Key history terms from the Kaplan SAT II World History study guide.
Terms : Hide Images
| 4835066056 | anthropology | study of humans as a species | 0 | |
| 4835066057 | artifacts | objects shaped by humans | 1 | |
| 4835066058 | paleontologists | scientists who study fossilized remains | 2 | |
| 4835066059 | radiocarbon dating (carbon 14 method) | dating by measuring the amount of radiocarbon remaining in a fossilized skeleton | 3 | |
| 4835066060 | thermoluminescent dating | dating by measuring radioactivity released from electrons in heated flint and clay | 4 | |
| 4835066061 | tree-ring dating (dendrochronology) | dating by the growth rings in trees | 5 | |
| 4835066062 | DNA dating | dating by obtaining samples of DNA from living donors and comparing them to those of other, historical persons or animals | 6 | |
| 4835066063 | Paleolithic Age | Old Stone Age, from when the first hominids appeared (3.2 million years ago) to 8000 BCE. | 7 | |
| 4835066064 | Neolithic Age | Agricultural Age, beginning in 8000 BCE with the development of farming and specialization of labor | 8 | |
| 4835066065 | Donald Johanson | discovered "Lucy" in Ethiopia in 1974 | 9 | |
| 4835066066 | Australopithecenes | hominid living at the beginning of the Paleolithic Age, of which "Lucy" is the best-known example | 10 | |
| 4835066067 | Homo habilis | first hominid to be classified in the "Homo" species, appearing about 2.5 million years ago | 11 | |
| 4835066068 | Homo erectus | first upright hominid, appearing about 1.4 million years ago, of which Java Man and Peking Man are examples | 12 | |
| 4835066069 | Louis Leakey | discovered Homo habilis skeletons in Tanzania | 13 | |
| 4835066070 | Homo sapiens | "wise hominid" appearing about 100,000 years ago, either all over the world or only in Africa; these hominids spoke more, used more tools, and discovered the use of fire; an example is Neanderthal man | 14 | |
| 4835066071 | Homo sapiens sapiens | a modern form of Homo sapiens, which developed in Europe and was diffused throughout the world by 90,000 BCE | 15 | |
| 4835066072 | Neolithic Revolution (agricultural revolution) | a movement of early humans settling down to farm around 8000 BCE, which allowed for the development of settlement and culture | 16 | |
| 4835066073 | pastoral nomadism | a form of subsistence agriculture based on herding domesticated animals | 17 | |
| 4835066074 | specialization of labor | the gradual refining of skills and specialties in a society once a steady food supply has been established | 18 | |
| 4835066075 | Jericho | early agricultural and trade center in Palestine | 19 | |
| 4835066076 | Catal Huyuk | most advanced community of the Neolithic Age, with long-distance trade relationships and superior artisans | 20 | |
| 4835066077 | civilization | a culture with advanced citied, skilled workers, complex institutions, a system of writing or alternate form of record keeping, and advanced technology | 21 | |
| 4835066078 | Mesopotamia | the land between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in Iraq | 22 | |
| 4835066079 | Sumer | delta of fertile soil in the southernmost reaches of Mesopotamia | 23 | |
| 4835066080 | Fertile Crescent | large belt of land between Mesopotamia and Egypt | 24 | |
| 4835066081 | city-states | small, self-governed units comprised of a city and the surrounding land | 25 | |
| 4835066082 | ziggurat | characteristic architectural form of the Sumerians | 26 | |
| 4835066083 | cuneiform | Sumerian system of writing | 27 | |
| 4835066084 | polytheistic | having or worshiping multiple gods | 28 | |
| 4835066085 | Epic of Gilgamesh | Sumerian poem, the first epic in world literature | 29 | |
| 4835066086 | Sargon the Great | Semitic general who invaded and united Sumer, forming the Akkadian empire | 30 | |
| 4835066087 | Akkadian empire | empire formed of the united Sumerian city-states by Sargon the Great | 31 | |
