Honors World History I Final Exam Study Guide

A complete set of vocabulary-style flashcards for the Honors World History I Final Exam, covering key concepts, civilizations, and historical events.

Muhammad

The last and greatest of the prophets according to Muslim belief.

Five Pillars of Islam

The major duties required of all Muslims.

Buddhism's spread

The process by which Buddhism spread across Asia through trade.

Reincarnation

A major shared belief between Hinduism and Buddhism.

Asoka

The leader who converted to Buddhism because he was horrified at the slaughter caused by war.

Mandate of Heaven

A concept that allowed Chinese rulers to justify the overthrow of a declining dynasty.

Genghis Khan

A conqueror who succeeded through brilliant military strategy and organization.

Daimyo

Warlords in Japan's system of feudalism.

Byzantine Empire's survival

The use of diplomacy to prop up their shaky empire.

Charlemagne's greatest achievement

Building an empire larger than any since Rome.

Roman decline in learning

A period when invaders could not read or write and did not understand Latin.

Code of Chivalry

A code developed due to the constant, brutal fighting among nobles.

Lay

As in 'lay investiture', a word for people who were not members of the clergy.

Middle Age Church problems

Village priests marrying and having families, Bishops selling positions (simony), and Kings appointing bishops.

Magna Carta

A document that guaranteed basic legal rights.

Spread of the bubonic plague

The movement of the disease to Europe, for which traders were most responsible.

Reconquista

A movement whose main purpose was to drive Muslims out of Spain.

Suleyman the Lawgiver

A ruler who supported government reform and cultural achievements.

Africa's earliest people

Groups of hunter-gatherers.

Djenné-Djeno

The oldest known city in Africa south of the Sahara.

Griot

A role in West African society similar to that of a historian.

Lineage groups

The chief means of social and political organization in Africa.

Aztec resentment

Resistance from conquered provinces because the Aztecs used people for human sacrifice.

Incan government

A system of government that was similar to socialisms.

Renaissance

A rebirth of art and learning.

Glyphs

Mayan symbols used to record historic events, pass on stories, and make calendars.

Islam in Africa

A religion that spread by conquest and through trade.

African specialization

The development of permanent villages and specialization led by the growth of agriculture.

Humanists

Scholars who focused on human potential and achievements.

Henry VIII

The individual who declared himself the head of the English Church.

Council of Trent

A meeting where it was agreed that the Church's interpretation of the Bible was final.

Mercantilism

An economic theory that a nation should sell more goods than it buys to increase wealth.

Treaty of Tordesillas

A treaty whose purpose was to decrease conflict over the claiming of new lands.

Voyages of exploration

Journeys motivated by the desire to grow wealth and spread Christianity.

Utopia

A Greek word meaning 'no place'.

Printing press effect

An invention that increased literacy and the use of the vernacular.

Selling indulgences

The practice where clergy sold pardons that released people from performing penalties for their sins.

Patterns of migration

A phenomenon that historians can trace through language patterns.

Push and pull factors

Common reasons for migration.

Ottoman cultural blending

A process led by the pursuit of religious converts, trade, and conquest.

Negative effect of the Crusades

The continued hostility between Muslims and Christians.

Hundred Years' War issue

The central conflict over the throne of France.

Great Schism

A conflict caused by arguments about which man holding the position of pope was the true pope.

Craft guild

An association of people who worked at the same occupation.

Chief goal of the Crusades

To recover Jerusalem and the Holy Land from the Muslim Turks.

Serf

A synonym for a peasant.

Forces of feudal society

The teachings of the Church and a set of mutual social obligations.

Lord and vassal bargain

An agreement where the lord would grant the vassal land in exchange for military service.

Byzantine state religion

Orthodox Christianity.

Justinian's Code

The body of law created for the Byzantine Empire.

Kamikaze

The 'divine wind' that stopped a Mongolian invasion of Japan.

Chinese philosophy objective

The underlying goal of Confucius, Laozi, and the Legalists to restore social order, harmony, and respect for authority.

Taj Mahal

A building ordered by Shah Jahan in memory of his wife, Mumtaz Mahal.

Hindu-Buddhist belief difference

A significant difference regarding the caste system.

Nirvana

In Buddhism, the term for release from selfishness and pain.

Sunni and Shi'a difference

The division caused by the Shi'a belief that the caliph needed to be a relative of Muhammad.

Prayer direction

The city of Mecca, which Muslims face when they pray.