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Chapter 2: Classical Civilization: China Flashcards

Vocab for Chapter 2, AP World History

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1253230266Huanghe RiverThe river flowing from the Tibetan Plateau to the China Sea; its valley was home to early Chinese sedentary agricultural communities.1
1253230267Ordos BulgeLocated on the Huanghe River; region of fertile soil; site of Yangshao and Longshan cultures.2
1253230268LoessFine-grained soil deposited in Ordos Bulge; created fertile lands for sedentary agricultural communities.3
1253230269Yangshao CultureA formative Chinese culture located at Ordos Bulge about 2,500 to 2,000 B.C.E.; primarily an intensive hunting and gathering society supplemented by shifting cultivation.4
1253230270Longshan CultureA formative Chinese culture located at Ordos Bulge about 2,000 to 1,500 B.C.E.; based primarily on the cultivation of millet.5
1253230271YuA possibly mythical ruler revered for construction of a system of flood control along the Huanghe river valley; founder of the Xia kingdom.6
1253230272XiaChina's first, possibly mythical, kingdom; ruled by Yu; no archaeological sites discovered yet.7
1253230273ShangThe first Chinese dynasty; capital in Ordos Bulge.8
1253230274Vassal RetainersMembers of former ruling families granted control over peasants and artisan populations of areas throughout Shang kingdom; indirectly exploited the wealth of their territories.9
1253230275Extended FamiliesConsisted of several generations, including sons and grandsons of the family patriarch and their families; typical of Shang China elite.10
1253230276Nuclear HouseholdsHusband, wife, and their children and maybe some other relatives; typical of Chinese peasantry.11
1253230277OraclesShamans or priests in Chinese society who foretold the future through interpreting animal bones cracked by heat; inscriptions on bones led to Chinese writing.12
1253230278Ideographic WritingPictograph characters grouped together to create new concepts; typical of Chinese writing.13
1253230279ZhouOriginally a vassal family of the Shang; possibly Turkish in origin; overthrew Shang and established second Chinese dynasty.14
1253230280Xian and LoyangCapitals of the Zhou dynasty.15
1253230281FeudalismSocial organization created by exchanging grants of land (fiefs) in return for formal oaths of allegiance and promises of loyal services; typical of Zhou dynasty.16
1253230282Mandate of HeavenThe divine source of political legitimacy in China; established under Zhou to justify overthrow of Shang.17
1253230283ShiProbably originally priests; transformed into corps of bureaucrats because of knowledge of writing during Zhou dynasty.18
1253230284QinDynasty from 221 to 201 B.C.E., founded at the end of the Warring States period.19
1253230285Shi HuangdiFirst emperor of China; founder of Qin dynasty.20
1253230286Warring States PeriodTime of warfare between regional lords following the decline of the Zhou dynasty in the 8th century B.C.E.21
1253230287ConfuciusMajor Chinese philosopher born in 6th century B.C.E.; sayings collected in "Analects"; philosophy based on the need for restoration of social order through the role of superior men.22
1253230288MenciusMajor follower of Confucius; stressed that humans were essentially good and that governments required the consent of their subjects.23
1253230289XunxiFollower of Confucius; stressed that humans were inherently lazy and evil and required an authoritarian government.24
1253230290LaoziChinese Daoist philosopher who taught that governments were of secondary importance and recommended retreat from society into nature.25
1253230291DaoismPhilosophy associated with Laozi; individual should seek alignment with Dao (or cosmic force).26
1253230292LegalistsChinese school of political philosophy; stressed the need for the absolute power of the emperor enfroced through strict application of the law.27
1253230293Great WallChinese defensive fortification built to keep out northern nomadic invaders; began during the reign of Shi Huangdi.28
1253230294SunziAuthor of "The Art of War"; argued that war was an extension of statecraft and should be fought according to scientific principles.29
1253230295Liu BangFounder of the Han dynasty in 202 B.C.E.30
1253230296HanDynasty succeeding the Qin that ruled form 202 to 220 B.C.E.31
1253230297Scholar-GentryChinese social class created by the marital linkage of the local landholding aristocracy and the officeholding shi.32
1253230298Secret SocietiesChinese peasant organizations; provided members financial support during hard times and physical protection during disputes with local aristocracy.33
1253230299Forbidden CityImperial precint within Chinese capital cities; only imperial family members, advisers, and household were allowed to enter.34
1253230300Wang MangMember of a powerful family related to the Han emperors through marriage; temporarily overthrew the Han between 9 and 23 C.E.35
1253230301EunuchsCastrated males used within Chinese emperor's household, usually to guard the concubines; became a political counterbalance to powerful marital relatives during later Han rule.36

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