Ancient India

Question 1

subcontinent

Answer 1

a large landmass smaller than a continent

Question 2

monsoon

Answer 2

seasonal wind patterns that cause wet and dry seasons

Question 3

Sanskrit

Answer 3

ancient India’s most influential language

Question 4

caste system

Answer 4

a division of Indian society into groups based on a person’s birth, wealth or occupation

Question 5

Hinduism

Answer 5

the most widespread religion in India today

Question 6

reincarnation

Answer 6

the belief that the soul, once a person dies, is reborn in another person

Question 7

karma

Answer 7

the effects that good or bad actions have on a person’s soul

Question 8

Jainism

Answer 8

a nonviolent religion based on the teachings of Mahavira

Question 9

nonviolence

Answer 9

the avoidance of violent actions

Question 10

fasting

Answer 10

going without food

Question 11

meditation

Answer 11

focusing the mind on spiritual ideas

Question 12

the Buddha

Answer 12

the “Enlightened One”

Question 13

nirvana

Answer 13

a state of perfect peace

Question 14

missionaries

Answer 14

people who spread and teach religious beliefs

Question 15

Candragupta Maurya

Answer 15

Indian military leader who first unified India and founded the Mauryan Empire

Question 16

Asoka

Answer 16

Candragupta’s grandson and last ruler of the Mauryan Empire

Question 17

Candra Gupta II

Answer 17

ruler who brought great prosperity and stability to India

Question 18

metallurgy

Answer 18

the science of working with metals

Question 19

alloy

Answer 19

a mixture of two or more metals

Question 20

Hindu-Arabic numerals

Answer 20

the numbering system invented by Indian mathematicians and brought to Europe by Arabs; the numbers we use today

Question 21

inoculation

Answer 21

a method of injecting a person with a small dose of a virus to help him or her build up defenses to a disease

Question 22

astronomy

Answer 22

the study of stars and planets