Ancient Civilizations
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41 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 Bronze Age | the period when the most advanced metalworking (at least in systematic and widespread use) in that culture used bronze. |
| Cultural diffusion | the idea of various cultural ideas being spread interculturally. |
| Cuneiform | the written language of mesopotamia |
| Dynasty | a sequence of powerful leaders in the same family |
| Empire | a monarchy with an emperor as head of state |
| Epic of Gilgamesh | an ancient poem from Mesopotamia and is among the earliest known works of literature. |
| Euphrates and tigris | the two rivers that surround mesopotamia |
| Fertile Crescent | refers to mesopotamia's rich soil |
| Hammurabi's laws | 282 specific laws written by Hammurabi, the leader of the Babylonian empire, who believed that an organized code of law would justify the diverse groups of his empire. copies were written in stone and placed throughout the empire. The laws cover everything from family relations to crime, and portray to the modern world what the Sumerians held in terms of their beliefs and values. The code applied equally to all across the land however, those who were poor were granted different consequences than those who were rich. |
| Hieroglyphic | egyptian system of writing |
| Hunter-gatherers | people who lived off of hunting animals and gathering vegetables. how people lived before civilizations formed |
| Nile | river that ran through egypt |
| Papyrus | egyptian form of paper |
| Pharaoh | divine ruler of Egypt |
| Polytheism | a religion that believes in more than one god |
| Pyramid | divine tombs built by the egyptians in hope of a good afterlife |
| theocracy | a form of government in which religion rules |
| Trade | to exchange goods between people |
| ziggurats | a type of statue that the mesopotamians built for their gods, simalar to pyramids |
| 4 Noble Truths | 4 beliefs on how buddhist believe one should live their life |
| animism | a philosophical, religious or spiritual idea that souls or spirits exist not only in humans but also in animals, plants, rocks, natural phenomena such as thunder, geographic features such as mountains or rivers, or other entities of the natural environment. |
| Asoka | ruled Mauryan at its greatest peak. His army kills 100,000 of his enemies, his people give him their entire surplus, and he feels remorse. He turns to Buddhism. Asoka posts laws that encourage religious tolerance. When he dies, there is severe social unrest. |
| Assimilation | the process of forging conquered cultures into the Chinese culture. This was done by intermarriage, farming newly colonized areas, and setting up schools to educate the idea of Confucianism. |
| Brahma | a hindu god considered the creator of the world |
| Caste System | The social class of india based off race-the lighter skinned someone was, the higher up they were made up of: bhramin (priests), warriors, merchants/landowners, and commoners/peasents/servants |
| civil service examinations | a way of recruiting officials in the Ming Dynasty; very difficult examinations held at the prefecture, provincial, and capital levels |
| 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. ETHICAL SYSTEM |
| Dharma | the religious and moral duties of Buddhism |
| eightfold path | the life that exists between earthly desires and self denial |
| Gupta Empire | Golden Age of India |
| Han Dynasty | Government made money through heavy taxation legalism is enforced autocratic government confucianism brought about after warring states period |
| Nirvana | When one has reached enlightenment, or the end of the Buddhist Reincarnation cycle 'Buddhist Heaven' |
| Patriarchal Society | Society in which men are superior to women |
| reincarnation | re-birth after death commonly found in Hindu and buddhism |
| Religious Toleration | the idea of religious freedom brought about during the reign of Asoka |
| Shiva | an important Hindu deity who in the trinity of gods was the Destroyer |
| Siddhartha Gautama | founder of Buddhism |
| Silk Roads | 4000 miles of roads and trading networks brought about by Qin Dynasty |
| Vedas | a collection of prayers, magical spells, and ways to perform ceremonies. |
| Vishnu | A Hindu god considered the preserver of the world |
| Zhou Dynasty | feudalism; dynasty based off class system. Bureaucracy introduced: government officials who are trained to run the government. (civil service) - -Han often based application for a bureaucratic position off ones knowledge of Confucianism. -system continued until 1912 A.D |
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