturer; too many pauses and "ums."
I liked the topic and thought the course was structured well. I didn't care for the lecturer; too many pauses and "ums."