| 4835066088 | Babylonian empire | empire following the Akkadian empire in the land of Sumer | 32 | |
| 4835066089 | Hammurabi | Babylonian emperor who formed the first code of laws | 33 | |
| 4835066090 | Code of Hammurabi | Babylonian code of laws | 34 | |
| 4835066091 | Menes | king of Upper Egypt who united the two kingdoms into one nation | 35 | |
| 4835066092 | pharaoh | Egyptian ruler | 36 | |
| 4835066093 | theocracy | government in which the ruler is also worshiped as a god | 37 | |
| 4835066094 | Akhenaten | Egyptian pharaoh, living in the 1300s BCE, who attempted to introduce monotheism to Egypt | 38 | |
| 4835066095 | hieroglyphics | Egyptian system of writing | 39 | |
| 4835066096 | papyrus | thin parchment made from Nile reeds | 40 | |
| 4835066097 | Rosetta Stone | stone inscribed in Greek and two forms of hieroglyphics, used to decipher Egyptian writing in the 1820s | 41 | |
| 4835066098 | Jean Francois Champollion | French linguist who deciphered hieroglyphics using the Rosetta Stone in the 1820s | 42 | |
| 4835066099 | Queen Ahhotep | Egyptian queen who helped drive out the Hyksos at the start of the New Kingdom | 43 | |
| 4835066100 | Hatshepsut | Egyptian usurper and queen, noted for her promotion of trade and her elaborate building projects | 44 | |
| 4835066101 | Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro | Indus River Valley cities with a precise layout, abandoned circa 1900 BCE | 45 | |
| 4835066102 | Aryans | nomadic people from present-day Iraq and Afghanistan who invaded the Indus Valley | 46 | |
| 4835066103 | Khyber Pass | pass through the Hindu Kush mountains, through which the Aryans entered the Indian subcontinent | 47 | |
| 4835066104 | Vedas | Aryan hymns and chants that later became part of the Hindu religion | 48 | |
| 4835066105 | caste system | the Hindu system of classifying people based on their jobs and birth | 49 | |
| 4835066106 | brahmins | priests, the highest rank of the Hindu caste system | 50 | |
| 4835066107 | pariahs | the untouchables of the Hindu caste system | 51 | |
| 4835066108 | purdah | public isolation from non-family members as a religious practice | 52 | |
| 4835066109 | sati | ritual suicide of widows | 53 | |
| 4835066110 | karma | good or evil deeds | 54 | |
| 4835066111 | Hinduism | religion teaching the illusion of the tangible world, the reincarnation of the soul based on karma, and the worship of gods such as Brahman, Shiva, and Vishnu | 55 | |
| 4835066112 | dharma | the rules of each class in the Hindu caste system | 56 | |
| 4835066113 | Jainism | religion teaching a belief in the sanctity of life | 57 | |
| 4835066114 | Buddhism | religion teaching enlightenment through freedom from desire | 58 | |
| 4835066115 | Four Noble Truths | 1.) All human life is filled with sorrow and suffering. 2.) Suffering is caused by desire. 3.) By rejecting desire, people progressing through a number of reincarnations can recognize nirvana, a state of perfect peace. 4.) Nirvana is attained by following the Eightfold Path. | 59 | |
| 4835066116 | Eightfold Path | Right faith, right intention, right speech, right action, right living, right effort, right mindfulness, and right meditation | 60 | |
| 4835066117 | Mahayana Buddhism | elaborately ritual form of Buddhism primarily practiced in Vietnam, Korea, and Japan | 61 | |
| 4835066118 | Shang | a nomadic Asian people who fought on horseback and in chariots | 62 | |
| 4835066119 | loess | yellow silt like that in the Huang He river | 63 | |
| 4835066120 | oracle bones | bones used in ancient China to supposedly divine the will of the gods | 64 | |
| 4835066121 | yin | Chinese concept for female | 65 | |
| 4835066122 | yang | Chinese concept for male | 66 | |
| 4835066123 | mandate of heaven | concept used by Chinese rulers to grant them the authority to rule | 67 | |
| 4835066124 | Confucius | Chinese philosopher who founded Confucianism, preaching respect, education, and harmony | 68 | |
