World History Vocabulary - Prehistory to Islamic & East Asian Empires (Video Notes)

A comprehensive set of vocabulary flashcards covering major concepts, people, places, and terms from prehistory through major civilizations and empire periods across Africa, the Middle East, South Asia, and East Asia as presented in the video notes.

Primary source

A source created at the time of the event or period being studied; firsthand evidence.

Secondary source

A source that analyzes, interprets, or explains primary sources after the fact.

Historiography

The study of how history is written and the methods used by historians.

Historical interpretation

How historians explain and understand past events.

Historical revision

Updating or changing previous historical conclusions in light of new evidence.

BC

Before Christ; years before the estimated birth of Jesus.

AD

Anno Domini; years after the birth of Jesus.

BCE

Before the Common Era; secular term for years before CE.

CE

Common Era; secular term for years after AD.

Prehistory

The period before written records and recorded history.

Archaeology

The study of past societies through material remains and artifacts.

Stratigraphic dating

Dating based on layers (strata) of sediment and soil.

Radiocarbon dating

Dating method using carbon-14 decay to estimate age of organic materials.

Paleolithic Age

Old Stone Age; hunter-gatherer societies before farming.

Nomads

People who move from place to place rather than settle.

Hunter-gatherers

Societies that obtain food by hunting, fishing, and foraging.

Foraging

Searching for and collecting edible plants and foods in the wild.

Lascaux, France

Prehistoric site famous for its cave paintings.

Mesolithic Age

Middle Stone Age; transitional period between Paleolithic and Neolithic.

Neolithic Age/Neolithic Revolution

New Stone Age; shift to farming, domestication, and settled life.

Slash-and-burn farming

Agricultural practice of clearing land by burning vegetation and farming.

Domestication

Adaptive breeding of plants and animals for human use.

Jarmo

Early farming village in Mesopotamia region.

Catal Huyuk

Neolithic settlement in Anatolia; example of early urban life.

Bronze Age

Period defined by the use of bronze for tools and weapons.

Metallurgy

The science and technology of metals and their processing.

River Valley Civilizations

Early civilizations along major rivers (Nile, Tigris-Euphrates, Indus, Huang He).

Civilization

A complex society with cities, government, religion, writing, and social structure.

Characteristics of civilization

Key features: cities, organized government, religion, writing, social structure.

Fertile Crescent

Arc of fertile land in the Middle East where early civilizations developed.

Mesopotamia

“Between rivers”; region in the Fertile Crescent between Tigris and Euphrates.

Sumer

Early Mesopotamian city-state civilization in southern Mesopotamia.

Specialization

Jobs and roles developed beyond food production (e.g., artisans, traders).

Social stratification

Social layering into classes or ranks.

Artisans

Skilled craft workers.

Polytheism

Belief in many gods.

Government

System by which a society is ruled.

City-state

Independent city and its surrounding territory with its own government.

Theocracy

Government guided by or subject to divine authority.

Record keeping

Maintaining written records of goods, laws, and events.

Scribes

Professional writers who kept records.

Cuneiform

Mesopotamian wedge-shaped writing system.

Epic of Gilgamesh

Ancient Mesopotamian epic poem about Gilgamesh.

Ziggurat

Tiered temple tower in Mesopotamian cities.

Cultural diffusion

Spread of cultural elements between societies.

Empire

A large political unit with multiple peoples and territories under a central authority.

Akkad

Ancient Mesopotamian city and empire founded by Sargon.

Babylonians (Amorites)

Babylonian and Amorite dynasties; famous for the Code of Hammurabi.

Code of Hammurabi

One of the oldest written legal codes;

Old Kingdom

Egypt’s early era known for pyramid-building.

“Gift of the Nile”

Fertility and abundance provided by the Nile River in Egypt.

Lower Egypt

Northern Nile Delta region.

Cataract

Nile rapids; symbol of navigation challenges.

Upper Egypt

Southern Nile region upstream from the delta.

Pyramid

Ancient Egyptian monumental tombs for pharaohs.

Mummification

Process of preserving a dead body for the afterlife.

Hieroglyph

Egyptian picture writing system.

Rosetta Stone

Key artifact that helped scholars decipher hieroglyphs.

Papyrus

Ancient writing material made from a water plant.

Middle Kingdom

Egypt era between Old and New Kingdoms; period of stability and reform.

Hyksos

Foreign rulers who controlled parts of Egypt during the Second Intermediate Period.

Harappan/Indus Valley Civilization

Early urban civilization in the Indus Valley.

Aryans (Indo-Aryans)

Indo-European people who migrated into the Indian subcontinent.

Xia Dynasty

Early Chinese dynasty often considered legendary.

Huang He

Yellow River; cradle of early Chinese civilization.

Yangtze

Yangzi River; major Chinese river system.

Shang Dynasty

Early Chinese dynasty known for oracle bones.

Oracle bones

bones used in divination to predict the future in Shang China.

Divination

Seeking knowledge of the future through ritual or omen interpretation.

Zhou Dynasty

Chinese dynasty; introduced Mandate of Heaven and feudalism.

Mandate of Heaven

Heaven’s approval used to justify the ruler’s authority.

Dynastic cycle

Rise, decline, and replacement of dynasties.

Feudalism

System of governance with lords, vassals, and land exchange for service.

Warring States Period

Era of regional conflict before Qin unification.

New Kingdom

Egypt’s expansionist era after the Middle Kingdom.

Pharaoh

Egyptian king; considered a god on earth.

Hatshepsut

Female pharaoh who expanded Egyptian trade and monuments.

Thutmose III

Egyptian pharaoh known for military campaigns.

Nubia

Region to the south of Egypt; includes Kush.

Ramses II

Powerful New Kingdom pharaoh, builder of monuments.

Kush

Nubian kingdoms south of Egypt; interacted with Egypt.

Piankhi

Kushite king who conquered Egypt for a time.

Meroe

Kushite city known for iron smelting.

Phoenicians

Sea traders who developed a phonetic alphabet.

Alphabet

A set of symbols representing sounds; Phoenician precursor to many alphabets.

Judaism

Monotheistic religion of the Jewish people.

Canaan

Ancient Levant region; homeland of early Israelites.

Palestine

Geographic region including parts of modern Israel/West Bank.

Torah

First five books of the Hebrew Bible; Jewish law.

Abraham

Patriarch who established a covenant with God in Jewish tradition.

Monotheism

Belief in a single god.

Covenant

Sacred agreement between God and the Jewish people.

Moses

Prophet who led Israelites from Egypt and received the Ten Commandments.

Prophet

A messenger or messenger of God in religions.

Hebrew

Ancient language of the Jewish people.

Israel

Ancient kingdom/land of the Israelites; modern nation-state.

Judah

Southern kingdom of Israel after the kingdom split.

Tribute

Payment or goods given as honor or taxes to a ruling power.

Assyria

Powerful Mesopotamian empire known for military campaigns.

Sennacherib

Assyrian king noted for campaigns against Israel.