AP WORLD FINAL

Neo-Confucianism

A revival of Confucian ideas during the Song Dynasty mixed with Buddhist beliefs; emphasized order, family, and education.

Censorate

Chinese government agency that monitored officials and investigated corruption.

Hangzhou

Capital of the Southern Song Dynasty; major trade and commercial center in China.

Foot binding

Chinese practice of tightly binding girls’ feet to make them smaller; symbolized beauty and higher status.

“Middle Kingdom”

Chinese belief that China was the cultural and political center of the world.

Kowtow

A ritual bowing gesture showing respect and submission to the Chinese emperor.

Xiongnu

Nomadic group north of China that frequently threatened Chinese dynasties.

Sultanate of Delhi

Muslim state that ruled much of northern India after Turkic invasions.

Sufis

Mystical branch of Islam focused on spiritual connection with God; helped spread Islam peacefully.

Kabir

Indian poet who blended Hindu and Muslim ideas and criticized religious divisions.

Sikhism

Religion founded in India by Guru Nanak combining elements of Hinduism and Islam.

Timbuktu

Major West African trade and Islamic learning center in Mali.

Mexica

People later known as the Aztecs.

Triple Alliance

Alliance between Tenochtitlan, Texcoco, and Tlacopan that formed the Aztec Empire.

Tenochtitlan

Capital city of the Aztec Empire built on a lake in present-day Mexico City.

Chinampas

Artificial floating farm islands used by the Aztecs to increase food production.

Huitzilopochtli

Aztec sun and war god who required human sacrifices.

Quechua

Language spoken throughout the Inca Empire.

Gender Parallelism

Inca idea that men and women had separate but equally important roles.

Yuan Dynasty

Chinese dynasty established by the Mongols under Khubilai Khan.

Khubilai Khan

Grandson of Genghis Khan who ruled China and founded the Yuan Dynasty.

Hulegu

Mongol ruler who conquered Baghdad and founded the Ilkhanate.

Khutulun

Mongol princess known for wrestling skill and military ability.

Kipchak Khanate / Golden Horde

Mongol state that ruled Russia and surrounding areas.

Monsoon winds

Seasonal wind patterns that helped Indian Ocean trade.

Swahili language

Language blending Bantu and Arabic influences along East African trade cities.

Great Zimbabwe

Powerful African trading kingdom known for massive stone structures.

Jenne-Jeno

Early West African trading city involved in trans-Saharan trade.

Camel caravans

Groups of camels used to transport goods across deserts, especially the Sahara.

Encomienda and Repartimiento

Spanish labor systems forcing Indigenous people to work for colonists.

Peninsulares, Creoles, & Mestizos

Social classes in Latin America: Peninsulares born in Spain, Creoles born in Americas of Spanish descent, Mestizos mixed European and Indigenous ancestry.

Tupac Amaru Revolt

Major Indigenous rebellion against Spanish rule in Peru.

Middle Passage

Brutal voyage transporting enslaved Africans across the Atlantic.

Cowrie shells

Shells used as currency in Africa and Asia.

Kingdom of Dahomey

West African kingdom heavily involved in the slave trade.

Queen Nzinga

African ruler who resisted Portuguese control in Angola.

British East India Company

English trading company that gained political and economic control in India.

Dutch East India Company

Powerful Dutch trading company active in Indian Ocean trade.

Potosi, Bolivia

Site of huge Spanish silver mines worked by forced labor.

Gunpowder empires

Empires like the Ottoman, Safavid, and Mughal that used firearms to expand power.

Janissaries

Elite Ottoman soldiers recruited through the devshirme system.

Sati

Indian practice where widows burned themselves on husbands’ funeral pyres.

Jizya

Tax paid by non-Muslims living under Muslim rule.

Devshirme

Ottoman system of taking Christian boys to train as soldiers or officials.

Soft gold

Nickname for fur traded heavily by Russia.

Qing Dynasty

Chinese dynasty established by the Manchus after the Ming.

Treaty of Nerchinsk (1689)

Agreement between Russia and China defining borders and trade relations.

Declaration of Independence

1776 document declaring American independence from Britain.

