Global Studies Honors Vocab

compiled list of vocab terms from entire year

Humanism

an intellectual movement at the heart of the Renaissance that focused on education and the classics

Vernacular

Everyday language of the ordinary people

Niccolo Machiavelli

Wrote The Prince, a guide for rulers on how to gain/maintain power

Indulgence

In the Roman Catholic Church, pardon for sins committed in lifetime, releases soles from purgatory

Martin Luther

German monk/professor who wrote the 95 Theses

Protestant

a member of the Christian Church founded on the principles of the Reformation

95 Theses

A set of arguments written by Martin Luther that condemned some practices of the Roman Catholic Church such as selling indulgences

Act of Supremacy

granted King Henry 7 of England the supreme head of the Church in England(1534)

Heliocentric

Based on the belief that the sun is the center of the universe(opposed to geocentric)

Scientific Mehthod

Carful, step-by-step process used to confirm findings and prove or disprove hypothesis(came about during the Scientific Revolution)

Cartographer

map maker

Circumnavigate

to travel completely around the world

Treaty of Tordesillas

signed between Spain and Portugal in 1494 which divided the non-European world between them

Prince Henery

Led the way in sponsoring exploration for Portugal

Vasco de Gama

A Portuguese navigator who led ships around the Cape of Good Hope

Ferdinand Magellan

A Portuguese nobleman who wad the first to completely travel around the world

Christopher Colombus

An Italian navigator who wanted yo reach the East Indies by sailing across the Atlantic

Columbian Exchange

the global exchange of goods, ideas, plants, animals, and disease that began with Columbus’s exploration of the Americas

Conquistador

Spanish explorer who claimed land in the America for Spain in the late 1500s and 1600s

Encomienda

right the Spanish government granted to its American colonists to demand labor or tribute from Native Americans

Middle Passage

the leg of the triangular trade routes on which slaves were transported from Africa to the Americans

Vodun

a New World syncretic faith that contributes the animist faiths of West Africa and Christianity

Sikhism

A syncretic religion that evolved in India, blending elements of Islam and Hinduism

Exalted

high or elevated in rank

Divine right

the belief that the ruler’s authority comes directly from God

Archipelago

chain of Islands

Shogun

in Japanese feudal society, supreme military commander who held more power than the emperor

Bushido

code of conduct for Samurai during feudal system in Japan

Mit’a system

mandatory public service in the Incan Empire, in lieu of taxes

Chinampas

in the Aztec Empire, artificial islands used to cultivate crops

Waru Waru

agricultural technique of South America; combines raised beds with irrigation channels to prevent erosion

Three field system

agricultural technique if Medieval Europe, where crops are rotated to maximize food production

Serf

peasant bound to the land

Justinian’s code

collection of Roman laws, later served as a model for the Catholic Church and medieval monarchs

Great Schism

official split between the Roman Catholic and Byzantine Churches that occurred in 1054

Feudaism

decentralized system of government where land is exchanged for military service/loyalty

Manorialism

economic system structured around the lord’s estate

Chivalry

code of conduct for knights

Papal supremacy

The claim of medieval popes that they had authority over all secular rulers

Magna Carta

Great Charter approved by King John of England 1215, it limited royal power and established certain rights of English freemen

Crusades

a series of wars from the 1000s through the 1200s in which European Christians tried to win control over the Holy Land from Muslims

Genghis Khan

united warring Mongol tribes and conquered a vast Empire that stretched from the Pacific Ocean to Eastern Europe

Mongols

nomadic peoples of central Asia

Zheng He

Chinese admiral and diplomat that lee Chinese fleets into distant waters during Ming dynasty

Ibn Battuta

A 14th century Moroccan Muslim scholar who traveled throughout the Muslim world

Marco Polo

Italian Merchant who visited China during the Yuan dynasty

Astrolabe

an instrument used to make astronomical measurements, typically of the altitudes of constellations, and in navigation for calculating latitude

Caravel

a small, fast Spanish or Portuguese sailing ship of the 15th-17th centuries

Mansa Musa

greatest King of Mali who converted to Islam; completed a famous hajj and is one of the richest men to have ever lived

Hanseatic League

organization of North German towns and merchants to protect their mutual trading interests

Grand Canal

The 1,100 mile waterway linking northern and southern China

Equal field system

Chinese system used during the Tang Dynasty in which the goal was to ensure an equitable distribution

Mahayana Buddhism

emphasized salvation in Buddhism and use of bodhisattvas to help those who were still suffering

Neo-Confusianism

effort to receive Confucian thinking while incorporating some of the insights of Buddhism and Daoism

Hajj

pilgrimage to Mecca(one if the five pillars)

Five Pillars

the five basic acts of worship that are central to Islam

Caravanserai

a roadside inn where travelers could stop to rest

Qanat

a traditional system of gravity-fed irrigation that uses gently sloping tunnels to capture ground water and direct it to needed fields

Monsoon

a seasonal prevailing wind in the region of Southern India and Southeast Asia

Shaduf

hand-operated device for lifting water, invented in ancient times and still used in India, Egypt, and some other countries to irrigate land

Mettallurgy

the study of metals and their properties, the science of technology of extracting metals from their ores, refining them, and preparing them for use

Cultural diffusion

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

Dhow

Arab sailing vessels with triangular or lateen sails; strongly influenced European ship design

Lateen sails

Large triangular sails that are attached to masts

Hellenistic Culture

greek culture blended with Persian and Indian ideas, as a result of Alexander the Great’s Empire

Twelve Tables

the laws of Rome, codified. Famously includes the concept “innocent until proven guilty”

Republic

a system of government in which officials are chosen by the people

Empire

a group if stated or territories controlled by one ruler

Golden Age

a period of great cultural achievement

Civil Service Exam

an ancient exam system, based on Confucian classics, used to determine a young man’s future position

Terrace farming

involves the use of steps that are built into the side of a hill and contain planted crops

Satraps

governors who rule provinces

Pater-familias

Roman term for the “father of the family” a theoretical implication that gave the male head of the family almost unlimited authority

Legalism

In China, a political philosophy that emphasized the unruliness of human nature and justified state coercion and control

Sanskirt

ancient Indic belief of India, in which the Hindu scriptures and classical Indian epic poems are written

Monistic belief system

believes that there is only one Being

Dharma

in Hinduism, a person’s religious or moral duties as determined by their caste

Reincarnation

the rebirth of the soul in another bodily form

Karma

all the actions that effect a person’s fate in their next life

Caste

in traditional Indian society, an unchangeable social group into which a person is born

Animism

the belief that spirits and forces live within animals, objects, or dreams

Nirvana

in Buddhist belief, union with the universes and release from the cycle of rebirth

Sabbath

a holy day for rest and worship

Ten Commandments

A set of laws for responsible behavior, which, according to the Bible were give to Moses by God

Moksha

In Hindu belief, release from the cycle of rebirth

Brahman

In the belief system established in Aryan India, the single spiritual power that resides in all living things