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AP World History - Period 2 Flashcards

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7924580442Ahura MazdaIn Zoroastrianism, the good god who rules the world.0
7924580443Alexander the GreatAlexander III of Macedon (356-323 B.C.E.), conqueror of the Persian Empire and part of northwest India.1
7924580444AryansIndo-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
7924580445AshokaThe 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
7924580446Caesar 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
7924580447Cyrus (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
7924580448Darius 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
7924580449Greco-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
7924580450Gupta EmpireAn empire of India (320-550 C.E.).8
7924580451Han 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
7924580452Hellenistic 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
7924580453HerodotusGreek 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
7924580454hopliteA 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
7924580455IoniaThe territory of Greek settlements on the coast of Anatolia; the main bone of contention between the Greeks and the Persian Empire.13
7924580456Mandate 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
7924580457Battle of MarathonAthenian victory over a Persian invasion in 490 B.C.E.15
7924580458Mauryan EmpireA major empire (322-185 B.C.E.) that encompassed most of India.16
7924580459PatriciansWealthy, privileged Romans who dominated early Roman society.17
7924580460Pax 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
7924580461Peloponnesian 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
7924580462PersepolisThe capital and greatest palace-city of the Persian Empire, destroyed by Alexander the Great.20
7924580463Persian 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
7924580464PlebiansPoorer, less privileged Romans who gradually won a role in Roman politics.22
7924580465Punic 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
7924580466Qin 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
7924580467Qin ShihuangdiLiterally "first emperor" (r. 221-210 B.C.E.) forcibly reunited China and established a strong and repressive state.25
7924580468SolonAthenian statesman and lawmaker (fl. 594-560 B.C.E.) whose reforms led the Athenians toward democracy.26
7924580469WudiHan emperor (r. 141-86 B.C.E.) who began the Chinese civil service system by establishing an academy to train imperial bureaucrats.27
7924580470XiongnuNomadic peoples to the north of the Great Wall of China who were a frequent threat to the stability of the Chinese state.28
7924580471AristotleA Greek polymath philosopher (384-322 B.C.E.); student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great.29
7924580472Bhagavad 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
7924580473BrahmanThe "World Soul" or final reality in upanishadic Hindu belief.31
7924580474BrahminsThe priestly caste of India.32
7924580475BuddhismThe cultural/religious tradition first enunciated by Siddhartha Gautama33
7924580476ConfucianismThe Chinese philosophy first enunciated by Confucius, advocating the moral example of superiors as the key element of social order.34
7924580477ConfuciusThe 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
7924580478ConstantineRoman emperor (r. 306-337 C.E.) whose conversion to Christianity paved the way for the triumph of Christianity in Europe.36
7924580479DaoismA Chinese philosophy/popular religion that advocates simplicity and understanding of the world of nature, founded by the legendary figure Laozi.37
7924580480Filial pietyThe honoring of one's ancestors and parents, a key element of Confucianism.38
7924580481Greek 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
7924580482HinduismA word derived from outsiders to describe the vast diversity of indigenous Indian religious traditions.40
7924580483HippocratesA very influential Greek medical theorist (ca. 460-ca. 370 B.C.E.); regarded as the father of medicine.41
7924580484Jesus of NazarethThe prophet/god of Christianity(ca. 4 B.C.E.-ca. 30 C.E.).42
7924580485YahwehA 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
7924580486KarmaIn 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
7924580487LaoziA legendary Chinese philosopher of the sixth century B.C.E.; regarded as the founder of Daoism.45
7924580488LegalismA Chinese philosophy distinguished by an adherence to clear laws with vigorous punishments.46
7924580489MokshaIn Hindu belief, liberation from separate existence and union with Brahman.47
7924580490NirvanaThe end goal of Buddhism, in which individual identity is "extinguished" into a state of serenity and great compassion.48
7924580491PlatoA 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
7924580492PythagorasA 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
7924580493Siddhartha Gautama (the Buddha)The Indian prince (ca. 566-ca. 486 B.C.E.) who founded Buddhism.51
7924580494SocratesThe first great Greek philosopher to turn rationalism toward questions of human existence (469-399 B.C.E.).52
7924580495UpanishadsIndian mystical and philosophical works, written between 800 and 400 B.C.E.53
7924580496VedasThe 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
7924580497Warring States PeriodPeriod in China from 403 to 221 B.C.E. that was typified by disorder and political chaos.55
7924580498Yin and YangExpression of the Chinese belief in the unity of opposites.56
7924580499ZoroastrianismPersian monotheistic religion founded by the prophet Zarathustra.57
7924580500caste 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
7924580501dharmaIn Indian belief, performance of the duties appropriate to an individual's caste; good performance will lead to rebirth in a higher caste.59
7924580502helotsThe dependent, semi-enslaved class of ancient Sparta whose social discontent prompted the militarization of Spartan society.60
7924580503KshatriyaThe Indian social class of warriors and rulers.61
7924580504latifundiaHuge estates operated by slave labor that flourished in parts of the Roman Empire62
7924580505PericlesA prominent and influential statesman of ancient Athens (ca. 495-429 B.C.E.); presided over Athens's Golden Age.63
7924580506SudraThe lowest Indian social class of varna; regarded as servants of their social betters; eventually included peasant farmers64
7924580507the "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
7924580508UntouchablesAn Indian social class that emerged below the Sudras and whose members performed the most unclean and polluting work.66
7924580509VaisyaThe Indian social class that was originally defined as farmers but eventually comprised merchants.67
7924580510Silk RoadTrade route stretching from China into Europe.68

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