AP Notes, Outlines, Study Guides, Vocabulary, Practice Exams and more!

AP World History Period 2 Flashcards

Terms : Hide Images
11027074459Ahura MazdaIn Zoroastrianism, the good god who rules the world.0
11027074460Alexander the GreatAlexander III of Macedon (356-323 B.C.E.), conqueror of the Persian Empire and part of northwest India.1
11027074461AryansIndo-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
11027074462AshokaThe 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
11027074463Caesar 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
11027074464Cyrus (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
11027074465Darius 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
11027074466Greco-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
11027074467Gupta EmpireAn empire of India (320-550 C.E.).8
11027074468Han dynastyChinese dynasty that restored unity in China softened legalist policies. Begun in 202 B.C. by Liu Bang, the Han ruled China for more than 400 years.9
11027074469Hellenistic 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
11027074470HerodotusGreek 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
11027074472IoniaThe territory of Greek settlements on the coast of Anatolia; the main bone of contention between the Greeks and the Persian Empire.12
11027074473Mandate 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.13
11027074474Battle of MarathonAthenian victory over a Persian invasion in 490 B.C.E.14
11027074475Mauryan EmpireA major empire (322-185 B.C.E.) that encompassed most of India.15
11027074476PatriciansWealthy, privileged Romans who dominated early Roman society.16
11027074477Pax 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.17
11027074478Peloponnesian 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.18
11027074479PersepolisThe capital and greatest palace-city of the Persian Empire, destroyed by Alexander the Great.19
11027074480Persian 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.20
11027074481PlebiansPoorer, less privileged Romans who gradually won a role in Roman politics.21
11027074482Punic 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.22
11027074483Qin 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.23
11027074484Shi HuangdiLiterally "first emperor" (r. 221-210 B.C.E.) forcibly reunited China and established a strong and repressive state.24
11027074486WudiHan emperor (r. 141-86 B.C.E.) who began the Chinese civil service system by establishing an academy to train imperial bureaucrats.25
11027074487XiongnuNomadic peoples to the north of the Great Wall of China who were a frequent threat to the stability of the Chinese state.26
11027074488AristotleA Greek polymath philosopher (384-322 B.C.E.); student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great.27
11027074490Bhagavad GitaA great Hindu epic text, part of the much larger Mahabharata, which affirms the performance of caste duties as a path to religious liberation.28
11027074491BrahmanThe "World Soul" or final reality in upanishadic Hindu belief.29
11027074492BrahminsThe priestly caste of India.30
11027074493BuddhismThe cultural/religious tradition first enunciated by Siddhartha Gautama31
11027074494ConfucianismThe Chinese philosophy first enunciated by Confucius, advocating the moral example of superiors as the key element of social order.32
11027074495ConfuciusThe 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.33
11027074496ConstantineRoman emperor (r. 306-337 C.E.) whose conversion to Christianity paved the way for the triumph of Christianity in Europe.34
11027074497DaodejingThe central text of Daoism; translated as The Way and Its Power.35
11027074498DaoismA Chinese philosophy/popular religion that advocates simplicity and understanding of the world of nature, founded by the legendary figure Laozi.36
11027074499Filial pietyThe honoring of one's ancestors and parents, a key element of Confucianism.37
11027074500Greek 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.38
11027074501HinduismA word derived from outsiders to describe the vast diversity of indigenous Indian religious traditions.39
11027074502HippocratesA very influential Greek medical theorist (ca. 460-ca. 370 B.C.E.); regarded as the father of medicine.40
11027074503Jesus of NazarethThe prophet/god of Christianity(ca. 4 B.C.E.-ca. 30 C.E.).41
11027074504YahwehA 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.42
11027074505KarmaIn 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.43
11027074506LaoziA legendary Chinese philosopher of the sixth century B.C.E.; regarded as the founder of Daoism.44
