AP World History: Unit 1, AP World History Unit 2

Agriculture

The deliberate effort to modify a portion of Earth's surface through the cultivation of crops and the raising of livestock for sustenance or economic gain.

Civilization

a society in an advanced state of social development (e.g., with complex legal and political and religious organizations)

City-States

different sections of land owned by the same country but ruled by different rulers (e.g. Greece)

Domestication

process of changing plants or animals to make them more useful to humans

Economy

system by which goods and services are produced and distributed to meet people's needs

Foraging

the process of scavenging for food

Hierarchy

a series of ordered groupings of people or things within a system

Hunter-Gatherer

A hunter-gatherer society is one whose primary subsistence method involves the direct procurement of edible plants and animals from the wild, foraging and hunting without significant recourse to the domestication of either plants nor animals

Irrigation

supplying dry land with water by means of ditches, sprinklers, etc.

Monarchy

a government in which power is in the hands of a single person who usually inherits their power

Monotheism

belief in a single God

Neolithic

The New Stone Age from circa 8500 to 4500 BCE: The period of the Stone Age associated with the ancient Agricultural Revolution(s)

Nomadic

(of groups of people) tending to travel and change settlements frequently

Paleolithic

The Old Stone Age from circa 750,00 to 500,000 years BCE to 8,500 years BCE: The period of the Stone Age associated with the evolution of humans and the development of minor tools

Philosophy

the rational investigation of questions about existence, knowledge, and ethics

Polytheism

belief in multiple Gods

River Valley

the fertile land surrounding a river- the first civilizations arose near them

Settlement

the act of colonizing or a small group of people in a sedentary position

Subsistence

the necessities of life, the resources of survival

Surplus

a quantity much larger than is needed

Sustenance

the act of sustaining life by food or providing a means of subsistence

Theocracy

government run by religious leaders

Traditional

consisting of or derived from tradition; customary practices

Urbanization

the social process whereby cities grow and societies become more urban

Bronze Age

a period between the Stone and Iron ages, characterized by the manufacture and use of bronze tools and weapons

Code of Hammurabi

the set of laws drawn up by Babylonian king Hammurabi dating to the 18th century BC, the earliest legal code known in its entirety

Cuneiform

One of the first written languages known: A system of writing in which wedge-shaped symbols represented words or syllables. It originated in Mesopotamia and was used initially for Sumerian and Akkadian but later was adapted to represent other languages of western Asia.

Democracy

a political system in which the supreme power lies in a body of citizens who can elect people to represent them

Iron Age

the period following the Bronze Age; characterized by rapid spread of iron tools and weapons

Pyramids

Huge stone tombs with four triangle-shaped walls that met in a point on top

Trans Saharan

route across the sahara desert. Major trade route that traded for gold and salt, created caravan routes, economic benefit for controlling dessert, camels played a huge role in the trading

Monsoons

Major winds in the Indian Ocean that blew into India for half the year, and blew away from India for the other half. Helped facilitate trade in the Indian Ocean.

Sumerians

people who dominated Southern Mesopotamia through the end of the 3rd Millennium BCE. Responsible for the creation of irrigation technology, cuneiform, and religious conceptions.

caste system

a set of rigid social categories that determined not only a person's occupation and economic potential, but also his or her position in society, there was virtually no social mobility

Paleolithic

(Old Stone Age) a long period of human development before the development of agriculture

North America

Caribbean

Latin America

Central Africa

East Africa

East Asia

Eastern Europe

Middle East (Southwest Asia)

South Africa

South Asia

Southeast Asia

West Africa

Western Europe

Indus Valley

3rd millennium BC, Elaborately planned cities, standardized measures, irrigated agriculture, written language, no temples kings etc., had a lot of land, no political hierarchy, was abandoned because of mass deforestation, low crop yields, famine, environmental deterioration, etc. their influence continued even to this day (i.e. yoga). Important because it shows how we developed in our cities and economy.

Code of Hammurabi

A collection of 282 laws which were enforced under Hammurabi's Rule. One of the first examples of written law in the ancient civilizations.

Patriarchy

A form of social organization in which a male is the family head and title is traced through the male line

Rise of the State

A process of centralization that took place in the First Civilizations, growing out of the greater complexity or urban life in recognition of the need for coordination, regulation, adjudication, and military leadership

Egypt: "the gift of the Nile"

provided annual and predictable flooding that benefited and provided a sustainable lifestyle for this civilization, also gave them a stable and positive worldview, proved unty and independence and security

Assyrians

an ancient empire in SW Asia: greatest extent from about 750 to 612 b.c. the Capital: Nineveh.