| 4835066125 | Laozi | philosopher who may have founded Daoism | 69 | |
| 4835066126 | Daoism (Taoism) | philosophy based on following "the Way" and living in harmony with nature | 70 | |
| 4835066127 | Legalism | philosophy based on the heavy use of government censorship and control | 71 | |
| 4835066128 | Shang Yang | founder of Legalism | 72 | |
| 4835066129 | Olmec civilization | earliest known American civilization, located in southern Mexico and known for its pyramids and huge stone heads | 73 | |
| 4835066130 | Chavin civilization | American civilization, located on the Peruvian coast and known for jade work and a complex trade system | 74 | |
| 4835066131 | foraging | surviving off the land by hunting and gathering, without the use of agriculture | 75 | |
| 4835066132 | empire | many territories and peoples controlled by one government | 76 | |
| 4835066133 | terra cotta | a hard unglazed brownish-red earthenware | 77 | |
| 4835066134 | Hittites | a semi-nomadic group from central Asia who came to Turkey and started an empire | 78 | |
| 4835066135 | Assyrians | a warlike group who were known for their fierceness and cruelty | 79 | |
| 4835066136 | Assyrian Empire | land from Egypt and Palestine to western Persia (Iran) | 80 | |
| 4835066137 | Bantu | a group of Nigerian farmers and herders who are best-known for their migration to sub-Saharan Africa | 81 | |
| 4835066138 | Kush | kingdom to the south of Egypt near the red sea, knows for trade and iron-working | 82 | |
| 4835066139 | Nok | a West African people known for their terra cotta sculptures | 83 | |
| 4835066140 | Abraham | father of the Hebrews, who migrated from Ur to Canaan | 84 | |
| 4835066141 | Moses | an Egyptian-raised Hebrew who led his people out of Egypt | 85 | |
| 4835066142 | Exodus | the Hebrew flight from Egypt | 86 | |
| 4835066143 | Ten Commandments | Hebrew (and Biblical) moral law | 87 | |
| 4835066144 | Saul | first king of the Hebrews | 88 | |
| 4835066145 | David | Saul's successor, best-known for his victory over Goliath and conquest of Jerusalem | 89 | |
| 4835066146 | Solomon | son of King David, famous for his high taxes and magnificent temple | 90 | |
| 4835066147 | diaspora | scattering | 91 | |
| 4835066148 | Kingdom of Israel | northern ten tribes of the Hebrew kingdom; fell to the Assyrians | 92 | |
| 4835066149 | Kingdom of Judah | southern two tribes of the Hebrew kingdom; fell to the Chaldeans | 93 | |
| 4835066150 | Cyrus | Persian king who allowed the people of Judah to return to their homeland | 94 | |
| 4835066151 | monotheism | worship of one god | 95 | |
| 4835066152 | Yahweh | sacred name of the Jewish God | 96 | |
| 4835066153 | the Covenant | promise between Yahweh and the Jewish people | 97 | |
| 4835066154 | Messiah | "anointed one" prophesied to save the Jewish people from their sins | 98 | |
| 4835066155 | Torah | Hebrew holy book | 99 | |
| 4835066156 | Phoenicians | a group of Canaanites who settled along the Mediterranean (in modern-day Lebanon) and turned to the sea for their livelihood | 100 | |
| 4835066157 | Carthage | prosperous Phoenician colony on the coast of Northern Africa | 101 | |
| 4835066158 | Minoans | Mediterranean people who settled on the island of Crete | 102 | |
| 4835066159 | Mycenaeans | a people who invaded Crete and conquered the Minoans, well known for their trade | 103 | |
| 4835066160 | polis | Greek city-state | 104 | |
| 4835066161 | Homer | the writer of the Iliad and the Odyssey, usually described as blind | 105 | |
| 4835066162 | helots | agricultural laborers in Sparta, usually captives from other states | 106 | |
| 4835066163 | Sparta | a warlike and disciplined city-state, descended from the Dorian culture | 107 | |
| 4835066164 | ephors | five Spartan leaders who ran the government | 108 | |
| 4835066165 | 20-60 | age range in which Spartan men were required to serve in the military | 109 | |
