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AP World History - Period 1.B Flashcards

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14607601552Ahura MazdaIn Zoroastrianism, the good god who rules the world.0
14607601553Alexander the GreatAlexander III of Macedon (356-323 B.C.E.), conqueror of the Persian Empire and part of northwest India.1
14607601554AryansIndo-European pastoralists who moved into India about the time of the collapse of the Indus Valley civilization; their role in causing this collapse is still debated by historians.2
14607601555AshokaThe most famous ruler of the Mauryan Empire (r. 268-232 B.C.E.), who converted to Buddhism and tried to rule peacefully and with tolerance.3
14607601556Caesar AugustusThe great-nephew and adopted son of Julius Caesar who emerged as sole ruler of the Roman state at the end of an extended period of civil war (r. 31 B.C.E.-14 C.E.).4
14607601557Cyrus (the Great)Founder of the Persian Empire (r. 557-530 B.C.E.); a ruler noted for his conquests, religious tolerance, and political moderation.5
14607601558Darius IGreat king of Persia (r. 522-486 B.C.E.) following the upheavals after Cyrus's death; completed the establishment of the Persian Empire.6
14607601559Greco-Persian WarsTwo major Persian invasions of Greece, in 490 B.C.E. and 480 B.C.E., in which the Persians were defeated on both land and sea.7
14607601560Gupta EmpireAn empire of India (320-550 C.E.).8
14607601561Han dynastyChinese dynasty that restored unity in China softened legalist policies. Begun in 202 B.C. by Liu Bang, the dynasty ruled China for more than 400 years.9
14607601562Hellenistic eraThe period from 323 to 30 B.C.E. in which Greek culture spread widely in Eurasia in the kingdoms ruled by Alexander's political successors.10
14607601563HerodotusGreek historian known as the "father of history" (ca. 484-ca. 425 B.C.E.). His Histories enunciated the Greek view of a fundamental divide between East and West, culminating in the Greco-Persian Wars of 490-480 B.C.E.11
14607601564hopliteA heavily armed Greek infantryman. Over time, the ability to afford a military wares and to fight for the city came to define Greek citizenship.12
14607601565IoniaThe territory of Greek settlements on the coast of Anatolia; the main bone of contention between the Greeks and the Persian Empire.13
14607601566Mandate of HeavenThe ideological underpinning of Chinese emperors, this was the belief that a ruler held authority by command of divine force as long as he ruled morally and benevolently.14
14607601567Battle of MarathonAthenian victory over a Persian invasion in 490 B.C.E.15
14607601568Mauryan EmpireA major empire (322-185 B.C.E.) that encompassed most of India.16
14607601569PatriciansWealthy, privileged Romans who dominated early Roman society.17
14607601570Pax RomanaThe "Roman peace," a term typically used to denote the stability and prosperity of the early Roman Empire, especially in the first and second centuries C.E.18
14607601571Peloponnesian WarGreat war between Athens (and allies) and Sparta (and allies), lasting from 431 to 404 B.C.E. The conflict ended in the defeat of Athens and the closing of Athens's Golden Age.19
14607601572PersepolisThe capital and greatest palace-city of the Persian Empire, destroyed by Alexander the Great.20
14607601573Persian EmpireA major empire that expanded from the Iranian plateau to incorporate the Middle East from Egypt to India; flourished from around 550 to 330 B.C.E.21
14607601574PlebiansPoorer, less privileged Romans who gradually won a role in Roman politics.22
14607601575Punic WarsThree major wars between Rome and Carthage in North Africa, fought between 264 and 146 B.C.E., that culminated in Roman victory and control of the western Mediterranean.23
14607601576Qin DynastyA short-lived (221-206 B.C.E.) but highly influential Chinese dynasty that succeeded in reuniting China at the end of the Warring States period.24
14607601577Qin ShihuangdiLiterally "first emperor" (r. 221-210 B.C.E.) forcibly reunited China and established a strong and repressive state.25
14607601578SolonAthenian statesman and lawmaker (fl. 594-560 B.C.E.) whose reforms led the Athenians toward democracy.26
14607601579WudiHan emperor (r. 141-86 B.C.E.) who began the Chinese civil service system by establishing an academy to train imperial bureaucrats.27
14607601580XiongnuNomadic peoples to the north of the Great Wall of China who were a frequent threat to the stability of the Chinese state.28
14607601581AristotleA Greek polymath philosopher (384-322 B.C.E.); student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great.29
14607601582Bhagavad GitaA great Hindu epic text, part of the much larger Mahabharata, which affirms the performance of caste duties as a path to religious liberation.30
14607601583BrahmanThe "World Soul" or final reality in upanishadic Hindu belief.31
14607601584BrahminsThe priestly caste of India.32
14607601585BuddhismThe cultural/religious tradition first enunciated by Siddhartha Gautama33
