History Midterm

Dynasty

A series of rulers from the same family

Cuneiform

A form of writing developed by the Sumerians using a wedge shaped stylus and clay tablets.

Sargon

2340 B.C. leader of the Akkadians who overran the Sumerian city-state and set up the first empire

Ziggurat

A pyramid shaped temple tower

Fertile Crescent

A geographical area of fertile land in the Middle East stretching in a broad semicircle from the Nile to the Tigris and Euphrates

Steppe

sparse, dry, treeless grassland

Nebuchadnezzar II

Chaldean king who rebuilt Babylon and created the Hanging Gardens

Cyrus the Great

king of Persia and founder of the Persian empire (circa 600-529 BC)

Darius

Persian king who put satraps in place and built the Royal Road

Xerxes

son of Darius; became Persian king. He vowed revenge on the Athenians. He invaded Greece with 180,000 troops in 480 B.C.

Satrap

A governor of a province in ancient Persia

Zoraster

Persian prophet the gave hope for the afterlife, life is a battle of good v. evil

Hammurabi

He designed a legal code in early Babylon that gave punishment based on crime and social status.

Hittites

The group of people who toppled the Babylonian empire and were responsible for two technological innovations--the war chariots and refinement of iron metallurgy.

Assyrians

Known as a warrior people who ruthlessly conquered neighboring countries and created the first library.

Akkadians

first empire

Hieroglyphics

Egyptian writing system

Papyrus

A long-lasting, paper-like material made from reeds

Amenhotep IV

He later changed his name to Akhenaton, abandoned the old system of worship and begin worshiping only one god, Aton.

Hatshepsut

First female pharaoh who expanded Egypt through trade

Bureaucracy

A system of managing government through departments run by appointed officials

Theocracy

A government controlled by religious leaders

Upper Egypt

Southern part of Egypt

Lower Egypt

The northern part of ancient Egypt

Ramses II

Pharaoh and great builder of Egypt during the new kingdom.

obelisk

a tall, pointed, four-sided pillar in ancient Egypt

Hyksos

People who invaded Egypt thus beginning the second Intermediate period during which the Hyksos ( a word meaning "foreigner) ruled as pharaohs in Lower Egypt and exacted tribute from the royal families in Thebes.

Old Kingdom Egypt

- Era of pyramid building
- 2700 BC-2200 BC

Middle Kingdom Egypt

(2040 BCE - 1640 BCE) Period in ancient Egyptian history characterized by internal strife and hardships, and the invasion, and subsequent take over by the neighboring Hyksos.

New Kingdom Egypt

The period 1550 BC-1050 BC where Egypt reached the height of its power and glory.

cataract

a large waterfall

Amon-Re

the ancient Egyptian god of the sun

Neolithic Revolution

The switch from nomadic lifestyles to a settled agricultural lifestyle is this revolution.

Animism

The belief that bodies of water, animals, trees, and other natural objects have spirits

artifact

an object made by a human being, typically an item of cultural or historical interest.

civilization

A society with cities, a central government, job specialization, and social classes

Domestication

the taming of animals for human use, such as work or as food

cultural diffusion

The spread of ideas, customs, and technologies from one people to another

Donald Johanson

anthropologist who searched for fossils in Ethiopia; found the skeleton of Lucy

Mary Leakey

An archaeologist who found bones in East Africa that were more than 3.7 million years old and believed that the bones belonged to a hominid.

Monsoon

A seasonal wind.

citadel

a fortress that overlooks and protects a city; any strong or commanding place

Vedas

Ancient Sanskrit writings that are the earliest sacred texts of Hinduism.

Rigveda

oldest of the Vedas

Varna

each of the four Hindu castes, Brahman, Kshatriya, Vaishya, and Shudra.

Brahmin

the highest of the four classes of the caste system, traditionally made up of priests

Brahma

the main god or creator in Hinduism

Vishnu

A Hindu god considered the preserver of the world

Siva

Hindu God - The Destroyer

Dharma

In Hindu belief, a person's religious and moral duties

Karma

The belief that actions in this life, whether good or bad, will decide your place in the next life.

