World History & Asian Studies – Comprehensive Review

A set of 600 English question-and-answer flashcards covering major concepts, figures, events, and vocabulary from Prehistory through Modern World events, aligned with the provided lecture notes.

1. What is the basic difference between Prehistory and the Historical Era?

Prehistory lacks written records, while the Historical Era begins after the invention of writing.

2. Who is traditionally called the “Father of History”?

Herodotus.

3. Which Greek historian is known as the “Father of Scientific History”?

Thucydides.

4. What does B.C. stand for in dating years?

Before Christ (also BCE – Before Common Era).

5. What does A.D. stand for in dating years?

Anno Domini (also CE – Common Era).

6. Which scientist wrote “On the Origin of Species”?

Charles Darwin.

7. Which continent is described as the “cradle of mankind”?

Africa.

8. What does the term hominid mean?

Man-like primate or human ancestor.

9. Who is “Lucy” in paleoanthropology?

A famous Australopithecus afarensis skeleton found in Ethiopia.

10. Which early human is nicknamed the “handy man”?

Homo habilis.

11. Which early human is called the “upright man”?

Homo erectus.

12. Name two famous Homo erectus fossil finds.

Java Man and Peking Man.

13. Which early human discovered fire?

Homo erectus is credited with using fire.

14. Which prehistoric group is labeled “wise man”?

Homo sapiens.

15. Which prehistoric human was heavily built and chinless?

Neanderthal Man.

16. Which prehistoric human painted caves and made advanced tools?

Cro-Magnon Man.

17. What time span roughly defines the Paleolithic Period?

About 2,500,000–10,000 B.C.

18. What major achievement characterized the Paleolithic Period?

Discovery and control of fire.

19. Which Stone Age period saw the climate warm and ice melt?

Mesolithic Period (10,000–8,000 B.C.).

20. What shift marks the Neolithic Period?

Change from hunting-gathering to agriculture and animal domestication.

21. What is Catal Huyuk famous for?

It is the oldest extensive Neolithic farming village.

22. Which metal was first used for tools?

Copper.

23. Bronze is an alloy of which two metals?

Copper and tin.

24. Which people first used iron for weapons?

The Hittites.

25. Which region is nicknamed the “cradle of civilization”?

Asia (specifically the Fertile Crescent / Mesopotamia).

26. What does Mesopotamia literally mean?

Land between two rivers (Tigris and Euphrates).

27. Which writing system did the Sumerians invent?

Cuneiform.

28. Name two Sumerian inventions besides writing.

The wheel and the plow.

29. Which legendary epic comes from Sumer?

The Epic of Gilgamesh.

30. Who created the first known empire in history?

Sargon of Akkad.

31. Which Babylonian king is called the “Lawgiver”?

King Hammurabi.

32. What famous legal code did Hammurabi issue?

The Code of Hammurabi.

33. Which Mesopotamian people developed the first postal system?

The Akkadians.

34. Which base-60 number system originated in Mesopotamia?

The sexagesimal system.

35. The Library of Ashurbanipal belonged to which empire?

The Assyrian Empire.

36. Which Mesopotamian empire pioneered siege warfare techniques?

The Assyrians.

37. Who built the Hanging Gardens of Babylon?

Nebuchadnezzar II of the Chaldeans.

38. Which rock inscription helped decipher cuneiform?

The Behistun Rock.

39. Which civilization called itself the “Gift of the Nile”?

Ancient Egypt.

40. Who united Upper and Lower Egypt?

King Menes (Narmer).

41. Which period in Egypt is the “Age of Pyramids”?

The Old Kingdom.

42. Which pharaoh commissioned the Great Pyramid of Giza?

Khufu (Cheops).

43. What giant statue guards the Giza plateau?

The Great Sphinx.

44. Which Egyptian period is nicknamed the “Golden Age”?

The Middle Kingdom.

45. Which pharaoh was Egypt’s first female ruler?

Hatshepsut.

46. Who is known as the “Napoleon of Egypt”?

Thutmose III.

47. Which pharaoh introduced monotheism to worship Aton?

Amenhotep IV (Akhenaten).

