Ancient Mesopotamia & Semitic Religions Test Review

Mesopotamia

"land between the rivers"

Sumer

The world's first civilization, founded in Mesopotamia, which existed for over 3,000 years.

Ziggurat

massive pyramidal stepped tower made of mud bricks. It is associated with religious complexes in ancient Mesopotamian cities.

Theocracy

A government controlled by religious leaders

Cuneiform

A form of writing developed by the Sumerians using a wedge shaped stylus and clay tablets.

Gilgamesh

A legendary Sumerian king who was the hero of an epic collection of mythic stories

Hammurabi's Code

first written code/set of laws that all were expected to obey.

Diaspora

the dispersion of the Jews outside Israel

Babylonian Captivity

50-year period in which the Israelites were exiled from Judah and held in Babylon. Believed to be the period when the Hebrew Bible was first written down.

Library at Nineveh

contained over 20,000 organized tablets; Oldest surviving version of Gilgamesh found here

Monotheism

Belief in one God

Nebuchadnezzar

A Babylonian king who conquered Jerusalem,and built the Hanging Gardens of Babylon

Covenant

A solemn agreement between human beings or between God and a human being in which mutual commitments are made. Abraham's gives birth to Judaism.

Abraham

Patriarch of all three Semitic religions

Patriarch

the male head of a family or tribe

Moses

The Hebrew prophet who led the Israelites from Egypt across the Red sea on a journey known as the Exodus; Also received the 10 Commandments.

Saul

First king of Israel; Unifies the Israelites

David

Second king of Israel; Established Jerusalem as center of Kingdom of Israel.

Solomon

Third great king of Israel; Built the Temple in Jerusalem.

Semitic Religions

Judaism, Christianity, Islam

Canaan

An ancient name for the land of Israel

Messiah

Savior sent by God

The Trinity

The belief that God, although one, is three Divine Persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Jesus

Founder of Christianity

Muhammad

Founder of Islam

Parable

A simple story used to illustrate a moral or spiritual lesson

Disciple

A follower of Jesus

Paul

Follower of Jesus who helped spread Christianity throughout the Roman world.

Allah

Arabic for God

Mecca

City in western Arabia; birthplace of the Prophet Muhammad, and ritual center of the Islamic religion.

Medina

City in western Arabia to which the Prophet Muhammad and his followers emigrated in 622 to escape persecution in Mecca.

Hijra

Muhammad's move to Medina. Start of the Islamic calendar (622 CE)

Isaac

Son of Abraham and Sarah

Ishmael

Son of Abraham and Hagar

The Ka'aba

A black stone building in Mecca that is shaped like a cube and is the most sacred Islamic pilgrimage site.

The Hajj

A pilgrimage to Mecca, performed as a duty by Muslims

The Five Pillars

beliefs that all Muslims needed to carry out: Faith, Prayer, Alms, Fasting, and Pilgrimage

The Quran

The holy book of Islam

Umma

The community of all Muslims.

Abu Bakr

first caliph after death of Muhammad

Shi'a

the branch of Islam whose members acknowledge Ali and his descendants as the rightful successors of Muhammad

Imam

a leader of prayer in a mosque

Rabbi

Jewish religious leader

Shari'a

Body of Islamic law that includes interpretation of the Quran and applies Islamic principles to everyday life

Assyria

This civilization used highly advanced military organization to acquire a large empire around 850 BC. Bloody "Thugs"

Polytheism

Belief in many gods

Monotheism

Belief in one God

Theocracy

A government controlled by religious leaders

Patriarchy

A form of social organization in which males dominate females

Matriarchy

a form of social organization in which females dominate males

Nomadic

A society that moves from place to place

Culture

A group of people who share a common region, language, heritage and set of institutions, as shown through the G.R.E.A.S.E.S

Civilization

A culture that has evolved to include the following:

Domestication of plants and animals (Agriculture)

Food surplus leading to rising population

Urban Centers (Cities!)

A Written Language

G.R.E.A.S.E.S. fully developed with institutions and rituals

Specialization of Labor

The G in GREASES stands for

Government

The R in GREASES stands for

Religion

The A in GREASES stands for

Arts & Architecture

Artifacts

Objects made by humans (tools, weapons, buildings, household items, clothing, etc.) that provide clues to a particular human society

Rituals

Formal, ceremonial behaviors with a specific purpose and significance; Re enforce one of the GREASES

Observation

Information obtained through the senses.

Inference

A conclusion reached on the basis of observable evidence and reasoning

cultural diffusion

The spread of ideas, customs, and technologies from one people to another

Five Themes of Geography

Location, Place, Human-Environment Interaction, Movement, Region

Absolute Location

The exact position of a place on the earth's surface using lines of longitude and latitude

Relative Location

The position of a place in relation to another place

The Fulani

Nomadic cattle herding society from west Africa

Five ways of knowing other cultures

Artifacts, Physical & Cultural Traits, Relationships, Institutions & Rituals, Geography

Zoroastrianism

A religion that developed in early Persia and stressed the fight between the forces of good and the forces of evil and how eventually the forces of good would prevail.

Umayyad Caliphate

First hereditary dynasty of Muslim caliphs (661 to 750). From their capital at Damascus; ruled one of the largest empires in history that extended from Spain to India. Overthrown by the Abbasid Caliphate.

Abbasid Caliphate

(750-1258 CE) The caliphate, after the Umayyads, who focused more on administration than conquering. Had a bureaucracy that any Mulim could be a part of.

Apostle

leaders of the early Christian Church

Zealots

radical Jews who supported rebellion against the Romans

Polytheism

Belief in many gods