WHAP Unit 0 Vocab

Paleolithic Era

called the old stone age (from 10,000 to 2.5 million years ago); they were concerned with food supply; they used stone as well as bone tools; they were nomadic hunters and gatherers.

Neolithic Revolution

(10,000 - 8,000 BCE) The development of agriculture and the domestication of animals as a food source. This led to the development of permanent settlements and the start of civilization.

Pastoralism

A type of agricultural activity based on nomadic animal husbandry or the raising of livestock to provide food, clothing, and shelter.

Polytheism

Belief in many gods

Patriarchy

A form of social organization in which males dominate females

Theocracy

A system of government in which priests rule in the name of God or a god.

City-State

A city that with its surrounding territory forms an independent state.

Pastoralists

herders of domesticated animals

Afro-Eurasia

Africa, Europe, and Asia

Vedic Religion

a historical predecessor of modern Hinduism, concerned with disorder and order in nature

Monotheism

Belief in one God

Torah

First five books of the Hebrew Bible

Jewish Diaspora

the scattering of the Jewish people outside their homeland beginning about 586 BCE

Vedas/Rig Vedas

Vedas - a collection of songs, prayers, hymns, and rituals for the gods.
Rig Veda- the first WRITTEN Veda

Brahma

A Hindu god considered the creator of the world.

Reincarnation

The rebirth of a soul in a new body

Karma

(Hinduism and Buddhism) the effects of a person's actions that determine his destiny in his next incarnation

Caste System

A Hindu social class system that controlled every aspect of daily life

Siddhartha Gautama

Founder of Buddhism

Nirvana

The state of englightenment for Buddhists.

Confucius

Founder of Confucianism

Analects

a record of the words and acts of the central Chinese thinker and philosopher Confucius and his disciples

Filial Piety

respect shown by children for their parents and elders

Ancestor Worship

religious practice of honoring the spirits of the dead

Constantine

Emperor of Rome who adopted the Christian faith and stopped the persecution of Christians (280-337)

Monasticism

A way of life in which men and women withdraw from the rest of the world in order to devote themselves to their faith

Syncretism

a blending of beliefs and practices from different religions into one faith

Pax Romana

A period of peace and prosperity throughout the Roman Empire, lasting from 27 B.C. to A.D. 180.

Warring States Period

time of warfare between regional lords following the decline of the Zhou dynasty in the 8th century B.C.E.

Shi Huangdi

founder of the Qin dynasty and China's first emperor

Legalism

the belief that people were bad by nature and needed to be controlled

Daoism

A religion in China which emphasizes the removal from society and to become one with nature.

Scholar-Gentry

The Chinese class of well-educated men from whom many bureaucrats were chosen

Civil Service Examination

a test given to qualify candidates for positions in the government

Bureaucracy

a system of government in which most of the important decisions are made by state officials rather than by elected representatives.

Lanteen Sail

A triangular sail used to sail against the wind, made by Arab sailors

Monsoon Winds

These carried ships on the Indian Ocean between India and Africa

Corvée labor

unpaid labor required by a governing authority

Visigoths

A Germanic tribe that rebelled against Rome in A.D. 378

Huns

large nomadic group from northern Asia who invaded territories extending from China to Eastern Europe