Philip II
king who conquered the Greeks
Hellenistic
imitating the Greeks
Menander
a writer of comedies during the Hellenistic era
Chaeronea
site of an early battle between the Greeks and the Macedonians
Macedonia
home of Alexander the Great
Macedonia, Syria, Pergamum, and Egypt
four kingdoms that emerged following Alexander the Great’s death
belief of the philosophy of Epicurus
happiness is the goal of life and can be achieved through the pursuit of pleasure
conclusion of Eratosthenes (astronomer)
the Earth was round, and calculated its circumference, coming within 185 (298 kilometers) of the actual figure
the conquests of Alexander the Great gave rise to the
Hellenistic era, during which the Greek language and Greek ideas spread to the non-Greek world
Stoicism
a school of thought that became the most popular philosophy of the Hellenistic world and later flourished in the Roman Empire as well; created by Zeno
Apollonius of Rhodes
wrote the epic poem Argonautica
Archimedes
most famous scientist of the Hellenistic era; worked on the geometry of spheres and cylinders
Aristarchus of Samos
developed the theory that the sun is at the center of the universe
Euclid
wrote The Elements (book on plane geometry)
hinduism
followers of this religion believe in a single, universal force called Brahman
karma
the force generated by a person’s actions that determines how the person will be reborn in the next life
caste system
Portuguese name given to a rigid social structure in Indian society that said every individual is born into a social group defined by occupation and family lineage
varnas
the name given by Aryans in ancient India to a social structure that divided Indian society into four groups
yoga
a method of training developed by the Hindus that is supposed to lead to oneness with Brahman
the Brahmins
priestly class of ancient Indian society
reincarnation
Hindu belief that the individual soul is reborn in a different form
Brahma the Creator, Vishnu the Preserver, and Shiva the Destroyer
the three chief gods in Hinduism
the Untouchables
the lowest level of ancient Indian society who were given tasks seen as menial and degrading, such as collecting trash and handling dead bodies
Aryan society was divided into these four Varnas
Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaisyas, and the Sudras
higher castes had
greater religious purity (lower castes were impure)
main economic change in the 1500s
people went back to farming and farming villages
caste system
a rigid social structure dependent on occupation and skin color; unique because it was also based on the religious purity of the individual
the Dharma
the divine law that rules karma
four kinds of yoga
path of knowledge, 2. path of love, 3. path of work, and 4. path of meditation
nirvana
ultimate reality, or the end of the self and a reunion with the Great World Soul
Four Noble Truths
Siddhartha Gautama’s message about suffering and desire
asceticism
self-denial as a method to achieve an understanding of ultimate reality
Buddha
the “Enlightened One”
Middle Path
eight steps that Buddhists follow on the path to enlightenment
Siddhartha Gautama
founder of Buddhism; denied the reality of the material world; denied the multitude of gods
differences of Hinduism and Buddhism
Buddhists believed that people should be responsible for their own lives and 2. Buddhists rejected the many Hindu gods
Eightfold Path
we must do work that uplifts our being; explains how to transcend the physical world
sixth century BC
Buddhism appeared in Northern India and became a rival of Hinduism
Asoka
the greatest ruler in Indian history; set up hospitals for people and animals
the Ramayana
a literary work about the fictional ruler Rama
Aryabhata
famous Indian mathematician and one of the first scientists known to have used algebra
stupa
type of religion structure originally meant to house relics of the Buddha
Candra Gupta II
India’s golden age of culture flourished under this monarch
Kushans
the people who spread over northern India as far as the central Ganges Valley into modern-day Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Central Asia; adapted the Greek alphabet; prospered from trade on Silk Road
religious trade
Gupta rulers earned large profits from it
Mahabharata
longest poem in any written language
the Mauryan Empire
highly centralized government
Empire of the Guptas
