6th Grade SS Final Review

BCE/BC

Before Common Era

Migration

Moving to a new region in search of food.

Specialization

Skilled in one kind of work such as a potter or weaver

Hunters-gatherers

People who hunt animals and gather plants for food

Civilization

A society with reliable food surplus, specialized jobs, social classes, cities, governments, trade, and writing

Ice Age

When glaciers covered large parts of the Earth's surface

Ancestor

A relative who lived in the past

Domesticate

To tame wild animals for human use

Artifact

weapon, tool, or other item made by humans

Fossil

the trace or imprint of a plant or animal that has been preserved in rock

Historian

person who studies and writes about the human past

Trade

Exchange of goods and services

Prehistory

A period of time that refers to events happening before written records

Culture

Beliefs, customs, and traditions of a specific group of people.

Archaeologist

a scientist who learns about ancient people by studying artifacts

Surplus

more than needed to survive

Technology

tools, methods and inventions used to help humans perform tasks

Governments

Organization set up to make and enforce the rules for a society

Agricultural Revolution

The time when humans first domesticated plants and animals and no longer relied on hunting and gathering

Nomad

describes a person who wanders from place to place for food, water, shelter, or space

Bands

Small groups of families living cooperatively

AD/CE

Anno Domini (in the year of our Lord) / Common Era

Civilization

A society with cities, a central government, job specialization, and social classes

Cradle of civilization

Another name for Mesopotamia

Ziggurat

Stepped pyramid-shaped temples built by Sumerians to honor the gods and goddesses.

Cuneiform

A system of writing developed by the Sumerians around 3,000 BC, using a wedge shaped stylus and clay tablets

Stylus

A writing tool made from a reed that scribes used to make wedge-shaped symbols on clay tablets

Fertile Crescent

An area of rich farmland in Southwest Asia, between the Persian Gulf and the Mediterranean Sea

The Plow

A farming tool the Sumerians invented

Social class (Hierarchy)

How people are organized in a society, often by wealth and power

Stele

A large stone where laws were carved and placed in the center of city-states

Tigris and Euphrates

Two major rivers of Mesopotamia

The wheel

a Mesopotamian invention created around 3500 BCE

irrigation

A way of supplying water to an area of land

polytheistic

belief in many gods

monotheistic

belief in one god

Sumer

an area in southern Mesopotamia where cities first appeared

Pharaoh

A king of ancient Egypt, considered a god as well as a political and military leader.

Hieroglyphics

Ancient Egyptian writing system in which pictures were used to represent ideas and sounds

sun god

Ra

Polytheism

belief in more than one god

King Menes (Narmer)

Pharaoh who united upper and lower Egypt

Dynasty

A series of rulers from the same family

New Kingdom Egypt

the period 1550 BC-1050 BC where Egypt reached the height of its power and glory

Rosetta Stone

a huge stone slab inscribed with hieroglyphics, Greek, and a later form of Egyptian that allowed historians to understand Egyptian writing.

Embalming

process developed by the ancient Egyptians of preserving a person's body after death

Shadoof

a bucket attached to a long pole used to transfer river water to storage basins

Papyrus

A reed that grows along the banks of the Nile River in Egypt. From it was produced a coarse, paperlike writing medium used by the Egyptians and many other peoples in the ancient Mediterranean and Middle East.

Nile River

The world's longest river, which flows northward through East Africa into the Mediterranean Sea

Cataracts

rapids along a river, such as those along the Nile in Egypt

Upper Egypt

the southern part of ancient Egypt

Lower Egypt

The northern part of ancient Egypt

canopic jars

Jars used during embalming to hold organs (liver, intestines, stomach, lungs)

pyramid

Huge, triangular shaped burial tombs of Egyptian pharaohs

Queen Hatshepsut

First female pharaoh between 1473 - 1458 BCE who expanded Egypt through trade.

King Ramses II

Important New Kingdom pharaoh who defended Egypt from invaders and strengthened defenses

sarcophagus

a large stone coffin

subcontinent

a large landmass that is smaller than a continent

monsoons

seasonal winds that cause wet and dry seasons

Sanskrit

the written language of ancient India

caste system

A Hindu social class system that controlled every aspect of daily life

Hinduism

the largest religion in India today, polytheistic

reincarnation

the belief that souls are born and reborn many times, each time in a new body

karma

the effects that good or bad actions have on a person's soul

Buddha

Means "Enlightened One." He is said to have found a path for overcoming suffering.

Nirvana

a state of complete peace or total happiness

Vedas

religious texts of Hinduism

Harappa

a large ancient city of the Indus civilization, present-day Pakistan

dharma

personal duty

Brahman

The term for The Univeral Soul in Hinduism.

Aryans

nomads from Europe and Asia who migrated to India and finally settled

Mohenjo-Daro

One of the first settlements in India

Siddartha Gautama

Founder of Buddhism

Chandragupta Maurya

founder of the Mauryan Empire

Mauryan Empire

The first empire to unify most of the Indian subcontinent.

samsara

the cycle of life and rebirth in Hinduism

natural barrier

Physical obstacles created by nature

aristocracy

An upper class people whose wealth is based on land, power passed from one generation to another

Mandate of Heaven

A political theory developed during the Zhou Dynasty in which those in power were believed to rule with divine authority

filial piety

A love and respect for one's parents and ancestors

pictographs

Characters that stand for objects, words or ideas

Confucius

A Chinese philosopher of the Zhou Dynasty, developed a code of behavior based on moral behavior

The Analects

Collection of moral and social teachings of Confucius

Confucianism

A belief system based on the writings of Confucius

philosophy

A belief or system of beliefs

Daoism / Taoism

A philosophy based on the ideas of Laozi, who taught that people should be guided by a universal force called the Dao / Tao (Way). Focus on balance and harmony with nature.

Dao / Tao

Means "the way" of nature. Let it take its course in the world. Inaction.

Laozi

Also known as Lao Tsu, founder of Daoism, who recommended retreat from society into nature.

Legalism

A philosophy that rejected Confucianism. Emphasized the importance of strict laws and harsh punishments.

Hanfeizi

A scholar who developed the teachings of legalism during the 200s B.C. He taught that humans were naturally evil

Qin Dynasty

(221-207 BCE) The first centralized dynasty of China that used Legalism

Emperor Qin

The "first Emperor" of China by uniting warring kingdoms

Chinese achievements

Silk, paper, porcelain, woodblock printing, gunpowder, movable type, ship's rudder, magnetic compass, paper money, iron plow.

Oracle bones

Cattle bones or tortoise shells on which Chinese priests, or oracles, would write questions and then interpret answers from the cracks that formed when the bones were heated.

Loess

Fertile, rich soil of the Yellow River Valley in northern China.

Terra Cotta Army

Army to protect Shi Huangdi in the afterlife; 700,000 clay soldiers

Silk Road

An ancient trade route between China and the Mediterranean Sea as far as Rome.

Saddle and Stirrups

A Chinese invention which allowed soldiers to fight on horseback

Himalaya Mountains

a mountain range extending 1500 miles on the border between India and China

Yangtze River

Longest major river in China