History Greece + Persia

Agora:

• The open-air public space or marketplace in ancient Greek city-states that served as the center of athletic, artistic, spiritual, and political life.

Acropolis:

A fortified citadel, typically built on the highest hill of an ancient Greek city, used for defense and housing important temples.

Parthenon:

The famous marble temple on the Athenian Acropolis dedicated to the goddess Athena, built in the 5th century BCE.

Mythology:

A collection of traditional stories, myths, or legends belonging to a specific culture, often explaining the origins of the world, natural phenomena, and the deeds of gods and heroes.

Minoan:

A bronze-age Aegean civilization that flourished on the island of Crete (approx. 2000–1450 BCE), known for its grand palaces, vibrant art, and maritime trade.

Mycenaeans:

The first distinctively Greek civilization on mainland Greece (approx. 1600–1100 BCE), characterized by a warrior culture, fortified palace-states, and early Greek writing (Linear B).

Hoplites:

• Heavily armed citizen-soldiers of ancient Greek city-states who fought on foot in a dense, rectangular formation called a phalanx.

Aristocracy:

A form of government in which power is held by the nobility or a small, privileged ruling class based on hereditary wealth and status.

Democracy:

• A system of government where supreme power is vested in the people, who rule either directly or through elected representatives (pioneered by ancient Athens as a direct democracy).

Oligarchy:

• A form of government in which a small, elite group of people holds all the power, often based on wealth, military strength, or social position.

Satrapy system:

The administrative system of the ancient Persian Empire where the empire was divided into provinces (satrapies), each governed by a local governor (satrap) who answered directly to the king.

Zoroastrianism:

• An ancient Persian monotheistic religion founded by the prophet Zoroaster, centered on the cosmic struggle between a supreme god of goodness and light (Ahura Mazda) and a spirit of evil and darkness (Ahriman).