Hittites

a member of an ancient people who established an empire in Asia Minor and Syria that flourished from circa 1700 to circa 1200 BCE

Caste System

a class structure that is determined by birth. Loosely, it means that in some societies, if your parents are poor, you're going to be poor, too. Same goes for being rich

Patriarchy

A male dominated society

Matriarchal

A female dominated society

Mandate of Heaven

an ancient Chinese belief and philosophical idea that tiān (heaven) granted emperors the right to rule based on their ability to govern well and fairly.

Silk Road

an ancient network of trade and cultural transmission routes that were central to cultural interaction through regions of the Asian continent connecting the West and East by merchants, pilgrims, monks, soldiers, nomads, and urban dwellers from China and India to the Mediterranean Sea

Social Heirarchy

how individuals and groups are arranged in a relatively linear ladder

Reincarnation

the rebirth of a soul in a new body.

Assimilation

The process by which a person or persons acquire the social and psychological characteristics of a group

Monotheistic

The belief in only one god

Eightfold Path

the path to nirvana, comprising eight aspects in which an aspirant must become practiced: right views, intention, speech, action, livelihood, effort, mindfulness, and concentration.

Zoroanstrianism

one of the world's oldest monotheistic religions. It was founded by the Prophet Zoroaster in ancient Iran approximately 3500 years ago.

Greek Philosophy

the rational investigation of questions about existence and knowledge and ethics

Polytheistic

The belief in many gods

Legalism

strict adherence, or the principle of strict adherence, to law or prescription, especially to the letter rather than the spirit.

Confucianism

a system of philosophical and ethical teachings founded by Confucius and developed by Mencius.

Buddhism

is a nontheistic religion or philosophy (Sanskrit: dharma; Pali: धम्म dhamma) that encompasses a variety of traditions, beliefs and spiritual practices largely based on teachings attributed to Gautama Buddha, commonly known as the Buddha ("the awakened one").

Islam

the religion of the Muslims, a monotheistic faith regarded as revealed through Muhammad as the Prophet of Allah.

Judaism

an ancient monotheistic religion, with the Torah as its foundational text (part of the larger text known as the Tanakh or Hebrew Bible), and supplemental oral tradition represented by later texts such as the Midrash and the Talmud.

Christianity

the religion based on the person and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, or its beliefs and practices.

Daoism

a philosophical, ethical or religious tradition of Chinese origin, or faith of Chinese exemplification, that emphasizes living in harmony with the Tao.

Han Dynasty

an empire in ancient China, that lasted from 206 b.c.e- 24 c.e.

Persia

an empire located in modern day Iran but stretched as far as Egypt and Iraq.

Gupta

an empire located in northern India that lasted from 320-550 c.e.

Ancient Egypt

an empire that lasted for 3000 years

Roman empire

located in modern day Italy but expanded to outlying countries throughout its reign, it lasted from 201 b.c.e- 476 c.e.

Maya

located in modern day central america, it lasted from 1800 b.c.e- 250 c.e.

State

A body of people living in a defined territory who have a government with the power to make and enforce law without the consent of any higher authority

Empire

an extensive group of states or countries under a single supreme authority.

Hebrew Scriptures

Torah, Old Testament

Assyrian Empire

this empire covered much of what is now Mesopotamia, Syria, Palestine, Egypt, and Anatolia; its height was during the seventh and eighth centuries BCE.

Babylonian Empire

Empire in Mesopotamia which was formed by Hammurabi, the sixth ruler of the invading Amorites.

Roman Empire

Existed from 27 BCE to about 400 CE. Conquiered entire Mediterranean coast and most of Europe. Ruled by an emperor. Eventually oversaw the rise and spread of Christianity.

Sanskrit Scriptures

An ancient Indic language of India, in which the Hindu scriptures and classical Indian epic poems are written and from which many northern Indian languages are derived.

Vedic Religions

Core beliefs in sanskrit scriptures; Hinduism; influence of Indo-European traditions in the development of the social and political roles of a caste system; importance of multiple manifestations of Brahma to promote teachings about reincarnation.

Hinduism

A religion and philosophy developed in ancient India, characterized by a belief in reincarnation and a supreme being who takes many forms

Mauryan Empire

(321-185 BCE) This was the first centralized empire of India whose founder was Chandragupta Maurya.

Ashoka

Leader of the Mauryan dynasty of India who conquered most of India but eventually gave up violence and converted to Buddhism.

Siddhartha Gautama (The Buddha)

Means "Enlightened One." He is said to have renounced his worldly possessions and taught of a way to overcome suffering.

Emperor Constantine

Founded Constantinople; best known for being the first Christian Roman Emperor; issued the Edit of Milan in 313, granting religious toleration throughout the empire.

Buddha

Shiva

Brahma

Vishnu

Darius I

Alexander the Great