AP World History Chapter 1-3 Vocab Terms

the humanoid species that emerged as the most successful at the end of the Paleolithic period- common social organization was small bands

Neolithic

Late Paleolithic Age

cattle and sheep herding societies normally found on the fringes of civilized societies; commonly referred to as barbarian by civilized societies, migrating herds

Not Caves

a level of social organization normally consisting of 20-30 people; nomadic hunters and gatherers; labor divided on a gender basis; men hunted and fished in coastal areas, hunts were major in the annual cycle of life in Paleolithic societies. Women gathered foods and used medicinal plants.

transition from hunting and gathering to sedentary agriculture

Preagricultural culture; practiced the collection of naturally present barley and wheat to supplement game; typified by large settlement sites, population densities reached as high as six times those of other early Neolithic communities, sophisticated techniques of storing grain

young men went to live with their wives families, Natufian Complex like this

family descent and inheritance were traced through the female line

the succession of technological innovations and changes in human organization that led to the development of agriculture

an intermediate form of ecological adaptation in which temporary forms of cultivation are carried out with little impact on the natural ecology; typical of rainforest cultivators

a nomadic agricultural lifestyle based on herding domesticated animals; tended to produce independent people capable of challenging sedentary agricultural societies

early walled urban culture site based on sedentary agriculture, located in modern Israeli occupied West Bank near Jordan river

early urban culture based on sedentary agriculture; located in modern southern Turkey, was larger in population in Jericho and had greater degree of social stratification.

American hunting and gathering groups largely responsible for the disruption of early civilizations in Mesoamerica

derogatory term wrongly applied to societies engaged in either hunting and gathering for subsistence or in migratory cultivation; not as stratified or specialized as sedentary and nomadic societies

the first river valley civilization, but also feared rivers, northeastern section of Middle East along Tigris and Euphrates Rivers leading to Persian Gulf, migrated into Mesopotamia around 4000 BCE, organized in city states

a form of writing developed by Sumerians using a wedge-shaped stylus and clay tablets

the first literary epic in Western civilization, written down around 2000 BCE, included story of Great flood

massive towers usually associated with Mesopotamian temple complexes

a religious outlook that sees gods in many aspects of nature and propitiates them to help control and explain nature; typical of Mesopotamian religions

societies distinguished by reliance on sedentary agriculture, ability to produce food surpluses, and existence of nonfarming elites, as well as merchant and manufacturing groups

ruler of city-state of Akkad, established the first empire in Mesopotamian civilization c. 2400 BCE

unified all of Mesopotamia c. 1800 BCE; collapsed due to foreign invasion c. 1600 BCE

(c. 1792-1750 BCE) the most important ruler of the Babylonian empire; responsible for codification of law.

an Indo-European people who entered Mesopotamia c. 1750 BCE; destroyed the Babylonian empire; swept away c. 1200 BCE

title of kings of ancient Egypt

first pharaoh of Egyptian Old Kingdom; ruled c. 3100 BCE

(1379-1335 BCE) Egyptian pharaoh of the New Kingdom; attempted to establish a one-god religion replacing the traditional Egyptian pantheon of gods

monumental architecture typical of Old Kingdom Egypt; used as burial sites for pharaohs.

the act of preserving the bodies of the dead; practiced in Egypt to preserve the body for enjoyment of the afterlife.

an African state that developed along the upper reaches of the Nile c. 1000 BCE; conquered Egypt and ruled it for several centuries, became skilled in the use of iron and had access to African ore and fuel, developed form of writing derived from Egyptian hieroglyphs that hasn't been fully deciphered

kingdom located in Ethiopian highlands; replaced Meroe in the first century C.E.; received strong influence from Arabian peninsula; eventually converted to Christianity

a civilization that developed on the island of Crete c. 1600 BCE; capital at the palace complex of Knossos

seafaring civilization located on the shores of the eastern Mediterranean; established colonies throughout the Mediterranean.

Mountain region marking the northern border of the Indian subcontinent; site of the Aryan settlements that formed small kingdoms or warrior republics

winds crossing Indian subcontinent and southeast Asia during summer bring rains

Harappan complex supported by a rather advanced agricultural system based on cultivation of wheat, rye, peas, and rice, major trading centers, jade from China, jewels from Burma, stone seals sent to Mesopotamia, no one has deciphered them

Indo-European nomadic who replaced Harappan civilization; militarized society

the sacred and classical Indian language

Aryan hymns originally transmitted orally but written down in sacred books from the 6th century BCE

chief deity of the Aryans; depicted as a colossal, hard-drinking warrior

Aryan name for indigenous people of Indus valley region; regarded as socially inferior to Aryans

practice of interracial marriage or sexual contact; found in virtually all colonial ventures, attempts by Aryans to prohibit it between Varnas and Dasas

clusters of caste groups in Aryan society; four social castes- Brahmans (priests), warriors, merchants, and peasants; beneath four Aryan castes was group of socially untouchable Dasas.

family descent and inheritance traced through the male line - Aryans

marriage practice in which one husband had several wives; practiced by Aryans, but not the norm, in epics

marriage practice in which one woman had several husbands; recounted in Aryan epics

located on the Yellow River, region of fertile soil; site of Yangshao (hunting and fishing predominated) and Longshan (cultivation of grain) cultures

fine grained soil deposited in Ordos region in China by winds from central Asia; created fertile soil for sedentary agricultural communities

possibly mythical Chinese ruler, revered for the construction of an effective system of flood control along the Huanghe valley, founder of the Xia kingdom

- China's first, possibly mythical, kingdom; no archaeological sites connected, ruled by Yu

- first Chinese dynasty for which archeological evidence exists; capital located in Ordos bulge of the Hunaghe; flourished from 1600 to 1046 BCE, had fertility spirits, where people performed ritual dances nude, and were burned alive to stop natural calamities

consisted of several generations, including the family patriarch's sons and grandsons with their wives and children; typical of Shang China elites

consisted of husband and wife, their children, and perhaps a grandmother or orphaned cousin; typical of Chinese peasantry

Shamans or priests in Chinese society who foretold the future through interpretations of animal bones cracked by heat; inscriptions on bones led to Chinese writing

pictographic characters grouped together to create new concepts; typical of Chinese writing

first of the Zhou to be recognized as king, 1122 BCE, military commander who defeated Shang, expanded empire, governed through a hierarchy of vassals, somebody who gave loyalty to lord and received right to occupy the lord's land

Along with Xian, a capital of the Zhou Dynasty east

the social organization created by exchanging grants of land or fiefs in return for formal oaths of allegiance and promises of loyal service; typical of Zhou dynasty and European Middle Ages; greater lords provided protections and aid to lesser lords in return for military service

The first was the elaboration of an ideology that the Zhou rulers used to legitimize their rule. When King Wu overthrew Shang dynasty, he claimed that the Shang had lost the Mandate of Heaven, and no longer deserved the allegiance of their vassals. The second development working against the persistence of feudalism in China involved the emergence of an alternative to the military retainers who governed most of the empire. Small corps of professional bureaucrats grew in size, came to be known as the shi.

the divine source for political legitimacy of Chinese rulers; established by Zhou to justify overthrow of Shang.

probably originally priests; transformed into corps of professional bureaucrats because of knowledge of writing during Zhou dynasty in China

Heaven ;an abstract conception in early Chinese religion; possibly the combined spirits of all male ancestors; first appeared during Zhou dynasty