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Chapter 1: AP World History From Human Prehistory to the Early Civilizations Flashcards

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4843936708Paleolithic AgeThe Old Stone Age ending in 12,000 BCE; typified by use of crude stone tools and hunting and gathering for subsistence.0
4843936709Homo sapiens (sapiens)The species of humanity that emerged as most successful at the end of the Paleolithic period1
4843936710Neolithic AgeThe New Stone Age between 8000 and 5000 B.C.E.; period in which adaptation of sedentary agriculture occurred; domestication of plants and animals accomplished2
4843936711hunting and gatheringThe original human economy ultimately eclipsed by agriculture; groups hunt for meat and forage for grains, nuts, and berries3
4843936712Neolithic revolutionThe succession of technological innovations and changes in human organization that led to the development of agriculture4
4843936713Bronze AgeFrom about 4000 to 3000 B.C.E.; increased use of plow, metalworking; development of wheeled vehicles, writing.5
4843936714Slash and burn agricultureA system of agriculture that allows farmers to grow grain in places it does not typically grow. It involves cutting the forestation of an area which is burned for the purposes of using the ashes as fertilizer for the deforested area.6
4843936716Catal HüyükAn early urban culture based on sedentary agriculture; located in modern southern Turkey; was larger in population than Jericho; had greater degree of social stratification.7
4843936720nomadsPeople with no permanent home but who roam from place to place searching for pasture lands. Cattle- and sheep-herding societies usually found on the fringes of civilized societies; commonly referred to as barbarian by civilized societies8
4843936721MesopotamiaLiterally "between the rivers"; the civilizations that arose in the alluvial plain of the Tigris and Euphrates river valleys9
4843936722SumeriansPeople who migrated into Mesopotamia circa 4000 B.C.E.; created first civilization within region; organized areas into city-states.10
4843936731Indus River ValleyA prosperous urban civilization emerged along the Indus River by 2500 B.C.E. Indus River peoples had trading contacts with Mesopotamia, but they developed a distinctive alphabet and artistic forms. River sources in Himalayas to mouth in Arabian Sea; location of Harappan civilization11
4843936732Harappa and Mohenjo DaroMajor urban complexes of the Harappan civilization; laid out on planned grid pattern12
4843936734Shang DynastyFirst Chinese dynasty, the Shang ruled over the Huanghe River valley by about 1500 B.C.E.13
4843936718Fertile CrescentA crescent-shaped area of fertile land in the Middle East that extends from the eastern Mediterranean coast through the valley of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers to the Persian Gulf. The center of the Neolithic development of agriculture (from 7000 bc), and the cradle of the Assyrian, Sumerian, and Babylonian civilizations14
4843936719cuneiformA form of writing developed by the Sumerians using a wedge-shaped stylus and clay tablets15
4843936723zigguratsMassive towers usually associated with Mesopotamia temple complexes16
4843936724city-stateA form of political organization typical of Mesopotamian civilizations; consisted of agricultural hinterlands ruled by an urban based king17
4843936725Babylonian EmpireUnified all of Mesopotamia circa 1800 B.C.E.; collapsed due to foreign invasion circa 1600 B.C.E.18
4843936726Hammurabi (1792-1750 B.C.E.)The most important ruler of the Babylonian empire; responsible for codification of law19
4843936727pharaohTitle of kings of ancient Egypt20
4843936728pyramidsMonumental architecture typical of Old Kingdom Egypt, used as burial sites for pharaohs21
4843936729KushAn African state that developed along the upper reaches of the Nile circa 1000 B.C.E; conquered Egypt and ruled it for several centuries22
4843936730Hammurabi's CodeEstablished rules of procedure for courts of law and regulated property and the duties of family members, setting harsh punishments for crimes23
4843936733Huang He RiverAlso known as the Yellow River, site of sedentary agriculture in China24
4843936735oraclesShamans or priests in Chinese society who foretold the future through interpretations of animal bones cracked by heat; inscriptions on bones led to Chinese writing25
4843936736ideographsPictographic characters grouped together to create new concepts; typical of Chinese writing26
4843936737PhoeniciansSeafaring civilization located on the shores of the eastern Mediterranean; established colonies throughout the Mediterranean27
4843936738monotheismThe exclusive worship of a single God; introduced by the Jews into Western civilization28
4843936739polytheismThe worship of many gods or deities29
4843936715BandA level of social organization normally consisting of 20 to 30 people; nomadic hunters and gatherers; labor divided on a gender basis30
4843936717civilizationSocieties distinguished by Reliance on sedentary agriculture, ability to produce food surpluses, and existence of non-farming elites, as well as merchant and manufacturing groups31
4845663993JudaismA religion with a belief in one god. It originated with Abraham and the Hebrew people. Yahweh was responsible for the world and everything within it. They preserved their early history in the Old Testament.32

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