48. Whose tomb was famously discovered by Howard Carter in 1922?

Tutankhamun (King Tut).

49. Which pharaoh built the temples at Abu Simbel?

Ramses II (Ramses the Great).

50. Which Macedonian general’s dynasty ended Egyptian independence?

Ptolemy (ending with Cleopatra VII).

51. Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro belonged to which ancient culture?

The Indus Valley Civilization.

52. Who were the original inhabitants of the Indus Valley?

Dravidians.

53. Which migrating group introduced the Rig Veda to India?

The Aryans.

54. What is the law of moral duty in Hinduism?

Dharma.

55. What term describes the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth?

Samsara.

56. What ultimate liberation ends Samsara?

Moksha.

57. Who founded Buddhism?

Siddhartha Gautama (the Buddha).

58. Name Buddhism’s core ethical framework.

The Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path.

59. Which Indian religion preaches extreme non-violence (ahimsa)?

Jainism.

60. Who was Jainism’s major teacher?

Mahavira.

61. What is the Indian social hierarchy called?

The caste system.

62. Which caste consisted of priests and scholars?

Brahmins.

63. Which Indian empire was founded by Chandragupta Maurya?

The Mauryan Empire.

64. What manual on statecraft did Kautilya write?

The Arthashastra.

65. Which Indian empire experienced a “Golden Age”?

The Gupta Empire.

66. Who is the celebrated poet-playwright of Gupta India?

Kalidasa.

67. Which Chinese dynasty is often regarded as legendary and first?

The Xia Dynasty.

68. Which Chinese artifacts are famed for divination inscriptions?

Oracle bones (Shang Dynasty).

69. What principle justified a Chinese ruler’s right to rule?

The Mandate of Heaven.

70. Which exam system began under the Zhou and later expanded?

Civil Service Examination.

71. Which short-lived dynasty first unified China and began the Great Wall?

The Qin Dynasty.

72. Who was China’s “First Emperor”?

Qin Shi Huangdi.

73. What army of clay figures guards Qin Shi Huang’s tomb?

The Terracotta Soldiers.

74. Which foreign dynasty was founded by Kublai Khan?

The Yuan (Mongol) Dynasty.

75. What was China’s last imperial dynasty?

The Qing (Manchu) Dynasty.

76. List China’s Four Great Inventions.

Papermaking, printing, gunpowder, and the compass.

77. In which dynasty was paper invented?

The Han Dynasty.

78. Which Chinese philosopher founded Confucianism?

Confucius (Kung-fu-tze).

79. Who founded Daoism (Taoism)?

Lao Tzu.

80. Which Confucian scholar emphasized innate human goodness?

Mencius.

81. Who is called the “Father of Modern China”?

Sun Yat-sen.

82. Which Indo-European people first used iron widely?

The Hittites.

83. What vehicle did the Hittites popularize in warfare?

Horse-drawn chariots.

84. Which battle pitted Egypt against the Hittites?

The Battle of Kadesh.

85. Which Mediterranean traders invented a 22-letter alphabet?

The Phoenicians.

86. Name two major Phoenician cities.

Tyre and Sidon.

87. What purple product made Phoenicia wealthy?

Tyrian purple dye.

88. Which Phoenician colony became a major empire?

Carthage.

89. Who is the patriarch of Judaism?

Abraham.

90. Which Hebrew leader led the Exodus from Egypt?

Moses.

91. Which king made Jerusalem Israel’s capital?

King David.

92. Who built the First Temple in Jerusalem?

King Solomon.

93. What event exiled Jews to Babylon in 586 B.C.?

Destruction of the First Temple and Babylonian Captivity.

94. Who founded the Persian Empire?

Cyrus the Great.

95. Which Persian king organized the empire into satrapies?

Darius I.

96. What is a satrapy?

A Persian provincial administration governed by a satrap.

97. What religion did Persia contribute to world heritage?

Zoroastrianism.

98. Who is Zoroastrianism’s supreme god?

Ahura Mazda.

99. What is the holy text of Zoroastrianism?

The Zend-Avesta.

100. What ancient road linked Persian capitals to the Aegean?

The Royal Road.