11027074507LegalismA Chinese philosophy distinguished by an adherence to clear laws with vigorous punishments.45
11027074508Mahayana"Great Vehicle," the popular development of Buddhism in the early centuries of the Common Era, which gives a much greater role to supernatural beings and proved to be more popular than original (Theravada) Buddhism.46
11027074509MokshaIn Hindu belief, liberation from separate existence and union with Brahman.47
11027074510NirvanaThe end goal of Buddhism, in which individual identity is "extinguished" into a state of serenity and great compassion.48
11027074511PlatoA 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
11027074512PythagorasA 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
11027074513Siddhartha Gautama (the Buddha)The Indian prince turned ascetic (ca. 566-ca. 486 B.C.E.) who founded Buddhism.51
11027074514SocratesThe first great Greek philosopher to turn rationalism toward questions of human existence (469-399 B.C.E.).52
11027074515Theravada"The Teaching of the Elders," the early form of Buddhism according to which the Buddha as a wise teacher but not divine and which emphasizes practices rather than beliefs.53
11027074516UpanishadsIndian mystical and philosophical works, written between 800 and 400 B.C.E.54
11027074517VedasThe 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.55
11027074518Warring States PeriodPeriod in China from 403 to 221 B.C.E. that was typified by disorder and political chaos.56
11027074519Yin and YangExpression of the Chinese belief in the unity of opposites.57
11027074520ZarathustraA Persian prophet, traditionally dated to the sixth or seventh century B.C.E. (but perhaps much older), who founded Zoroastrianism.58
11027074521ZoroastrianismPersian monotheistic religion founded by the prophet Zarathustra.59
11027074522caste 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.60
11027074523dharmaIn Indian belief, performance of the duties appropriate to an individual's caste; good performance will lead to rebirth in a higher caste.61
11027074524helotsThe dependent, semi-enslaved class of ancient Sparta whose social discontent prompted the militarization of Spartan society.62
11027074525KshatriyaThe Indian social class of warriors and rulers.63
11027074526latifundiaHuge estates operated by slave labor that flourished in parts of the Roman Empire64
11027074527PericlesA prominent and influential statesman of ancient Athens (ca. 495-429 B.C.E.); presided over Athens's Golden Age.65
11027074528scholar-gentry classA term used to describe members of China's landowning families, reflecting their wealth from the land and the privilege that they derived as government officials.66
11027074529SudraThe lowest Indian social class of varna; regarded as servants of their social betters; eventually included peasant farmers67
11027074530the "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.68
11027074531UntouchablesAn Indian social class that emerged below the Sudras and whose members performed the most unclean and polluting work.69
11027074532VaisyaThe Indian social class that was originally defined as farmers but eventually comprised merchants.70
11027074533AxumClassical-era kingdom of East Africa, in present-day Eritrea and northern Ethiopia; flourished from 100 to 600 C.E. and adopted Christianity.71
11027074534Bantu expansionGradual migration of peoples from their homeland in what is now southern Nigeria and the Cameroons into most of eastern and southern Africa, a process that began around 3000 B.C.E. and continued for several millennia. The agricultural techniques and ironworking technology of these farmers gave them an advantage over the gathering and hunting peoples they encountered.72
11027074536Silk RoadTrade route stretching from China into Europe.73
11027074537syncretisma blending of beliefs and practices from different religions into one faith74
11027074538monasticismThe lifestyle of a monk or nun, characterized by prayer and solitude75

Need Help?

We hope your visit has been a productive one. If you're having any problems, or would like to give some feedback, we'd love to hear from you.

For general help, questions, and suggestions, try our dedicated support forums.

If you need to contact the Course-Notes.Org web experience team, please use our contact form.

Need Notes?

While we strive to provide the most comprehensive notes for as many high school textbooks as possible, there are certainly going to be some that we miss. Drop us a note and let us know which textbooks you need. Be sure to include which edition of the textbook you are using! If we see enough demand, we'll do whatever we can to get those notes up on the site for you!