Moksha

Becoming liberated for the cycle of reincarnation in Hinduism.

Samsara

repeating cycle of birth, life, death, and reincarnation

Upanishads

A group of writings sacred in Hinduism concerning the relations of humans, God, and the universe.

Bhagavad Gita

A section of the Indian epic the Mahabharata. Most important of all Hindu scripture

Jainism

a religion founded in India in the sixth century BC, whose members believe that everything in the universe has a soul and therefore shouldn't be harmed. Mahavira founded this religion.

Ahisma

Hindu belief in nonviolence and reverence for all life

Oracle Bones

animal bones carved with written characters which were used for telling the future

Analects

The book that Kong Fuzi wrote and that stresses the values and ideas of Confucianism.

Daoism

A religion in China which emphasizes the removal from society and to become one with nature.

Laozi

Founder of Daoism

Polis

A city-state in ancient Greece.

Agora

the marketplace in ancient Greece

Acropolis

A fortified hilltop in an ancient Greek city

Hoplite

A heavily armed foot soldier of ancient Greece.

Helots

Spartan slaves

Solon

Athenian reformer of the 6th century; established laws that eased the burden of debt on farmers, forbade enslavement for debt

Cleisthenes

An aristocrat, created a council of 500 and helped from Athenian democracy

Socrates

Greek philosopher; sentenced to death for corrupting Athens youth

Plato

Socrates' most well known pupil. Founded an academy in Athens.

Aristotle

A Greek Philosopher, taught Alexander the Great, started a famous school, studied with Plato

Hellenistic

Greek-like

Euclid

Father of geometry

Erastosthenes

This ancient scholar calculated the circumference of the earth, described it as a sphere, and predicted that ships could sail from Greece to India.

Minoans

The Mediterranean society that formed on the island of Crete and who were a big maritime society.

Draco

Characterized by very strict laws, rules, and punishments

Mycenaeans

a group of people who settled on the Greek mainland around 2000 B.C. and they took over the Minoans.

Republic

A form of government in which citizens choose their leaders by voting

Praetors

Judges

Carthage

An ancient city on the north coast of Africa

Punic Wars

A series of three wars between Rome and Carthage (264-146 B.C.); resulted in the destruction of Carthage and Rome's dominance over the western Mediterranean.

Consuls

Two officials from the patrician class were appointed each year of the Roman Republic to supervise the government and command the armies

Julius Caesar

Made dictator for life in 45 BCE, after conquering Gaul, assassinated in 44 BCE by the Senate because they were afraid of his power

Tribune

In ancient Rome, an official elected by the plebeians to protect their rights.

Octavian/Augustus

Caesar's adopted son who defeated Mark Anthony for title of ruler of Rome after Caesar's death

Paterfamilias

male head of family

Gracchi Brothers

the brothers who tried to pass reforms in the Roman senate; they were killed instead

Patrician

In ancient Rome, a member of the privileged upper class.

Plebians

Members of the lower class of Ancient Rome including farmers, merchants, artisans and traders

Gaius Marius

general who tried to solve unemployment by inviting poor people to join the army, creating a force more loyal to him than to Rome

Pax Romana

200 year period of peace in Rome.

Augurs

priests in ancient Rome who specialized in interpretation of the natural phenomena sent by the gods

Ptolemy

Roman geographer-astronomer and author of Guide to Geography which included maps containing a grid system of latitude and longitude. Believed Earth was the center of the universe

Diocletian

Roman emperor who divided the empire into a West and an East section.

Constantine

Emperor of Rome who adopted the Christian faith and stopped the persecution of Christians (280-337)

Twelve Tables

Rome's first code of laws

forum

Rome's public meeting place

Cornelius Sulla

Roman General who fought Gaius Marius in a bloody civil war, leading to his appointment as dictator in 82 BC

Latin

The language of the Romans

aquaduct

a pipe or channel that carries water