600 BCE – 600 CE: Unit 0 Need to Know Topics

Vocabulary flashcards covering the key religious, social, political, and economic developments across global regions from 600 BCE to 600 CE.

Upanishads, Mahabharata, and Ramayana

Key South Asian texts that facilitated the codification of Hinduism during the period $600\,BCE$ to $600\,CE$.

Siddhartha Gautama

The originating figure of Buddhism in South Asia, whose teachings led to the creation of the Tripitaka and the later Theravada vs. Mahayana split.

Analects

The core text of Confucianism in East Asia, used to structure social hierarchy and family life.

Tao Te Ching

The foundational text of Daoism in East Asia, representing a philosophy of following the natural way.

Torah

The codified text of Judaism established post-Babylonian exile, which served as a social glue for diaspora communities through religious law.

Zoroastrianism

The state religion of Persia supported by Persian kings while they maintained a policy of religious tolerance for subject peoples.

Constantine

The Roman Emperor whose conversion in $312\,CE$ and patronage of Christianity helped establish it as a tool of imperial unity.

Meroe

An independent African empire within the Kingdom of Kush known for iron and gold production and its own writing system, the Meroitic script.

Olmec

The foundational Mesoamerican culture characterized by jaguar deity worship and monumental ritual architecture.

Chavín de Huántar

A major religious pilgrimage and cultural unification center located in the Andes of South America.

Syncretism

The blending of different religious or cultural traditions, such as Buddhist art absorbing Greek forms in Gandhara.

Varna

The religious and social hierarchy in South Asia, which, along with Jati (sub-castes), defined status and gender roles.

Filial Piety

A Confucian concept in East Asia that structures family and social life through respect for parents and ancestors.

Ashoka

A Maurya Empire ruler who used Buddhist edicts to project moral authority across South Asia.

Mandate of Heaven

An East Asian political concept used by Han emperors to justify hierarchical rule and state ideology.

Satrapies

Administrative provinces within the Achaemenid Persian Empire managed through a centralized system.

Cyrus Cylinder

An artifact from the Achaemenid Persian Empire documenting Cyrus's policy of religious and cultural tolerance.

Legalism

A philosophy characterized by strict laws and standardization used by the short-lived but foundational Qin Dynasty in East Asia.

Funan

An early Indianized state located in the Mekong Delta of Southeast Asia, shaped by Indian Ocean commerce.

Teotihuacan

A major urban center in Central America known for its obsidian trade network and wide cultural influence despite an unclear political structure.

Denarius

The coinage of the Roman Empire that functioned as a transregional currency.

Qanat

A Persian technology consisting of underground irrigation channels that enabled agriculture in the arid Iranian environment.

Silk Roads

Overland transregional networks where Sogdian merchants acted as middlemen, trading luxury goods like silk, spices, and glassware.

Monsoon Winds

The technological enabler for the Indian Ocean trade network, allowing for predictable sailing between South Asia, Southeast Asia, East Africa, and the Middle East.

Cai Lun

The individual credited with the refinement of paper in Han China around $105\,CE$, which revolutionized record-keeping and bureaucracy.

Dhow

An Indian Ocean vessel featuring the lateen sail, used to navigate maritime trade routes.

Royal Road

A Persian infrastructure project spanning approximately $2,700\,km$ with relay stations to facilitate imperial communication.

Antonine Plague

An epidemic that occurred between $\sim 165$ and $180\,CE$, devastating Rome and likely arriving via trade routes from the east.

Brahmi script

A writing system that spread from South Asia to Southeast Asia as part of regional cultural diffusion.

Dromedary Camel

An animal domesticated to enable trade across the Saharan and Arabian deserts.