| 4835066166 | tyrants | rulers by total authority | 110 | |
| 4835066167 | Solon | early Athenian reformer, a tyrant who established laws that prohibited slavery for debt and allowed most citizens to vote | 111 | |
| 4835066168 | Draco | Athenian reformer known for his strict law codes | 112 | |
| 4835066169 | Pisistratus | Athenian reformer and tyrant who divided the estates of nobles among peasants and created new jobs | 113 | |
| 4835066170 | Cleisthenes | Athenian reformer who created an assembly of citizens as well as a Council of 500 and promoted freedom of speech | 114 | |
| 4835066171 | direct democracy | democracy in which all citizens may participate directly in the proposal and debate of new laws | 115 | |
| 4835066172 | Persian empire | long-lasting and wealthy empire centered in present-day Iran | 116 | |
| 4835066173 | Cyrus | strong Persian king who extended his empire through spy systems and led the Persians against the Medes | 117 | |
| 4835066174 | King's Eyes and Ears | King Cyrus's spy network | 118 | |
| 4835066175 | satraps | provincial Persian governors | 119 | |
| 4835066176 | Zoroastrianism | Persian religion defining life as a struggle between good and evil | 120 | |
| 4835066177 | Avesta | Zoroastrian holy book | 121 | |
| 4835066178 | Darius I | the greatest of the Persian rulers, who extended the empire into Macedonia and North Africa as well as introducing coinage and a calendar | 122 | |
| 4835066179 | Royal Road | Persian-built road stretching 1600 miles from Ephesus to Susa and run by efficient couriers | 123 | |
| 4835066180 | Zarathustra | founder of Zoroastrianism | 124 | |
| 4835066181 | Xerxes | successor of Darius I who continued and lost the Persian War | 125 | |
| 4835066182 | Delian League | group of Greek poleis led by Athens | 126 | |
| 4835066183 | Peloponnesian League | group of Greek poleis led by Sparta | 127 | |
| 4835066184 | Pericles | aristocrat who led Athens into an age of culture | 128 | |
| 4835066185 | Peloponnesian War | war between Athens and the Sparta/Corinth alliance, ending in a Spartan victory | 129 | |
| 4835066186 | Socrates | Athenian philosopher known for his method of systematic questioning | 130 | |
| 4835066187 | Plato | student of Socrates known for "The Republic" and a theory of "aristocracy of intellectuals" | 131 | |
| 4835066188 | Aristotle | student of Plato known for his rules of logic and comprehensive study of many subjects | 132 | |
| 4835066189 | hubris | excessive pride or overconfidence | 133 | |
| 4835066190 | Acropolis | hill atop which the Parthenon is situated | 134 | |
| 4835066191 | Philip of Macedon | northern European monarch who gained mastery over Greece after the Battle of Chaeronea | 135 | |
| 4835066192 | Alexander the Great | conqueror and ruler of a large empire in the 330s BCE | 136 | |
| 4835066193 | Hellenistic culture | culture made up of a combination of Greek and Persian, appearing after the unity of many cities during the reign of Alexander the Great | 137 | |
| 4835066194 | mystery religions | Eastern religions in Greek culture, known for their promise of eternal life | 138 | |
| 4835066195 | Cynicism | Greek philosophy based on a return to simplicity and rejection of materialism | 139 | |
| 4835066196 | Stoicism | Greek philosophy based on human brotherhood and virtuous living | 140 | |
| 4835066197 | Epicureanism | Greek philosophy based on the pursuit of genuine pleasure | 141 | |
| 4835066198 | Zeno | freed slave to whom the creation of Stoicism is attributed | 142 | |
| 4835066199 | Euclid | Egyptian Greek who wrote "Elements of Geometry | 143 | |
| 4835066200 | Ptolemy | astronomer and scientist who argued the geocentric theory | 144 | |
| 4835066201 | patricians | upper class of Rome | 145 | |
| 4835066202 | plebeians | lower class of Rome, allowed to vote but at first banned from holding public offices | 146 | |
| 4835066203 | consuls | two executive authorities of Rome, elected by the patricians | 147 | |
