AP World History Vocab Final 1

units 1-5

Ulama

Islamic religious scholars who interpret law and teach the faith.

Madrassas

Islamic colleges that teach religion, law, and sometimes science.

Sufis

Islamic mystics focused on personal experience with God.

The haji

Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca required once in a lifetime if possible.

Baghdad

Major Abbasid capital and center of learning and trade.

House of Wisdom

Abbasid library and learning center where scholars translated and studied texts.

Jenne-jeno

West African urban center known for trade along the Niger River.

Camel Caravans

Groups traveling across deserts using camels to carry long-distance trade goods.

Monsoon winds

Seasonal Indian Ocean winds that made long-distance sea trade possible.

Srivijaya

Southeast Asian kingdom controlling Indian Ocean trade routes.

Borobudur

Large Buddhist temple complex in Java.

Angkor Wat

Massive Hindu (later Buddhist) temple complex in Cambodia.

Swahili language

Bantu language with Arabic influence, spoken on East African coast.

Great Zimbabwe

Powerful African kingdom known for stone structures and gold trade.

Neo-Confucianism

Blended Confucian ideas with Buddhism and Daoism during the Song.

Censorate

Chinese government office that monitored officials for corruption.

Hangzhou (Song capital)

Urban, wealthy capital of the Song dynasty.was a major global center for trade, culture, and technology

Foot binding

Chinese practice of tightly binding girls’ feet to symbolize beauty and status.

"middle kingdom"

a period in ancient Egyptian history, roughly from 2050 to 1710 BCE, that followed the First Intermediate Period

kowtow

Ritual bowing to the emperor as a sign of respect and submission.

Pure Land School of Buddhism

Buddhist sect promising rebirth in a heavenly realm by faith alone.

An Lushan Rebellion

Major revolt against the Tang that weakened the dynasty.

Mexica

the indigenous people who founded the Aztec Empire

Triple Alliance

Alliance of three city-states (Mexica, Texcoco, Tlacopan) forming the Aztec Empire.

Tenochtitlan

the capital city of the Aztec Empire

Chinampas, aka "floating gardens"

artificial, stationary islands built in shallow lakes for agriculture

Huitzilopochtli

the Aztec god of war and the sun

Quechua

Language of the Inca Empire.

Gender Parallelism

Andean belief that men and women have different but complementary roles.

Pastoralism

Lifestyle based on herding animals and moving to find grazing land.animals like sheep, goats, cattle, and camels

Modun

Early leader of the Xiongnu who unified the tribes and created a powerful nomadic empire.

Xiongnu

a powerful confederation of nomadic tribes from the Eastern Eurasian Steppe

Turks

Central Asian nomads; spread Islam and created empires like the Seljuks and Ottomans.

Temujin/Chinggis Khan

Founder of the Mongol Empire; united Mongol tribes.

Yuan Dynasty

Mongol-led dynasty in China (1271–1368) established by Kublai Khan

Khubilai Khan

Grandson of Chinggis Khan; ruled China and founded the Yuan Dynasty.

Hulegu

Mongol ruler; led conquests in Persia and captured Baghdad in 1258.

Khutulun

Mongol princess and warrior; famous for strength and battle skills.

Kipchak Khanate/Golden Horde

Mongol-ruled state in Russia; collected tribute from Russians.

Doña Marina

Indigenous woman who helped Cortés conquer the Aztecs; also called La Malinche.

The Great Dying

Massive death of Indigenous Americans due to European diseases after 1492.

The Columbian Exchange

Transfer of plants, animals, diseases, and people between Old and New Worlds.

Encomienda and Repartimiento

Spanish labor systems in the Americas using Indigenous workers.

Peninsulares, Creoles, and Mestizos

Social hierarchy in Spanish colonies: Europeans born in Spain → born in Americas → mixed European and Indigenous.

Tupac Amaru Revolt

Indigenous uprising against Spanish rule in Peru, late 1500s.

Middle Passage

Brutal sea journey carrying enslaved Africans to the Americas.

Cowrie shells

Used as money in Africa and Indian Ocean trade.

Kingdom of Dahomey

West African kingdom; known for the female military corps and slave trade.

Queen Nzinga

Ruler in Central Africa; resisted Portuguese colonization and slave trade.

British East India Company

English trading company that controlled India before the British government.

Dutch East India Company

Powerful Dutch trading company; controlled spice trade in Asia.

Potosi, Bolivia

Huge silver mine; fueled Spanish wealth and global trade.

Gunpowder empires

Empires (Ottoman, Safavid, Mughal) that used firearms to expand and maintain control.

Janissaries

Elite Ottoman infantry recruited from Christian boys via devshirme system.

Sati

Hindu practice where a widow could be burned on her husband’s funeral pyre.

Jizya

Tax on non Muslims in Islamic empires.

Devshirme

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

Soft gold

Fur from animals in Siberia and North America; highly valued in trade.

Qing Dynasty

Last Chinese dynasty (1644–1912), established by Manchus.

Treaty of Nerchinsk (1689)

Agreement between Russia and China defining borders in Siberia.

Toussaint Louverture

Leader of Haitian Revolution; former enslaved person who freed Haiti.

Jean-Jacques Dessalines

Haitian revolutionary; declared Haiti independent in 1804.

Tupac Amaru

Indigenous leader in Andean resistance against Spanish rule.

Miguel Hidalgo and Jose Morelos

Leaders of early Mexican independence movement.

Simon Bolivar

“Liberator” of northern South America from Spanish rule.

Seneca Falls

First women’s rights convention in the U.S. (1848).

Elizabeth Cady Stanton

Early American women’s rights activist and suffragist.

National American Woman Suffrage Association

U.S. organization fighting for women’s right to vote

Huda Sharawi

Egyptian feminist; leader of women’s rights movement in early 20th century.

Reform Bill of 1832

British law expanding voting rights to more men

Robert Owen

Utopian socialist; tried to improve working conditions in factories.

Karl Marx

Philosopher; wrote about class struggle and communism

Labour Party

British political party representing workers and social reforms.