AP World History Review Flashcards

Paleolithic Era

A prehistoric period defined by the use of stone tools by hominids

Neolithic Revolution

The significant transition from hunter-gatherers to adopting agriculture and animal domestication

Pastoralism

A way of life based on raising and herding livestock

Patriarchy

A system of society where the eldest male is the head of the family

Animism

The attribution of a soul to plants, inanimate objects, and natural phenomenon

Tribute

An act, statement, or gift that is intended to show gratitude, respect, or admiration

Slash and Burn

A method of agriculture in which existing vegetation is cut down and burned off before new seeds are sown

Deforestation

The action of clearing a wide area of trees

Specialization of Labor

The practice of dividing tasks in a production process.

Desertification

The process by which fertile land becomes desert.

Diaspora

The dispersion or spread of a group from their original homeland

Caravan

A group of people traveling together across a desert

Quetzalcoatl

Feathered serpent

Lateen sail

A triangular sail on a long yard at an angle of 45 at the mast

Theocracy

A system of government in which priests rule in the name of God or a god

Huns

A member of a warlike nomadic people from Central Asia who invaded and ravaged Europe in the 4th-5th centuries

Aristocracy

The highest class in certain societies, especially those holding hereditary titles or offices

Dhow ships

A traditional sailing vessel, particularly used in the Red Sea and Indian Ocean regions

Artisan

Skilled craft worker

Qanat system

Underground irrigation system

Dynasty

succession of rulers from the same family

Hellenistic

Relating to Greek History, Language, and Culture after the death of Alexander the Great

Pax Romana

Roman Peace

Polis

Greek city-state

Stoicism

Greco-Roman philosophy emphasizing reason, morality, and self-control.

12 Tables

A set of laws inscribed on 12 bronze tablets created in ancient Rome

Corvee

Type of forced labor that required peasants to work for a specific amount of time on public works projects.

Bedouin

Nomadic Arab of the desert

Ka’aba

Most revered religious shrine in pre-Islamic Arabia; located in Mecca; focus of obligatory annual truce

Hadith

traditions of Muhammad

Caliph

The political and religious successor to Muhammad

Imam

A leader of prayer in a mosque

Visier

A high official in some Muslim countries, especially in the Ottoman Empire.

Crusades

A series of religious wars between Christians and Muslims

Sikhism

A monotheistic religion that originated in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent

Sufi

A mystical form of Islam.

Sheikh

Arab leader

5 Pillars

The core beliefs and practices of Islam

Shari’a

Islamic canonical law based on the teachings of the Koran and the traditions of Muhammad

Jihad

A struggle or fight against the enemies of Islam

Sunni

One of the two main branches of Islam, commonly described as orthodox, and differing from Shia in its understanding of the Sunna

Shi’ite

One of the two main branches of Islam that rejects the first three Sunni caliphs and regards Ali, the fourth caliph, as Muhammad's first true successor

Sultan

A Muslim sovereign

Coptic

Egyptian form of Christianity

Savanna

A grassy plain in tropical and subtropical regions, with few trees

Berbers

A pastoral people of North Africa

Bantu

An African language or a member of a group of peoples who speak Bantu languages

Swahili

A language and culture of East Africa

Mogadishu

A port city in Somalia

Mombasa

A port city in Kenya

Mansa

A king of the Mali Empire in West Africa

Timbuktu

A city in Mali, West Africa, that was a center of Islamic learning in the Middle Ages.

Matrilineal

A system in which descent is traced through the female line

Pantheism

A doctrine or belief that identifies God with the universe

Grand council

An advisory council to the emperor in China

Scholar Gentry

Civil servants appointed by the emperor of China to perform day-to-day governance

Foot Binding

The practice of binding the feet of young girls to make them smaller

White lotus

Secret religious society dedicated to overthrow of Yuan dynasty in China

Grand canal

The 1,100-mile waterway linking the Yellow and the Yangtzee Rivers

Neo-Confucianism

The revival of Confucianism starting in the Tang dynasty

Song Taizu

Founder of Song Dynasty

Hangzhou

Capital of later Song dynasty; located near East China Sea; permitted overseas trading

Jurchen

A nomadic people who established a state that included parts of northern China

Ghengis Khan

Founder of the Mongol Empire

Khanates

Four regional Mongol empires that arose following the death of Genghis Khan

Beijing

Northern capital of Yuan dynasty.

Kublai Khan

Grandson of Genghis Khan and founder of the Mongol Yuan Dynasty in China

Marco Polo

An Italian explorer of the late thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries; one of the first Europeans to travel to China

Pax Mongolica

Mongol Peace

Yuan Dynasty

Dynasty in China set up by the Mongols under Kublai Khan

Song Dynasty

Replaced the Tang in 960 and ruled for more than 3 centuries; created economic expansion, prosperity, and cultural achievement.

Tang Dynasty

Dynasty that had a strong economy and military

Golden Horde

Mongol Khanate that conquered Russia

Taika Reforms

Series of reforms enacted in 646 that intended to thoroughly incorporate Japanese culture into Chinese culture

Samurai

Japanese warrior

Bushido

Traditional code of the Japanese samurai

Yoritomo Minamoto

Leader of the Minamoto clan and first shogun

Shogunate

The Japanese military government in power between the 12th and 19th centuries

Daimyo

A Japanese feudal lord

Zen Buddhism

Japanese form of Buddhism; emphasizes meditation and self-discipline.

Shinto

Indigenous Japanese religion

Monasticism

A way of life in which one devotes oneself to prayer and self-denial lived in a monastery.

Guilds

An association of people pursuing same line of work

Magna Carta

Great Charter forced upon King John of England by his barons in 1215; established that the power of the monarchy was limited, not absolute.

Common law

A unified body of law

Holy Roman Empire

Loose federation of mostly German states and principalities, headed by an emperor elected by the princes

Scholasticism

This was the philosophical system used to try to reconcile Aristotle's logic with Christian theology

Vassal, Fief

A knight who swore loyalty to a feudal lord in exchange for land

Manor

A large estate, often including farms and a village, ruled by a lord.

Serfs

A peasant bound to the land

Aristocracy

A government ruled by a few noble families

Chivalry

Code of conduct for knights during the Middle Ages

Heresy

the denial of Church teachings

Romanesque

Style of church architecture using round arches, domes, thick walls, and small windows

Gothic

A style of architecture developed in northern France that spread throughout Europe between 1150 and 1400

Charlemagne

King of the Franks who was crowned Holy Roman Emperor in 800

Valley of mexico

A city in the Valley of Mexico

Tenochtitlan

Capital of the Aztec Empire

Montezuma

Aztec emperor

Chinampas

Floating gardens