Studied by 20 people
neolithic
the era when the farming of plants and animals begins, and when, as a result, humans first begin to create permanent settlements
pastoralism
a form of an agricultural society that focused mainly on the domestication of animals (herding of them), people depended on herding for food
metallurgy
the art and science of extracting metals from their ores and modifying the metals for use
polytheism
the belief in many gods
civilization
large societies with cities and a powerful state, they have a division of labor, a surplus of food, and organized government, and a writing system
city-states
an independent state made up of a city and its surrounding territory, serves as a center and leader of political, economic, and cultural life
agrarian
of or relating to cultivated land or the cultivation of land
artisan
a skilled worker
cuneiform
the first written language in history, system of writing used in the ancient Middle East
hierarchies
the way in which past and present societies organize and separate groups of people often based on class and wealth
cultural diffusion
the spread of items from one place to another
monotheism
the belief in one supreme deity
patriarchal
a system where men are in authority over women in all aspects of society
theocracy
government of a state by immediate divine guidance or by officials who are regarded as divinely guided
indo-european
a family of languages consisting of most of the languages of Europe as well as those of Iran, the Indian subcontinent and other parts of Asia
bronze age
the first time humans started to work with metal
neolithic revolution
marked the transition in human history from small, nomadic bands of hunter-gatherers to larger, agricultural settlements and early civilization
pharaoh
a ruler of ancient Egypt, the heads of state and religious leaders of their people
mesoamerica
the region that is now Mexico and Central America
river valley
places with fresh water and fertile land
hammurabi’s code
a Babylonian law code of ancient Mesopotamia, consists of 282 laws written on a stele for everyone to see, earliest example of the laws of retribution or “an eye for an eye”
filial piety
the duty of people to honor their ancestors
mandate of heaven
the idea that “heaven,” or some universal force, provided the justification for an emperor and his family to rule China
reincarnation
the cycle of life and death, also known as samsara
dharma
the caste position and career determines by birth
karma
the universal causal law by which good or bad actions determine the future modes of an individual’ existence
vedas
action of poems or hymns composed in archaic Sanskrit by Indo-European-speaking, they are the oldest texts of Hinduism
diaspora
spreading, the scattering or migration of a particular group of people away from their homeland
bureaucracy
a system of government in which most important decisions are made by state officials rather than by elected officials
caste
the system that divides Hindus into rigid hierarchical groups based on their karma and dharma
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