AP World History Vocab. Chapters 4-6

Capital of Abbasid dynasty located in Iraq near ancient Persian capital of Ctesiphon

Chief administrative official under the Abbasid caliphate; initially recruited from Persian provinces of empire

Arab sailing vessels with triangular or lateen sails; strongly influenced European ship design

The wealthy landed elite that emerged in the early decades of Abbasid rule

The political and religious successor to Muhammad

One of Muhammad's earliest converts; succeeded Muhammad as first caliph of Islamic community

Wars that followed Muhammad's death in 632; resulted in defeat of rival prophets and some of larger clans; restored unity of Islam.

Struggle; often used for wars in defense of the faith.

Non-Arab converts to Islam.

Head tax paid by all non-believers in Islamic territories.

Literally "people of the book"; applied as an inclusive term to Jews and Christians in Islamic territories; later expanded to Zoroastrians and even Hindus.

Traditions of the prophet.

Dynasty that succeeded the Umayyads as caliphs within Islam; came to power in 750 C.E.

Victory of Abbasids over Umayyads; resulted in conquest of Syria and capture of Umayyad capital.

Dynasty that succeeded the Han in China; emerged from strong rulers in northern China; united all of northern China and reconquered southern China.

Dynasty that succeeded the Sui in 618 C.E.; more stable than previous dynasty.

Regional princes in western India; emphasized military control of their regions.

Mother goddess within Hinduism; widely spread following collapse of Guptas; encouraged new emotionalism in religious ritual.

Major world religion having its origins in 610 C.E. in the Arabian peninsula; meaning literally submission; based on prophecy of Muhammad.

Supreme god in strictly monotheistic Islam.

Eastern half of Roman Empire following collapse of western half of old empire; retained Mediterranean culture, particularly Greek; later lost Palestine, Syria, and Egypt to Islam; capital at Constantinople.

Early Byzantine emperor, responsible for major building in Constantinople and a codification of Roman law; his efforts to recapture some additional previously Roman territories ended in failure.

Community of the faithful within Islam; transcended old tribal boundaries to create a degree of political unity

Tax for charity; obligatory for all Muslims

The obligatory religious duties of all Muslims; confession of faith, prayer, fasting during Ramadan, zakat, and hajj

Islamic month of religious observance requiring fasting from dawn to sunset

A Muslim's pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca, to worship Allah at the Ka'ba

Assembly of Roman aristocrats; advised on policy within the republic; one of the early elements of the Roman constitution.

Two chief executives or magistrates of the Roman republic; elected by an annual assembly dominated by aristocracy.

(106-43 B.C.E.) Conservative Roman senator; Stoic philosopher; one of the great orators of his day; killed in reaction to assassination of Julius Caesar.

(384-322 B.C.E.) Greek philosopher; teacher of Alexander the Great; knowledge based on observation of phenomena in material world.

Hellenistic group of philosophers; emphasized inner moral independence cultivated by strict discipline of the body and personal bravery.

Athenian philosopher of later 5th century B.C.E.; tutor of Plato; urged rational reflection of moral decisions; condemned to death for corrupting minds of Athenian young.

(496-406 B.C.E.) Greek writer of tragedies; author of Oedipus Rex.

Greek epic poem attributed to Homer but possibly the work of many authors; defined gods and human nature that shaped Greeks mythos.

Greek epic poem attributed to Homer but possibly the work of many authors; defined gods and human nature that shaped Greeks mythos.

Along with Ionic and Corinthian, distinct style of Hellenistic architecture; the least ornate of the three styles.

Along with Doric and Corinthian, distinct style of Hellenistic architecture; more ornate than Doric but less than Corinthian.

Along with Doric and Ionian, distinct style of Hellenistic architecture; the most ornate of the three styles.

founded by the Phoenicians in Tunisia; became a major empire in the western Mediterranean; fought the Punic wars with Rome for Mediterranean dominance; defeated and destroyed by the Romans

3 wars (264-146 BCE) between Roman and the Carthaginians; saw the tranformation of Rome from a land to a sea power.

