Word Civ Exam#2

Islam

Monotheistic Abrahamic religion founded by Muhammad.

Mohammed

Prophet and founder of Islam.

Bedouin

Nomadic Arab pastoralists of the Arabian Peninsula.

Mecca

Birthplace of Muhammad and holiest city in Islam.

Hejira

Muhammad's migration from Mecca to Medina in 622 CE.

Medina

City where Muhammad established the first Islamic community.

Spread of Islam

Rapid expansion of Islam across the Middle East and North Africa.

Islamic beliefs

Belief in one God, prophets, angels, holy books, and judgment.

The Kaaba

Cubical shrine in Mecca, focal point of Muslim prayer.

The Black Stone

Sacred meteorite set into the corner of the Kaaba.

The Koran

Holy book of Islam, believed to be God's literal word.

The Five Pillars

Core religious duties required of all Muslims.

Sunni Islam

Branch believing leadership should follow community consensus.

Shia Islam

Branch believing leadership must descend from Ali.

Islamic Holy Cities

Mecca, Medina, and Jerusalem.

Chinese Beginnings

Early settlements along China's major river valleys.

Yellow/Yangtze Rivers

Major river valleys where Chinese civilization developed.

Shang Dynasty

Early Chinese dynasty known for bronze metallurgy and oracle bones.

Zhou Dynasty

Longest-lasting Chinese dynasty; introduced the Mandate of Heaven.

Silk

Luxury textile that became China's primary export commodity.

Yin/Yang

Dualistic concept of complementary forces in the universe.

Confucius

Chinese philosopher emphasizing social harmony, filial piety, and ethics.

Dao

The fundamental flow and natural order of the universe.

The Analects

Collected sayings and ideas of Confucius.

Legalists

Chinese philosophical school advocating strict laws and state control.

Taoism

Philosophical tradition focused on living in harmony with the Dao.

Emperor Qin

First emperor of a unified China; standardized weights and measures.

Terracotta Army

Large-scale clay sculpture army guarding Emperor Qin's tomb.

The Great Wall

Defensive fortification built along China's northern borders.

The Maya

Mesoamerican civilization known for writing, math, and calendar systems.

Mayan agriculture

Intensive farming methods including slash-and-burn and raised fields.

The Aztec

Mesoamerican empire centered at Tenochtitlan with a tribute system.

Tenochtitlan

Capital city of the Aztec Empire built on Lake Texcoco.

The Moche

Pre-Inca civilization on the northern coast of Peru.

The Inca

Andean empire centered in Cusco, known for road systems and terracing.

Cusco

Capital city of the Inca Empire in the Peruvian Andes.

The Spanish Conquest

Spanish colonization of the Americas starting in 1492.

Conquistadores

Spanish soldier-explorers who colonized the Americas.

Hernan Cortez

Spanish conquistador who conquered the Aztec Empire.

Montezuma

Aztec emperor ruling at the time of Cortés's arrival.

Francisco Pizarro

Spanish conquistador who conquered the Inca Empire.

Caribbean Slavery

Early brutal plantation slavery established by Europeans in the Caribbean.

Alfred the Great

Anglo-Saxon king who defended England against Viking invasions.

Harold Godwinson

Last Anglo-Saxon king of England, defeated at Hastings.

William of Normandy

Conqueror of England in 1066; established Norman rule.

Battle of Hastings

Decisive 1066 battle where Normans defeated Anglo-Saxons.

The Domesday Book

Comprehensive survey of English landholdings ordered by William I.

The Exchequer

Royal department in England responsible for collecting state revenue.

King John

English king forced to sign the Magna Carta in 1215.

The Magna Carta

1215 document limiting the power of the English monarch.

Parliament

Representative legislative body of the English government.

House of Lords

Upper house of the British Parliament representing nobility and clergy.

House of Commons

Lower house of the British Parliament representing commoners.

Constitutional Monarchy

Government where a monarch's powers are limited by law.

Hugh Capet

Founder of the Capetian dynasty of French kings.

Absolute Monarchy

Form of government where a monarch holds supreme autocratic power.

The Estates General

Representative assembly of the three estates in France.

The Holy Roman Empire

Multi-ethnic complex of territories in Central Europe.

Otto the Great

Founder of the Holy Roman Empire and Saxon king.

The Sacraments

Sacred Christian rites conferring divine grace.

The Tithe

Mandatory ten-percent tax supporting the medieval church.

Heresy Trials

Judicial proceedings to prosecute individuals accused of religious heresy.

The Spanish Inquisition

Tribunal established to maintain Catholic orthodoxy in Spain.

Excommunication

Ecclesiastical censure excluding a person from church sacraments.

Interdicts

Papal decrees prohibiting religious services in a region.

Monasteries

Communities of monks living under religious vows.

Investiture Controversy

Conflict between popes and monarchs over church appointments.

Concordat at Worms

1122 treaty resolving the Investiture Controversy.

Peter Waldo

Founder of the Waldensians, an early Christian reform movement.

Francis of Assisi

Founder of the Franciscan order emphasizing poverty and preaching.

Dominic of Osma

Founder of the Dominican order focused on preaching and education.

Background of the Crusades

Religious zeal, papal ambition, and Byzantine appeals for help.

The First Crusade

Military campaign that successfully captured Jerusalem in 1099.

Popular Element

The peasant and commoner component of early crusading movements.

Noble Element

The knight and lord component leading formal Crusades.

Saladin

Muslim sultan who recaptured Jerusalem from the Crusaders.

Battle of Hattin

Decisive 1187 battle won by Saladin against the Crusaders.

Frederick Barbarossa

Holy Roman Emperor who participated in the Third Crusade.

Philip Augustus

French king who fought in the Third Crusade.

Richard I

English king known as the Lionheart, a leader of the Third Crusade.

Children's Crusades

Unofficial youth crusades of 1212 that failed to reach Jerusalem.

Consequences of the Crusades

Increased trade, cultural exchange, and weakened Byzantine power.

The Bubonic Plague

Devastating pandemic that swept through Europe in the 14th century.

Climate Change in the 1300s

The Little Ice Age leading to crop failures and famine.

How the Plague Spread

Transmission via fleas on rats along trade routes.

Flagellants

Religious zealots who whipped themselves to appease God during the plague.

The Hundred Years War

Intermittent conflict between England and France from 1337 to 1453.

Battle of Agincourt

1415 English victory using longbows in the Hundred Years' War.

Joan of Arc

French peasant heroine who led troops during the Hundred Years' War.

Decline of the Papacy

Loss of papal political authority during the late Middle Ages.

Avignon Papacy

Period where popes resided in Avignon under French influence.

The Great Schism

Split in the Catholic Church with multiple rival popes.

The Renaissance

Cultural movement marking the transition from Middle Ages to modernity.

Reasons for the Renaissance

Urban growth, classical revival, and wealth from trade.

Spread of the Renaissance

Diffusion of humanist ideas from Italy to Northern Europe.

Humanism

Intellectual movement emphasizing human potential and classical learning.

Secularism

Focus on worldly, non-religious matters during the Renaissance.

Giovanni Pico

Italian Renaissance philosopher author of Oration on Human Dignity.

Machiavelli

Political theorist who wrote The Prince on realistic power politics.

The Prince

Political treatise by Machiavelli advising rulers to maintain power.