A group of states or territories controlled by one ruler
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Roman Empire
Existed from 27 BCE to about 400 CE. Conquiered entire Mediterranean coast and most of Europe. Ruled by an emperor. Eventually oversaw the rise and spread of Christianity.
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Polytheism
Belief in many gods
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Monotheism
Belief in one God
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Colesseum
a large amphitheater in Rome that held deadly gladiatorial games
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Pax Romana
Roman Peace
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Western Roman Empire
Branch of the empire with Rome as capital (destroyed in 476 A.D)
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Eastern Roman Empire
also known as the Byzantine empire; used mostly Greek language and culture; capital-Constantinople (new Rome); enjoyed benefit of Mediterranean trade;
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Constantine
Emperor of Rome who adopted the Christian faith and stopped the persecution of Christians (280-337)
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Rome
Capital of Italy
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Constantinople
City founded as the second capital of the Roman Empire; later became the capital of the Byzantine Empire
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Why did the Roman Empire fall?
Disease, corruption, and increased taxes
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Byzantine Empire
(330-1453) The eastern half of the Roman Empire, which survived after the fall of the Western Empire at the end of the 5th century C.E. Its capital was Constantinople, named after the Emperor Constantine.
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Justinian
Byzantine emperor in the 6th century A.D. who reconquered much of the territory previously ruler by Rome, initiated an ambitious building program , including Hagia Sofia, as well as a new legal code
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Theodora
the wife of Justinian, she helped to improve the status of women in the Byzantinian Empire and encouraged her husband to stay in Constntinople and fight the Nike Revolt.
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Justinian's Code
Laws of the byzantine empire based the twelve tables of Roman law, became a basis for laws in many European nations
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Judaism
A religion with a belief in one god. It originated with Abraham and the Hebrew people. Yahweh was responsible for the world and everything within it. They preserved their early history in the Old Testament.
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Christianity
A monotheistic system of beliefs and practices based on the Old Testament and the teachings of Jesus as embodied in the New Testament and emphasizing the role of Jesus as savior.
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Feudalism
A political system in which nobles are granted the use of lands that legally belong to their king, in exchange for their loyalty, military service, and protection of the people who live on the land
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Serf
A person who is bound to the land and owned by the feudal lord
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Knight
A man who received honor and land in exchange for serving a lord as a soldier.
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Noble
a person of high rank by birth or title
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King
highest-ranking leader of a group of people
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Pope
Head of the Roman Catholic Church
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Vassal
A knight who promised to support a lord in exchange for land
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Fief
land granted by a lord to a vassal in exchange for loyalty and service
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Islam
A religion based on the teachings of the prophet Mohammed which stresses belief in one god (Allah), Paradise and Hell, and a body of law written in the Quran. Followers are called Muslims.
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Byzantine Innovations
Flame thrower, spoon, mosaics, domes, grenades
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Muhhamad
Founder of Islam
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Sunni
A branch of Islam whose members acknowledge the first four caliphs as the rightful successors of Muhammad
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Shi'a
the branch of Islam whose members acknowledge Ali and his descendants as the rightful successors of Muhammad
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Abbasid
Dynasty that succeeded the Umayyads as caliphs within Islam; came to power in 750 C.E.
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Umayyad
the first dynasty of Arab caliphs whose capital was Damascus
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Islamic Golden Age
period of 750 years when islam contributed greatly to med., science, philosophy, and architecture
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Mecca
Holy city of Islam
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Medina
City in western Arabia to which the Prophet Muhammad and his followers emigrated in 622 to escape persecution in Mecca.
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Arabesque
complex, ornate design
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Bazzar
A market selling different kinds of goods
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Caliph
A supreme political and religious leader in a Muslim government
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Mongols
People from Central Asia when united ended up creating the largest single land empire in history.
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Nomads
people who wander from place to place, follow food source
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Chinggis Khan
Born in 1170s in decades following death of Kabul Khan; elected khagan of all Mongol tribes in 1206; responsible for conquest of northern kingdoms of China, territories as far west as the Abbasid regions; died in 1227, prior to conquest of most of Islamic world.
