The World before 1200 C.E. Map & Vocab

1st Agricultural Revolution

The change from hunting and gathering to settling down with agriculture.

Abraham

Founder of Judaism

Axum

Ancient town in the Tigre region of Ethiopia.

Bantu

Branch of languages spoken in central and southern Africa (Swahili, Xhosa, and Zulu).

Bureaucracy

A system of government where important decisions are mostly made by state officials (not representatives).

Bhagavad Gita

A 700-verse Hindu scripture that teaches one can kill the body; the soul is immortal.

Bureaucracy

A system of government where important decisions are mostly made by state officials (not representatives).

Cahokia

an ancient settlement near St. Louis, and home to 40,000 southern Indians. Served as a trading center during A.D. 1200.

Chaco

An ancient Puebloan society located in southern New Mexico. They build many adobe houses and cities in the canyon.

Chavin

the first major South American civilization, located in Peru from 900 to 200 B.C.

City-states

An independent, self-governing country within the borders of one city.

Clovis Culture

The earliest widespread and distinctive culture of N. America; named from the Clovis point, a particular kind of projectile point

Code of Hammurbi

One of the first examples of written laws in the ancient world (282 laws).

Confuncianism

a Chinese philosophy that emphasizes proper behavior and shows the way to ensure a stable/orderly government (moral code of conduct).

Daoism

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

Egalitarian States

Democratic like system where everyone is all considered equal, regardless of gender, race, religion, or age. Survival of the fittest, mostly used before the Agricultural Revolution.

Egyptian Civilization

Egyptian civilization emerged in northern Africa along the Nile River by about 3000 B.C.E. It benefited from trade and influences from Mesopotamia, but it also produced its own distinct social structures and cultural expressions. Mathematical achievements and impressive architectural structures also characterized Egyptian civilization.

Emperor Ashoka

Maurya empire of India (320-185 BC); greatest emperor of India; conversion to Buddhism and spread Buddhism throughout India by building shrines and pillars for Buddhists

Empress Wu

was the only woman to rule China in her own name while also supporting Buddhism and causing large expansions during the Tang Dynasty.

Epic of Gilgamesh

one of the earliest known works of literary writing and an epic poem from Mesopotamia.

Fertile Crescent

an area of rich farmland in Southwest Asia where the first civilizations began

Han

Chinese Dynasty (206 BCE - 220 CE) ruled a centralized and growing empire for 400 years. Complex centralized buraucracy with Civil service system based on Confucianism. Traded on Silk Road.

Hellenistic Era

the age of Alexander the Great; period when the Greek language and ideas were carried to the non-Greek world

Hitites

group of people who lived in northern Syria and modern-day Turkey.

Indus Valley Civilization

an early civilization with an advanced culture, located in the Indus River valley on the Indian subcontinent

Jenne-Jeno

one of the first urbanized centers in western Africa. A walled community home to approximately 50,000 people at its height. Evidence suggests domestication of agriculture and trade with nearby regions.

Judaism

the monotheistic religion of the Jews.

Karma and Rebirth

actions that produce consequences or rewards, including future rebirths.

Legalism

A Chinese philosophy that was devoted to strengthen and expand the state through increased agricultural work and military service.

Maya

Mesoamerican civilization concentrated in Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula and in Guatemala and Honduras but never unified into a single empire. Major contributions were in mathematics, astronomy, and development of the calendar.

Mohenjo-Daro

Indus Valley city laid out in a grid pattern. Had a complex irrigation and sewer system.

Neolithic Era

New Stone Age

Niger Valley Civilization

a civilization that developed on the western interior of Africa, south of the Saharan desert. Key feature is that during the Classical period its political organization was almost totally devoid of central authority.

Olmec Civ.

an early civilization that developed along the Gulf of Mexico around 1200 B.C.E.

Paleolithic Era

Old Stone Age

pastoralists, herders, and Nomad

Moved around from area to area. Focused on domesticated plants and animals (such as cattle, sheep, goats, camels, yak, and reindeer).

Pax Romana

Roman Peace

Peloponnesian War

The war between Athens and Sparta that in which Sparta won, but left Greece as a whole weak and ready to fall to its neighbors to the north (431-404 BCE).

Persian Empire

Greatest empire in the world up to 500 BCE. Spoke an Indo-European language. A multi-ethnic and multi-religious empire. Fell to Alexander the Great.

Plato

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

Socrates

An Athenian philosopher who thought that human beings could lead honest lives and that honor was far more important than wealth, fame, or other superficial attributes.

Aristotle

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

Republic

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

Roman Empire

an empire that, at its height, around 200 C.E., spanned the Mediterranean world and most of Europe

Shihuangdi

Chinese emperor who founded the Qin dynasty and unified China with a standardized system of writing and money; his tomb contained the famous "clay army".

Siddhartha Gautama

Founder of Buddhism

Sumerian Civilization

the first major Mesopotamian civilization; rose in southern Mesopotamia Created many advancements we still use today (wheel, sailboats, the plow, cuneiform, irrigation and dikes, boats).

The Punic Wars

Wars between the Romans and Carthaginians that marked Rome as the preeminent power in the eastern as well as the western Mediterranean.

Upanishads

A major book in Hinduism that is often in the form of dialogues that explored the Vedas and the religious issues that they raised.

Varnas

Another word for the social classes in the Caste system that ranked people from high to low

Vedas

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

Xia, Shang, Zhou

the first three Chinese dynasties

Zoroastrianism

One of the first monotheistic religions, particularly one with a wide following. It was central to the political and religious culture of ancient Persia.