14607601586ConfucianismThe Chinese philosophy first enunciated by Confucius, advocating the moral example of superiors as the key element of social order.34
14607601587ConfuciusThe founder of Confucianism (551-479 B.C.E.); an aristocrat of northern China who proved to be the greatest influence on Chinese culture in its history.35
14607601588ConstantineRoman emperor (r. 306-337 C.E.) whose conversion to Christianity paved the way for the triumph of Christianity in Europe.36
14607601589DaoismA Chinese philosophy/popular religion that advocates simplicity and understanding of the world of nature, founded by the legendary figure Laozi.37
14607601590Filial pietyThe honoring of one's ancestors and parents, a key element of Confucianism.38
14607601591Greek rationalismA secularizing system of scientific and philosophic thought that developed in classical Greece in the period 600 to 300 B.C.E.; it emphasized the power of education and human reason to understand the world in nonreligious terms.39
14607601592HinduismA word derived from outsiders to describe the vast diversity of indigenous Indian religious traditions.40
14607601593HippocratesA very influential Greek medical theorist (ca. 460-ca. 370 B.C.E.); regarded as the father of medicine.41
14607601594Jesus of NazarethThe prophet/god of Christianity(ca. 4 B.C.E.-ca. 30 C.E.).42
14607601595YahwehA form of the Hebrew name of God used in the Bible. The monotheistic religion developed by the Hebrews, emphasizing a sole personal god with concerns for social justice.43
14607601596KarmaIn Hinduism, the determining factor of the level at which the individual is reincarnated, based on purity of action and fulfillment of duty in the prior existence.44
14607601597LaoziA legendary Chinese philosopher of the sixth century B.C.E.; regarded as the founder of Daoism.45
14607601598LegalismA Chinese philosophy distinguished by an adherence to clear laws with vigorous punishments.46
14607601599MokshaIn Hindu belief, liberation from separate existence and union with Brahman.47
14607601600NirvanaThe end goal of Buddhism, in which individual identity is "extinguished" into a state of serenity and great compassion.48
14607601601PlatoA disciple of Socrates whose Dialogues convey the teachings of his master while going beyond them to express Plato's own philosophy; lived from 429 to 348 B.C.E.49
14607601602PythagorasA major Greek philosopher (ca. 560-ca. 480 B.C.E.) who believed that an unchanging mathematical order underlies the apparent chaos of the world.50
14607601603Siddhartha Gautama (the Buddha)The Indian prince (ca. 566-ca. 486 B.C.E.) who founded Buddhism.51
14607601604SocratesThe first great Greek philosopher to turn rationalism toward questions of human existence (469-399 B.C.E.).52
14607601605UpanishadsIndian mystical and philosophical works, written between 800 and 400 B.C.E.53
14607601606VedasThe earliest religious texts of India, a collection of ancient poems, hymns, and rituals that were transmitted orally before being written down ca. 600 B.C.E.54
14607601607Warring States PeriodPeriod in China from 403 to 221 B.C.E. that was typified by disorder and political chaos.55
14607601608Yin and YangExpression of the Chinese belief in the unity of opposites.56
14607601609ZoroastrianismPersian monotheistic religion founded by the prophet Zarathustra.57
14607601610caste as varna and jatiThe system of social organization in India that has evolved over millennia; it is based on an original division of the populace into four inherited classes, with the addition of thousands of social distinctions based on occupation, which became the main cell of social life in India.58
14607601611dharmaIn Indian belief, performance of the duties appropriate to an individual's caste; good performance will lead to rebirth in a higher caste.59
14607601612helotsThe dependent, semi-enslaved class of ancient Sparta whose social discontent prompted the militarization of Spartan society.60
14607601613KshatriyaThe Indian social class of warriors and rulers.61
14607601614latifundiaHuge estates operated by slave labor that flourished in parts of the Roman Empire62
14607601615PericlesA prominent and influential statesman of ancient Athens (ca. 495-429 B.C.E.); presided over Athens's Golden Age.63
14607601616SudraThe lowest Indian social class of varna; regarded as servants of their social betters; eventually included peasant farmers64
14607601617the "three submissions"In Chinese Confucian thought, the notion that a woman is permanently subordinate to male control: first that of her father, then of her husband, and finally of her son.65
14607601618UntouchablesAn Indian social class that emerged below the Sudras and whose members performed the most unclean and polluting work.66
14607601619VaisyaThe Indian social class that was originally defined as farmers but eventually comprised merchants.67
14607601620Silk RoadTrade route stretching from China into Europe.68

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