Check-in #2 Word Bank Vocabulary

Vocabulary flashcards covering all 20 historical terms listed in the Check-in #2 word bank.

Paul of Tarsus

A Christian apostle who played a major role in spreading Christianity throughout the Roman Empire.

Charlemagne

King of the Franks and first Emperor of the Romans who united much of western and central Europe during the Early Middle Ages.

Genghis Khan

Founder and first Great Khan of the Mongol Empire, which became the largest contiguous land empire in history.

Indulgences

Grants sold or issued by the Catholic Church that promised to reduce temporal punishment in purgatory for sins.

Emperor Constantine

Roman Emperor who legalized Christianity across the Roman Empire with the Edict of Milan and established Constantinople.

Viking

Norse seafarers, traders, and raiders who raided and settled throughout Europe from the late 8th to late 11th centuries.

Marco Polo

Venetian merchant, explorer, and writer who traveled along the Silk Road to China and documented his experiences.

Martin Luther

German monk and theology professor who initiated the Protestant Reformation by writing the Ninety-five Theses.

Mecca

The holiest city in Islam, located in Saudi Arabia, and the birthplace of the Prophet Muhammad.

Feudalism

A social and political system of medieval Europe based on land grants in exchange for military service and labor.

Black Death

A devastating bubonic plague pandemic that swept through Europe and Asia in the mid-14th century.

Aztecs

A Mesoamerican civilization and empire that flourished in central Mexico prior to Spanish conquest in the 16th century.

Byzantine Empire

The eastern continuation of the Roman Empire centered in Constantinople during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages.

The Reconquista

A centuries-long military campaign by Christian kingdoms to recapture territory on the Iberian Peninsula from Islamic rule.

Renaissance

A period of European cultural, artistic, political, and economic rebirth following the Middle Ages.

Columbian Exchange

The widespread transfer of plants, animals, diseases, technology, and culture between the Americas and the Old World following 1492.

Emperor Justinian

Byzantine emperor known for codifying Roman law into the Justinian Code and rebuilding the Hagia Sophia.

The Crusades

A series of religious wars initiated, supported, and directed by the Latin Church to recover the Holy Land from Islamic rule.

Leonardo Da Vinci

Italian Renaissance polymath, painter, engineer, and scientist renowned for works such as the Mona Lisa.

The Great Dying

The massive demographic collapse and widespread death of Indigenous populations in the Americas caused by Old World diseases introduced during European contact.