“Golden Age” of Indian culture
Vedas
earliest known Indian literature; contains religious chants and stories
India’s most important contributions
architecture, literature, mathematics, and sciences
confucianism
focus on ethics rather than spirituality; emphasis on duty and Five Constant Relationships; advocacy of rule by merit, not noble birth
daoism
emphasis on inaction, noninterference with natural order; based on the teachings of Laozi; focus on proper forms of human behavior
legalism
held that human beings are evil by nature, advocacy of strong ruler, harsh laws, stiff punishments; a “School of Law”
Analects
followers of Confucius recorded his sayings in this
Confucius
believed that the early Zhou dynasty was a golden age, when “the world was shared by all alike”
Five Constant Relationships
the relationships between parents and children, husbands and wives, siblings, friends, and rulers and their subjects
two elements of the Confucian view of the Dao
duty and humanity
civil, military, and censorate divisions
organization of the central bureaucracy of the Qin dynasty
Qin Shihuangdi
seized the estates of wealthy landowners and gave the lands to the peasants; he then taxed the peasants (to eliminate rivals and gain an important tax base); came to the throne in 246 BC; legalist
censorate
checked on government officials
infrastructure
roads, bridges, and canals
regime
government in power
instituted
put into action
ideology
a set of beliefs
individuality
a total character that distinguishes an individual from others
Han Wudi
added the territory south of the Chang Jiang to the empire
Ban Gu
wrote biographies that combined political and social history
rudder
helped enable Chinese trade in Southeast Asia and India
paper
was not made in Europe until the twelfth century
iron casting
led to the invention of steel
concentration of land in the hands of the wealthy
factor in peasant uprisings in the late Han dynasty
a general increase in economic prosperity
the effect of the technical advancements in the Han dynasty
family
the Han increase its importance in the Chinese system of life
peasant uprisings, weak rulers/official corruption, war
factors that led to the fall of the Han dynasty
basis of merit
how government officials were chosen
AD 170
Han dynasty faced war, intrigues at the court, and peasant uprisings
Qin
Qin Shihuangdi, harsh laws, 221 BC to 210 BC, little or no education, death of the emperor
Han
lead by virtues learned in school, confucianism, 202 BC to AD 220, promoted education, internal corruption
struggle of the orders
conflict between the plebeians and the patricians
patricians
made up the Roman Senate; great landowners, ruling class
the Twelve Tables
Rome’s first code of laws
First Punic War
264 BC; Romans sent an army to Sicily
Second Punic War
216 BC - 202 BC; the Battle of Cannae and the Battle at Zama
Third Punic War
146 BC; Carthage becomes a Roman province
elections, architectural styles, and legal procedures
aspects of modern life that might be descended from ancient Rome
Gracchus brothers
men who tried to return land to small farmers, assassinated
First Triumvirate
group composed of Caesar, Crassus, and Pompey
Julius Caesar
dictator who rose to power in 47 BC
Marius
Roman general who created a new recruitment system; recruited the landless poor
Augustus
Rome’s first emperor; chose the governors of provinces
31 BC
Octavian defeated the army and navy of Antony and Cleopatra
sequence of events that led to an increased use of slave labor in the Roman Republic
small farmers lose land to wealthy landowners, 2. wealthy landowners make large estates with slave labor, 3. small farmers are used as slaves because of their lack of land/money
impact of the Battle of Actium
led to the defeat of Antony, Octavian gained control of Roman Republic, the republic soon because the Roman Empire
factors that led from the transformation from a republic to an empire
farmers lost land, 2. seizure of power by army, 3. first triumvirate leads to civil war, 4. Caesar becomes permanent dictator and is assassinated, 5. second triumvirate leads to civil war, 6. Octavian becomes emperor
Hannibal
Carthaginian general
plebeian
groups of craftsmen, merchants, and small farmers
praetor
official in charge of enforcing civil law
consul
chief executive of the Roman Republic
Virgil
author of the Aeneid
imperator
commander in chief