Creoles

People of European descent born in colonies; often led Latin American revolutions.

Miguel Hidalgo and Jose Morelos

Mexican priests who led early independence movements against Spain.

Simon Bolivar

Leader known as 'The Liberator' who helped free several South American countries.

Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen

French Revolution document promoting liberty and equality.

Olympe de Gouges

French activist who demanded equal rights for women.

Napoleon Bonaparte

French military leader who spread revolutionary ideas through Europe.

Toussaint Louverture

Leader of the Haitian Revolution.

Jean-Jacques Dessalines

Haitian revolutionary who declared Haiti independent after Louverture.

“Independence debt”

Money Haiti was forced to pay France after independence.

Seneca Falls

1848 meeting launching the women’s rights movement in the U.S.

Elizabeth Cady Stanton

Leader of the American women’s suffrage movement.

National American Woman Suffrage Association

Organization campaigning for women’s voting rights in the U.S.

Kartini

Indonesian activist advocating women’s education and rights.

Huda Sharawi

Egyptian feminist leader who promoted women’s rights.

Steam Engine

Machine using steam power that fueled industrialization.

Second Industrial Revolution

Late 1800s period of rapid industrial growth involving steel, electricity, and chemicals.

Middle Class

Social group between workers and elites that expanded during industrialization.

Robert Owen

Industrialist and socialist who improved factory conditions.

Karl Marx

Thinker who criticized capitalism and developed communism.

Russian Social-Democratic Labor Party

Marxist political party that later split into Bolsheviks and Mensheviks.

The Crimean War (1854–1856)

War exposing Russian weakness and encouraging modernization.

caudillos

Military strongmen who dominated Latin American politics.

Mexican Revolution of 1910

Conflict seeking land reform and reduced dictatorship in Mexico.

King Leopold of Belgium

Belgian king who brutally exploited the Congo.

Taiping Uprising

Massive rebellion in China against the Qing Dynasty.

Opium Wars

Wars between Britain and China over trade and opium.

Self-Strengthening

Chinese movement attempting modernization while preserving traditions.

Boxer Uprising

Anti-foreign rebellion in China during the late Qing Dynasty.

Hundred Days of Reform

Short-lived Qing reform effort to modernize China.

Bolsheviks

Radical Marxist group led by Lenin that seized power in Russia.

Vladimir Lenin

Leader of the Russian Revolution and founder of the Soviet Union.

Guomindang

Chinese Nationalist Party led by Chiang Kai-shek.

Mao Zedong

Communist leader who established the People’s Republic of China.

Stalin and Mao

Communist leaders who used authoritarian rule and economic plans to transform their countries.

Zhenotdel

Soviet department promoting women’s rights after the Russian Revolution.

Collectivization

Soviet policy forcing peasants onto collective farms.

Five-Year Plans

Soviet economic plans focused on industrial growth.

Great Leap Forward

Mao’s campaign to rapidly industrialize China through communes; caused famine.

Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution

Mao-led movement attacking 'old ideas' and political enemies.

Terror / Great Purges

Stalin’s campaigns eliminating perceived enemies through executions and imprisonment.

Rape of Nanjing

Mass killing and atrocities committed by Japanese troops in China.

Hiroshima and Nagasaki

Japanese cities destroyed by U.S. atomic bombs in WWII.

Rosie the Riveter

Symbol representing women working industrial jobs during WWII.

The Holocaust

Genocide of six million Jews and millions of others by Nazi Germany.

United Nations

International organization formed after WWII to promote peace and cooperation.

Indian National Congress

Political party leading India’s independence movement.

Mohandas Gandhi

Indian nationalist leader using nonviolent resistance against British rule.

Satyagraha

Gandhi’s philosophy of nonviolent resistance.

Muslim League

Political organization advocating for Muslims in India and creation of Pakistan.

Muhammad Ali Jinnah

Leader of the Muslim League and founder of Pakistan.

Deng Xiaoping

Chinese leader who introduced market-based economic reforms.

Mikhail Gorbachev

Last Soviet leader who introduced reforms before the USSR collapsed.