600 BCE-600 CE Vocab Flashcards
Classic,classical
Traditional, relating to a form or system felt to be of first significance before modern times.
Scholar-gentry
In China, the class of prosperous families next in wealth below the rural aristocrats from which the rulers drew their administrative personnel. Respected for their education and expertise, these individuals became a privileged group and made the government more efficient and responsive than in the past.
Civil service
The administrative departments of the government, especially those in which employees are hired based on examinations
Meritocracy
Government or the holding of power by people selected on the basis of their ability
Mandate of Heaven
In Chinese history, the divine approval thought to be the basis of royal authority.
Dynastic Cycle
The historical pattern of the rise, decline, and replacement of dynasties
Filial piety
Respect for parents and elders
Aristocracy
Land-owning families who make up a small portion of the population.
Ancestor veneration
A ritual practice that is based on the belief that deceased family members have a continued existence, take an interest in the affairs of the world, and possess the ability to influence the fortune of the living.
Empire
A political unit in which a number of peoples or countries are controlled by a single ruler.
Direct democracy
A government where all citizens rule directly rather than through elected or appointed representatives.
Citizen
A member of a state; especially one entitled to the rights and privileges of a freeman.
Rational thought
To base one’s opinion on evidence and reason rather than superstition or commonly accepted beliefs.
Philosopher
Thinkers who use logic and reason to investigate the nature of the universe, human society, and morality.
Oligarchy
Form of government in which ruling power is in the hands of a few leaders.
Tyranny
Form of government in which ruling power is in the hands of a person who has seized control through force or the manipulation of social groups.
Paterfamilias
The legal head of the extended family in Rome and the only person who could own property. Made all the decisions affecting his wife, children, and son’s wives
Latifundia
A large landed estate in Ancient Rome typically worked by slaves.
Autocracy
A government in which the ruler has unlimited power and uses it any manner he chooses
Dictator
A political leader given absolute power to make laws and command the army for a limited time ( in theory )
Republic
A form of government in which power is in the hands of representatives and leaders elected by the people.
Caste
Each of the hereditary classes in Hindu society, distinguished by relative degrees of ritual purity and of social status.
Divinity
The state or quality of being divine.
