Studied by 11 people
Paleolithic Era
The long period during which human societies sustained themselves through gathering, hunting, and fishing without the practice of agriculture. Such ways of living persisted well after the advent of agriculture in many places
Neolithic Revolution
The switch from nomadic lifestyles to a settled agricultural lifestyle
pastoral society
Based on an alternative kind of food-producing economy focused on the raising of livestock, pastoral societies emerged in the Afro-Eurasian world where settled agriculture was difficult or impossible. Pastoral peoples often led their animals to seasonal grazing grounds rather than settling permanently in a single location.
Chiefdom
A societal grouping governed by a chief who typically relies on generosity, ritual status, or charisma rather than force to win obedience from the people.
Patriarchy
A social system in which women have been made subordinate to men in the family and in society; often linked to the development of plow-based agriculture, intensive warfare, and private property.
Hinduism
A religion based on the many beliefs, practices, sects, rituals, and philosophies in India; in the thinking of nineteenth-century Indian reformers, it was expressed as a distinctive tradition, an Indian religion wholly equivalent to Christianity.
Upanishads
Indian mystical and philosophical works, written between 800 and 400 B.C.E.
Siddhartha Gautama
the Indian prince whose exposure to human suffering led him to develop a path to Enlightenment, which became the basis for the emerging religion tradition of Buddhism
Theravada Buddhism
"Teaching of the Elders," the early form of Buddhism according to which the Buddha was a wise teacher but not divine; emphasizes practices rather than beliefs.
Mahayana Buddhism
"Great Vehicle," the popular development of Buddhism in the early centuries of the Common Era, which gives a much greater role to supernatural beings and to compassion and proved to be more popular
Bhaki Movement
Meaning "worship," this Hindu movement began in south India and moved northward between 600 and 1000 C.E.; it involved the intense adoration of and identification with a particular deity through songs, prayers, and rituals.
Confuscianism
The Chinese philosophy first enunciated (spoken/created) by Confucius, advocating the moral example of superiors as the key element of social order
Han Dynasty
The Chinese dynasty that emerged after the Qin dynasty collapsed, establishing political and cultural patterns that lasted into the 20th century
Daoism
A Chinese philosophy/popular religion that advocates simplicity and understanding of the world of nature, founded by the legendary figure Laozi.
Judaism
The monotheistic religion developed in the Middle East by the Hebrews, emphasizing a sole personal god (Yahweh) with concerns for social justice.
Jesus of Nazareth
A peasant/artisan "wisdom teacher" and Jewish mystic (divine) (ca. 4 B.C.E.-29 C.E.) whose life, teachings, death, and alleged resurrection gave rise to the new religion of Christianity.
Saint Paul
The first great popularizer of Christianity (10-65 C.E.).
Muhammad Ibn Abdullah
The Prophet and founder of Islam whose religious revelations became the Quran, bringing a monotheistic religion to Arabia and the world.
Quran
Also transliterated as Qur'án and Koran, this is the most holy text of Islam, recording the revelations given to the prophet Muhammad.
Umma
The community of all believers in Islam, bound by common belief rather than territory, language, or tribe.
Ulama
Islamic religious scholars, both Sunni and Shia, who shaped and transmitted the core teachings of Islamic civilization.
Sufism
An understanding of the Islamic faith that saw the worldly success of Islamic civilization as a distraction and deviation from the purer spirituality of Muhammad's time. By renouncing the material world, meditating on the words of the Quran, chanting the names of God, using music and dance, and venerating Muhammad and various "saints," they pursued an interior life, seeking to tame the ego and achieve spiritual union with Allah.
Silk Roads
Land-based trade routes that linked many regions of Eurasia. They were named after the most famous product traded along these routes.
Sea Roads
The world's largest sea-based system of communication and exchange before 1500 C.E. Centered on India, it stretched from southern China to eastern Africa.
Sand Roads
A term used to describe the routes of the trans-Sahara trade, which linked interior West Africa to the Mediterranean and North African world
egalitarian
social view in which all citizens are equal in all aspects of life
Caste System
A Hindu social class system that controlled every aspect of daily life
Enlightenment
state of awakening leading to the release of the cycle of rebirth, Nirvana
Aristocracy
A government in which power is in the hands of a hereditary ruling class or nobility
aristocrat
A member of a rich and powerful family
Filial Piety
In Confucian thought, one of the virtues to be cultivated, a love and respect for one's parents and ancestors.
Secular
non-religious, related to concerns of the world
Deity
a god; a divine being
Galvanize
to startle into sudden activity
Persecute
to treat cruelly or harshly because of political, religious, or other differences
Doctrine
(n.) a belief, principle, or teaching; a system of such beliefs or principles; a formulation of such beliefs or principles
Diffusion
The spreading of a feature or trend from one place to another over time
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Flashcard (36)