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Temujin
Genghis Khan's real name
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Khanate
regional Mongol empires that arose following the death of Chinggis Khan
Ancient Sanskrit writings that are the earliest sacred texts of Hinduism
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Origin of Hinduism
Indus River Valley
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Brahman
A single spiritual power that Hindus believe lives in everything
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Caste System
A Hindu social class system that controlled every aspect of daily life, no social mobility
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2 lowest parts of the Caste system
Sudra (common people) and Dalit (untouchables)
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Karma
The belief that actions in this life, whether good or bad, will decide your place in the next life
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Dharma
a person's religious and moral duties
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Henotheistic
the worship of one god without denying the existence of other gods
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Brahmin
the highest of the four classes of the caste system, traditionally made up of priests
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Rama
Incarnation of Hindu god Vishnu made famous in the Ramayana
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Ramanyana
An epic poem that had a decisive influence in shaping the Indian civilization, It tells the story of a prince on a journey to save his princess who was captured by the evil king
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Moksha
Becoming liberated for the cycle of reincarnation in Hinduism, final peace
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Moksha potam
board game that represents moving up in the caste system to reach moksha, reincarnation through karma
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Buddhism
the teaching of Buddha that life is permeated with suffering caused by desire, that suffering ceases when desire ceases, and that enlightenment obtained through right conduct and wisdom and meditation releases one from desire and suffering and rebirth
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Siddhartha Gautama
The prince who is said to have founded Buddhism
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The Buddha
Means "Enlightened One," he is said to have found a path for overcoming suffering
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The 4 Noble truths
Core of Buddha's doctrine; all life involves suffering, desire is the cause of suffering, elimination of desire brings the end to suffering, and disciplined life conducted in accordance with the Eightfold Path brings elimination of desire
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Nirvana
a condition of great peace or happiness
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Eightfold Path
In Buddhism, the basic rules of behavior and belief leading to an end of suffering
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the Edicts of Ashoka
A moral code created by Ashoka of the Muaryan dynasty in India related to public welfare and foster just government
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Ashoka
Leader of the Mauryan dynasty of India who conquered most of India but eventually gave up violence and converted to Buddhism, guilt
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Year Hinduism began
pre- 18th century
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Year Buddhism began
6th century BCE
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Sanskrit
First written language of India, Indus River Valley
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Confucious
A Chinese philosopher of the Zhou Dynasty, developed a code of behavior based on old traditions, good behavior, and truth
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Confucianism
The system of ethics, education, and statesmanship taught by Confucius and his disciples, stressing love for humanity, ancestor worship, reverence for parents, and harmony in thought and conduct
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Han Dynasty
imperial dynasty that ruled China (most of the time) from 206 BC to 221 and expanded its boundaries and developed its bureaucracy, Confucious, gov. positions based on merit
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Zhou Dynasty
A decentralized Chinese dynasty in China because of the massive size, and whose emperor was the first to claim to be a link between heaven and earth. Iron metallurgy increased in this dynasty
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Qin Dynasty
(221-207 BCE) The first centralized dynasty of China that used Legalism as its base of belief
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Legalism
the belief that people were bad by nature and needed to be controlled through fear
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Han Feizi
Chinese philosopher who promoted Legalism as governing paradigm
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5 constant relationships
used as a general rule of respect, such as parent-child or ruler-subject
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Prehistory
the period of time before written records
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Old Stone Age
Paleolithic Age
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New Stone Age
Neolithic Age
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Agricultural Evolution
transition from a hunter-gatherer lifestyle to an agricultural way of life
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Domestication
the process of changing plants or animals to make them more useful to humans
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Mesopotamia
Land between two rivers, fertile soil made easy farming and irrigation systems
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Hammurabi
He was the first person to write down a legal code in early Babylon that gave punishment based on crime and social status
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Location
the position that something occupies on Earth's surface
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Place
a particular position or point in space
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Region
An area distinguished by a unique combination of trends or features