Unit 3: Cultural Developments and Patterns

Culture

compiled knowledge of beliefs, technologies, traditions, and customs

Cultural landscape

area with multiple layers of history including crests, symbols, and flags

Syncretic culture

a culture containing aspects of many other cultures

Non-rhotic

describing the accent New Englanders have where they drop the Rs

Built environment

structures built for the purpose of residence, business, politics, recreation, or worship

Relocation diffusion

spread of ideas or beliefs through relocation and migration

Cape Cods

architectural style common in New England and middle Atlantic states

Tudors

architectural style based on medieval British and French designs

Georgian

architectural style featuring rectangles and symmetrical shapes

Painted Ladies (of San Francisco)

freestanding homes with large windows, raised stairways, and multiple colors

Basilicas

central places of worship

Onion domes

featured on many Russian Orthodox churches

Pagoda

Buddhist temples with splayed roofs and supporting columns

Stupa

type of Buddhist architecture featuring simple domes

Art deco

European cubist designs

Frank Lloyd Wright

popular architect who used geometric exterior design patterns

Dialect

an accent, key terms/phrases, and style of pronunciation within a language

Pidgin

simplified form of a language without consistent grammar or syntax

Patois

syncretic languages made up of a dominant language and the original one

Anatolian theory

Indo-Europeans migrated from India to Anatolia and then Europe

Kurgan theory

Indo-Europeans migrated from India to Central Asia and the Caucuses and then Europe

Haute cuisine

French term for “high cooking," meaning high-end and elevated meals

Fusion cuisine

cuisine combining elements of many cuisines and methods of preparation

Columbian Exchange

the widespread transfer of plants, animals, culture, technology, diseases, and ideas

Folk music

music particular to a certain group

Musical acculturation

the process where a society’s music undergoes changes due to internal or external cultural influences

Sericulture

raising silkworms to produce silk

Religion

system of beliefs regarding morality, human nature, and the existence of divine powers

Universal religion

religion is applicable to all at any time

Ethnic religion

belief systems attributed to a group not encouraging to join

Organized religion

a structured system of faith or worship

Fundamentalists

those with stricter adherence to religious rules

Monotheistic

believing in one god

Polytheistic

believing in multiple gods

Scriptures

religious texts important to the structure of the belief system

Animism

belief in divine forces present in natural elements/life

Voodoo

syncretic practice combining Catholicism and traditional African beliefs

Vedic tradition

religious traditions based on the Vedas (ancient Hindu scriptures)

Abrahamic tradition

religious traditions based on the importance of Abraham

Zoroastrianism

monotheistic religion emphasizing divine judgement and duality

Reincarnation

belief in the cycle of rebirth after death

Caste system

Hindu social hierarchy

Jainism

religion emphasizing right belief, right knowledge, and right conduct

Tirthankaras

spiritual prophets

Siddhartha Gautama

founder of Buddhism

Four Noble Truths

important ideas in the Buddha’s teachings

Eightfold Path

steps to achieving enlightenment

Nirvana

divine oneness with all creation

Hebrew

Semitic language most spoken in Israel

Aramaic

style of script used by ancient Middle Eastern Jews

Torah

Jewish religious scriptures

Jesus of Nazareth

founder/main figure in Christianity

Gospels

teaching and revelations of Christ in the Bible

St. Paul

Roman Jewish tax collector who spread Christianity

Emperor Constantine

converted to Christianity and unified the Roman Empire

Council of Nicaea

the first council intended to address all believers

Dionysius Exiguus

monk who developed the BC/AD system of dating

1054 Schism

split into the Roman Catholic Church and the Greek Orthodox Church

Protestant Reformation

split of Protestant Church from the Roman Catholic Church

Muhammad

founder of Islam

“Golden Age” of Islam

period of flourishing in the Muslim world from the 8th to 13th century

Parsis

Zoroastrians that fled to India

Christendom

traditionally Christian areas of the world

Secularism

lack of religion

Laicite

French term for the separation of church and state

Sant Jordi

Spanish holiday celebrated on April 23rd in Catalonia

Slava

celebration of a family patron saint

Confessionalism

religious control of government/politics

Sharia

Islamic law

Sectarian violence

violence between different religious groups

Folklore

collection of spoken or written stories containing ideas about morality, identity, and culture

Archetypes

common character category/description

Mythology

narratives that surround the origin of societies

Homer

ancient Greek poet and author

Sagas

epic poems from the viking era of Scandinavian history

Beowulf

Old English epic poem

Ramayana

story of Lord Ram, important epic in Hinduism

Fairytales

stories with supernatural elements

Hans Christian Anderson

Danish writer who published traditional fairytales

Feudalism

nobles owned land including farmland, forests, and water sources

Serfdom

serfs are tied to a noble’s land and give them a share of profit

Encomienda

Spanish crown granted conquistadors land and indigenous slaves

Sharecropping

former enslaved people living and working on plantations

Suburban

residential areas located on the edges of a larger town or city

Appellations

brand names protected by trade rules

Nation

a group of people with a common culture, language, and history

nationality

one’s citizenship by country

ethnicity

a cultural group with common historical ties, potentially unrelated to political borders

homogeneous

being from/sharing the same background

heterogeneous

being from diverse backgrounds

Stateless nations

nations or ethnic groups who lack an independent country

Genocide

violence intended to exterminate a group of people

Ethnic cleansing

the attempt to remove an ethnic group from a particular region

Race

characteristics of people who share common genetic origins

Indigenous people

those who originally settled in an area

Mestizo

mixed Amerindian and European

Mulatto

mixed European and African

Garifuna

those of African and European descent in Central America

Creoles

those of European, Amerindian, and African descent from Louisiana, the Antilles, and the Caribbean

Segregation

deliberate or physical separation between races