| 4835066204 | Roman Senate | 300 patricians with the power to approve all major decisions | 148 | |
| 4835066205 | Tribal Assembly | assembly of plebeians which elected the tribunes | 149 | |
| 4835066206 | tribunes | plebeian representatives | 150 | |
| 4835066207 | Twelve Tables | early Roman law, which established the basic republican concepts and served as a foundation for later additions | 151 | |
| 4835066208 | legions | Roman military units of 5,000 to 6,000 foot soldiers | 152 | |
| 4835066209 | Latins | conquered peoples living along the Tiber River, granted the right to full Roman citizenship | 153 | |
| 4835066210 | First Punic War | war between Rome and Carthage which began with a dispute over control of Sicily, continued through the organization of Rome's first navy, and ended with Carthage's defeat | 154 | |
| 4835066211 | Second Punic War | war between Rome and Carthage in which the Carthaginians marched through the Alps into Italy, only to be defeated, after heavy fighting, by the Romans | 155 | |
| 4835066212 | Hannibal | Carthaginian general during the Second Punic War | 156 | |
| 4835066213 | Scipio | Roman general during the Second Punic War | 157 | |
| 4835066214 | Third Punic War | war between Rome and Carthage in which the vengeful Romans razed a weakened Carthage and enslaved its inhabitants | 158 | |
| 4835066215 | latifundia | large estates captured by Rome | 159 | |
| 4835066216 | Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus | two brother tribunes who devoted their careers to the relief of the Roman poor and were killed, along with most of their supporters, by the wealthy | 160 | |
| 4835066217 | the Gracchi | another name for the two Gracchus brothers | 161 | |
| 4835066218 | Marius | consul of Rome in the late 100s BCE, who substituted Rome's drafted army with a professional one and defeated Germanic invaders | 162 | |
| 4835066219 | Sulla | Roman general who executed many of Marius's followers and acted as a military dictator | 163 | |
| 4835066220 | Julius Caesar | Roman leader who was a member of the first triumvirate, became a popular and generous consul, brought Gaul under Roman rule, and became dictator for life until his assassination | 164 | |
| 4835066221 | first triumvirate | a trio of joint rulers of Rome, made up of the aristocrat Crassius, the general Pompey, and soon-to-be dictator Julius Caesar | 165 | |
| 4835066222 | second triumvirate | a trio of joint rulers of Rome, made up of Octavian, Marc Antony, and Lepidus | 166 | |
| 4835066223 | Octavian | Caesar's nephew and a member of the second triumvirate, who forced Lepidus into retirement and became dictator of Rome | 167 | |
| 4835066224 | Marc Antony | a general and member of the second triumvirate who briefly controlled the east before submitting to Octavius | 168 | |
| 4835066225 | Augustus | Octavius's official name after he became dictator of Rome | 169 | |
| 4835066226 | Hadrian | Roman emperor who erected defensive walls in northern Britain and central Europe and encouraged frontier people to join the army | 170 | |
| 4835066227 | Marcus Aurelius | Stoic philosopher and Roman emperor whose death ended the Pax Romana | 171 | |
| 4835066228 | Praetorian Guard | a small, elite Roman bodyguard which was stationed in Rome to protect the emperor | 172 | |
| 4835066229 | Zealots | Jewish citizens of Judea who wished to become a country independent of Rome | 173 | |
| 4835066230 | Jesus | religious teacher and healer who started Christianity | 174 | |
| 4835066231 | apostles | the twelve disciples of Jesus | 175 | |
| 4835066232 | Gospels | Biblical books of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John | 176 | |
| 4835066233 | Paul of Tarsus | the greatest Christian missionary of the first century CE | 177 | |
| 4835066234 | Gentiles | non-Jews | 178 | |
| 4835066235 | Masada | final stronghold of the Jews before the Second Diaspora | 179 | |
