Chapter 7: Structure of Early Civilizations

Question 1

covenant

Answer 1

Agreement; in the Judeo-Christian heritage, an agreement between God and humankind.

Question 2

cuneiform

Answer 2

A system of writing originating in Mesopotamia in which a wedge-shaped stylus was used to press symbols into clay. The Sumerian-invented first example of writing.

Question 3

diaspora

Answer 3

The exile of an ethnic or racial group from their homeland.

Question 4

hieroglyphics

Answer 4

A system of picture writing used in Egypt.

Question 5

jati

Answer 5

One of many subcastes in the Hindu caste system.

Question 6

mandate of heaven

Answer 6

The concept developed by the Zhou dynasty that the deity granted a dynasty the right to rule and took away that right if the dynasty did not rule wisely.

Question 7

matrilineal

Answer 7

Referring to a social system in which descent and inheritance are traced through the mother

Question 8

monotheism

Answer 8

The belief in one god.

Question 9

oracle bones

Answer 9

Animal bones or shells used by Chinese priests to receive messages from the gods.

Question 10

patriarchal

Answer 10

Pertaining to a social system in which the father is the head of the family.

Question 11

pharaoh

Answer 11

An Egyptian monarch.

Question 12

polytheism

Answer 12

The belief in many gods.

Question 13

Quetzalcóatl

Answer 13

According to Mayan legend, a god who would someday return to rule his people in peace. (feathered serpent god)

Question 14

Ten Commandments

Answer 14

The moral law of the Hebrews.

Question 15

theocracy

Answer 15

A government ruled by God or by church leaders.

Question 16

Torah

Answer 16

The first five books of the Jewish scripture.

Question 17

untouchables

Answer 17

The social division in Hindu society that fell in rank below the caste system; it was occupied by those who carried out undesirable occupations such as undertaking, butchering, and waste collection.

Question 18

varna

Answer 18

A caste in the Hindu caste system.

Question 19

Vedas

Answer 19

The oral hymns to the Aryan deities, later written down, that formed the basis of the Hindu beliefs during the Vedic Age (1500-500 BCE).

Question 20

Yahweh

Answer 20

Jehovah, the god of the Jews.

Question 21

ziggurat

Answer 21

A multitiered pyramid constructed by Mesopotamians. The Sumerians expressed the glories of their civilization and of their gods by building these towers.

Question 22

Mesopotamia

Answer 22

The “Land Between the Rivers” is the valley of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. First invaded by the Sumerians, then the Akkadians and Babylonians, and then the Assyrians and Persians (900 BCE).

Question 23

Sumerians

Answer 23

Group of people that settled in Mesopotamia. They are known for creating cuneiform, a number system based on 60, and ziggurats. They studied the movement of heavenly bodies. They are credited with the first epic in history which is similar to the great flood, “The Epic of Gilgamesh.” There was a strong social structure headed by rulers and elite classes and slaves at the bottom. The families were patriarchal. The Sumerian culture later fell to conquest by the Akkadians and the Babylonians, both of whom spread the Sumerian culture.

Question 24

“The Code of Hammurabi”

Answer 24

Code of laws devised by the Babylonian king Hammurabi that regulated daily life and had harsh “eye for an eye” punishment for criminal offenses. It drew distinctions between social classes and genders-administered less severe punishments to elite classes over commoners and men over women for the same offense.

Question 25

Vedas

Answer 25

The oral hymns to the Aryan deities, later written down in the Sanskrit language, that formed the basis of the Hindu beliefs during the Vedic Age (1500-500 BCE).

Question 26

Rig-Veda

Answer 26

The first Aryan epic that is a collection of hymns in honor of the Aryan gods.

Question 27

Mahabharata

Answer 27

Considered the greatest epic poem of India.

Question 28

Upanishads

Answer 28

A collection of religious epic poems.

Question 29

Aryans

Answer 29

Fair-complexioned people that invaded the Indus Valley and were known for their caste system with the four varna based on skin color.

Warriors and rulers
Priests
Merchants and farmers
Common workers

untouchables or pariahs

They also introduced to the Indian culture their own array of gods and goddesses. They believed in the veneration of some animals, particularly cattle.

Question 30

castes

Answer 30

Rigid social classes that seldom permitted social mobility.