Carthiginian general during 2nd Punic war; invaded Italy but failed to conquer Rome

the balanced political system of Rome from Circa 510-557 BCE; featured an aristocratic senate, a panel of magistrates, and popular assemblies

general responsible for the conquest of Gaul; brought army back to Rome and overthrew republic; assassinated in BCE by conservative senators

Octavian later took the name of Augustus; Julius Caesar's grand-nephew and adopted son; defeated conservative senators after Caesar's assassination; became first Roman emporer.

Roman emperor from 284-305 CE; restored later empire by improved administration and tax collection.

Roman emperor from 312-337 CE; established second capital at Constantinople; attempted to use religious force of Christianity to unify empire spiritually.

Religion of early Japanese culture; devotees worshiped numerous gods and spirits associated with the natural world; offers of food and prayers made to gods and nature spirits

Cultural tradition that arose at San Lorenzo and La Venta in Mexico c. 1200 B.C.E.; featured irrigated agriculture, urbanism, elaborate religion, beginnings of calendrical and writing systems

Site of classic culture in central Mexico; urban center with important religious functions; supported by intensive agriculture in surrounding regions; population of as much as 200,000

Classic culture emerging in southern Mexico and Central America contemporary with Teotihuacan; extended over broad region; featured monumental architecture, written language, calendrical and mathematical systems, highly developed religion

Group of clans centered at Cuzco that were able to create empire incorporating various Andean cultures; term also used for leader of empire

Islands contained in a rough triangle whose points lie in Hawaii, New Zealand, and Easter Island

Chinese Daoists who launched a revolt in 184 C.E. in China promising a golden age to be brought about by divine magic

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

A Christian kingdom that developed in the highlands of eastern Africa under the dynasty of King Lalaibela; retained Christianity in the face of Muslim expansion elsewhere in Africa

Desert running across northern Africa; separates the Mediterranean coast from southern Africa

Chinese version of Buddhism; placed considerable emphasis on Buddha as god or savior.

Prophet and teacher among the Jews; believed by Christians to be the Messiah

One of the first Christian missionaries; moved away from insistence that adherents of the new religion follow Jewish law; use of Greek as language of the Church

Bishop of Rome, head of the Christian Church in western Europe

Influential church father and theologian (354-430 C.E.); born in Africa and ultimately bishop of Hippo in Africa

Christian sect in Egypt, later tolerated after Islamic takeover

Buddhist holy men; built up spiritual merits during their lifetimes; prayers even after death could aid people to achieve reflected holiness

Founder of Monasticism in what had been the western half of the Roman Empire; established the Benedictine Rule in 6th century;paralleled development of Basil's rules in Byzantium.

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

Also known as Yathrib; town located northeast of Mecca; grew date palms whose fruit was sold to bedouins; became refuge for Muhammad following flight from Mecca (hijra)

Prophet of Islam; born c. 570 to Banu Hashim clan of Quraysh tribe in Mecca; raised by father's family; received revelations from Allah in 610 C.E. and thereafter; died in 632

(595-619) first wife of the prophet Muhammad, who had worked for her as a trader

recitations of revelations received by Muhammad; holy book of Islam

A Christian sect of Egypt; tended to support Islamic invasion of this area in preference to Byzantine rule.

A Christian sect found in Asia; tended to support Islamic invasions of this area in preference to Byzantine rule; cut off from Europe by Muslim invasions.

Third caliph and member of Umayyad clan; murdered by mutinous warriors returning from Egypt; death set off civil war in Islam between followers of Ali and the Umayyad clan.

Fought in 657 between forces of Ali and Umayyads; settled by negotiation that led to fragmentation of Ali's party.

(602-680) Leader of Umayyad clan; first Umayyad caliph following civil war with Ali.

Political and theological division within Islam; supported the Umayyads.

Also known as Shi'ites; political and theological division within Islam; followers of Ali.

Site of defeat and death of Husayn, son of Ali; marked beginning of Shi'a resistance to Umayyad caliphate.