| 4835066236 | Second Diaspora | the second forced dispersal of the Jewish people, this time from the Roman Empire and their homeland of Judea | 180 | |
| 4835066237 | diocese | group of local Catholic churches | 181 | |
| 4835066238 | Peter | an apostle who became the first bishop of Rome | 182 | |
| 4835066239 | Nero | Roman emperor who persecuted early Christians and was known for his insane cruelty | 183 | |
| 4835066240 | Coptic Christianity | an Ethiopian and Egyptian branch of Christianity which stressed belief in the divine nature of Christ | 184 | |
| 4835066241 | Nestorian Christianity | a Mediterranean and Asian branch of Christianity which stressed the humanity of Jesus | 185 | |
| 4835066242 | Arianism | a branch of Christianity which taught that Jesus had been a creation of God rather than a divinity who had coexisted with Him from eternity | 186 | |
| 4835066243 | Nicene Creed | standardization of Christian beliefs, established by the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD | 187 | |
| 4835066244 | St. Augustine | early Christian saint whose works helped define the teachings of the Christian Church | 188 | |
| 4835066245 | Huns | a nomadic group from central Asia | 189 | |
| 4835066246 | Attila | leader of the Huns who drove his people against the tribes surrounding the Roman empire | 190 | |
| 4835066247 | Saxons | Germanic tribe which invaded northern Germany during the days of the Roman empire | 191 | |
| 4835066248 | Angles | Germanic tribe which invaded England during the days of the Roman empire | 192 | |
| 4835066249 | Franks | Germanic tribe which invaded France during the days of the Roman empire | 193 | |
| 4835066250 | Visigoths | Germanic tribe which invaded Spain during the days of the Roman empire | 194 | |
| 4835066251 | Ostrogoths | Germanic tribe which invaded Italy during the days of the Roman empire | 195 | |
| 4835066252 | Vandals | Germanic tribe which invaded North Africa during the days of the Roman empire | 196 | |
| 4835066253 | barracks emperors | series of 28 generals who led Rome during a hundred-year period of unrest | 197 | |
| 4835066254 | Diocletian | Roman emperor who persecuted the Christians and divided the struggling empire into East and West | 198 | |
| 4835066255 | Constantine | Roman emperor who moved the capital to Constantinople and made Christianity a legal religion | 199 | |
| 4835066256 | Battle of Adrianople | important battle in the last days of the Roman empire, in which the Visigoths destroyed the Roman army and killed its leader | 200 | |
| 4835066257 | Battle of Chalons | battle between the Huns and a combined force of Romans and Visigoths, in which the Huns were driven back but the Roman army was weakened beyond revival | 201 | |
| 4835066258 | Empress Lu | Han ruler who seized and retained control over the throne by naming her infant sons as emperors | 202 | |
| 4835066259 | Han Wudi | longest-ruling of the Han rulers, who appointed provincial administrators to promote government efficiency | 203 | |
| 4835066260 | Silk Roads | roads linking China to the Mediterranean world | 204 | |
| 4835066261 | shi | scholar class of Han China | 205 | |
| 4835066262 | Wang Mang | Chinese warrior who briefly overthrew the Han dynasty before being himself overthrown by a peasant revolution | 206 | |
| 4835066263 | Manichaeism | ancient religion blending beliefs of other major religions and honoring Jesus as the prophet of the Mediterranean, Buddha as the prophet of India, and Zarathustra as the prophet of Persia | 207 | |
| 4835066264 | Chandragupta Maurya | Indian conqueror after Alexander the Great, who formed the first centralized government in India | 208 | |
| 4835066265 | Ashoka | greatest of the Mauryan rulers, who converted to Buddhism and promoted a peaceful empire | 209 | |
| 4835066266 | stupas | shrines of stone built in India to house relics of the Buddha | 210 |
