Chapter 4 Vocab

Augustine -

Influential church father and theologian (354-430 C.E); ultimately bishop of Hippo in Africa; champion of Christian doctrine against various heresies and very important in the long-term development of Christian thought on such issues as predestination.

Augustus Caesar

• (63BCE-14CE) Name given to Octavian following his defeat of Mak Anthony and Cleopatra; first emperor of Rome.

Benedict of Nursia

Founder of monasticism in what had been the western half of the Roman Empire; established Benedictine Rule in the 6th century; paralleled development of Basil's rules in Byzantine Empire.

Carthage

Originally a Phoenician colony in northern Africa; became a major part and commercial power in the western Mediterranean; fought the Punic Wars with Rome for dominance of the western Mediterranean.

Cicero

Conservative Roman senator; Stoic philosopher; one of great orators of his day; killed in reaction to assassination of Julius Caesar.

Paul

(3- 67) One of the first Christian missionaries; moved away from insistence that adherents of the new religion follow Jewish law; use of the new religion follow insistence that adherents of the new religion follow Jewish law; use of Greek as language of Church.

Punic Wars

Fought between Rome and Carthage to establish dominance in the western Mediterranean; won by Rome after three separate conflicts.

Consuls

Two chief executives or magistrates of the Roman republic; elected by an annual assembly dominated by aristocracy.

Constantine

Roman emperor from 312 to 337CE; established second capital at Constantinople; attempted to use religious force of Christianity to unify empire spiritually.

Diocletian

Roman emperor from 284 to 305CE; restored later empire by improved administration and tax collection.

Hannibal

Great Carthaginian general during Second Punic War; successfully invaded Italy but failed to conquer Rome; finally defeated at Battle of Zama.

Julius Caesar

Roman general responsible for conquest of Gaul, brought army back to Rome and overthrew republic, assassinated in 44 BCE by conservative senators.

Senate

Assembly of Roman aristocrats; advised on policy within the republic; one of the early elements of the Roman constitution.

Roman Republic

The balanced constitution of Rome from c.510 to 47 BCE; featured an aristocratic Senate, a panel of magistrates, and several popular assemblies.

Alexander the Great

Successor of Philip II; successfully conquered Persian Empire prior to his death in 523BCE; attempted to combine Greek and Persian cultures.

Aristotle

(384-322BCE) Greek philosopher; teacher of Alexandar the great; knowledge based on observation of phenomena in material world.

Olympic Games

One of the pan-Hellenic rituals, observed by all Greek city-states; involved athletic competitions and ritual celebrations.

Pericles

Athenian political leader during 5th century BCE; guided development of Athenian Peloponnesian War.

City-state

A form of political organization typical of Mesopotamian civilizations; consisted of agricultural hinterlands ruled by an urban-based king.

Direct Democracy

Major decisions of state were made by general assemblies in which all citizens could participate. Not ruled through elected representatives. The representatives were chosen by citizens, not elected. Women didn't have right of political participation though.

Cyrus the Great

Established massive Persian Empire by 550 BCE, successor state to Mesopotamian empires.

Hellenistic Period

That culture associated with the spread of Greek influence as a result of Macedonian conquests; often seen as the combination of Greek culture with eastern political forms.

23. Iliad & Odyssey

They are Greek literature, which contained a strong epic tradition. These epic poems were written by Homer, who lived in the 8th century BCE.

Ionian, Doric, Corinthian

They are 3 embellishments for the tops of columns supporting their massive building. Each is more ornate than the next.

Polis

City-state form of government typical of Greek political organization from 800 to 400 BCE.

Peloponnesian Wars

Wars from 431 to 404 BCE between Athens and Sparta for dominance in southern Greece; resulted in Spartan victory but failure to achieve political unification of Greece.

Persian Wars

A war between Persia and Greece. Two city-states Sparta and Athens worked together with other states to defeat Persian invasions between 500 and 449 BCE.

Philip II

Ruled Macedon from 359 to 336 BCE; founder of centralized kingdom; later conquered rest of Greece, which was subjected to Macedonian authority.

Plato

Greek philosopher; knowledge based on consideration of ideal form of government based on abstract principles in which philosophers ruled.

Socrates

Athenian philosopher of later 5th century BCE; tutor of Plato; urged rational reflection of moral decisions; condemned to death for corrupting minds of Athenian young.

Sophocles

• (496-406BCE) Greek writer of tragedies; author of Oedipus Rex.

Stoics

Hellenistic group of philosophers; emphasized inner moral independence cultivated by strict discipline of the body and personal bravery.

Zoroastrianism

Animist religion that saw material existence as battle between forces of good and evil; stressed the importance of moral choice; righteous lived on after death in "House of Song", chief religion of Persian Empire.

Athens

More diverse commercial state includes use of slaves, proud of its intellectual leadership.

Sparta

A strong military aristocracy dominating a slave population.