Exam 1 Terms Flashcards
Homo erectus
- Flourished 100,000 to 1.5 million years ago
- Fossils found in Africa, Asia, & Europe
- Brain capacity between 900-1,200ml
- Used fire & made stone tools
- Looked after old & sick
Australopithecines
- Flourished 2 million to 4 million years ago
- Used bipedal locomotion
- Ape sized brain
- Lived in South & East Africa
Neanderthals
- Flourished between 230,000 & 30,000 years ago
- Average brain size is slightly larger than that of modern humans, about 1450 cc
- Buried their dead
- Lived at the same time as the Homo sapiens sapiens
Homo sapiens sapiens
- Modern forms of Homo sapiens first appeared 120,000 years ago
- Modern humans brain size of about 1350 cc
- First appeared in Africa but about 50,000 years ago began to spread across Asia, Europe, Australia, & finally N. and S. America.
- Hunters & gatherers until 13,000 years ago when farming began.
Largest cities in Mesopotamian Civilization that was created by the Sumerians were:
- Eridu
- Ur
- Uruk
- Umma
- Lagash
Theocracy
-Governments were ruled by divine authority
Akkadians
- Briefly conquered Sumer
- Led by Sargon
Semitic Languages
- Assyrians
- Babylonians
- Phoenicians
- Arabic
- Hebrews
Hammurabi
- An Amorite
- Establish Old Babylonia as a seat of power
- He was brilliant militarily for successfully dividing & conquering his opponents
Code of Hammurabi
-Collection of 282 laws with a strict system of justice
Epic of Gilgamesh
-One of the oldest & most moving stories rooted in the ancient wisdom/tradition of mankind
Cuneiform
-Earliest known form of writing, distinguished by its wedge shaped marks on clay tablets
Paleolithic Age
- (Old Stone Age) 1 million to 10,000 B.C.
- Invented stone tools
- People were hunters, fishers, & gatherers
Neolithic Age
- 10,000-5,000 B.C.
- Discovery of agriculture in Western Asia
- Invention of pottery
Manetho
- He provided the first study of Egyptian History in the 3rd century B.C.
- We used his list to divide Egyptian history into Old, Middle, and New Kingdoms
Old Kingdom
- Menes
- Pyramids built
Requirements to be a civilization:
- Must have cities
- Distinct Religious Structures
- Military & Political Structures
- Social Economic Classes
- Writing
- Must have significant artistic & intellectual improvements
Menes
- United Upper & Lower Egypt
- Double Royal Diadem adopted as crown
- Founded the city of Memphis
Middle Kingdom
- Amenemhet I (Name of Pharaoh first used)
- Golden age for Egypt
Heliopolis
Sun cult
Atum
Human form
Re
Human body with falcon head
Book of the Dead
An ancient Egyptian funerary text
Ka
Spirit
Imhotep
-Famous writer, doctor, & architect who lived & worked in Egypt
King Khufu
- Father of pyramid building
- Also known by Cheops
- Ruled from 2551-2528 B.C.
Second Intermediate Period
- Between 1652 B.C. - 1567 B.C.
- Hyksos, a Semitic people from the Arabian peninsula, invaded Egypt
- Bronze Age Technology: New warfare such as the chariot, a heavier sword, & the compound bow
Hieroglyphics
-Ancient Egyptian formal writing system using pictures
Ahmose I-18th Dynasty
- Overthrew the Hyksos. Reunited Egypt & formed the New Kingdom
- Launched Egypt on a militaristic/imperialistic path, & employed a professional army
- Vizers were chosen from military to be in charge of state bureaucracy
Tutankhamon 1347-1338 B.C.
- Became Pharaoh when he was 14
- Reigned for 8-9 years
- Only one wife, Ankhesenamun, his half sister
- Died when he was 25 from an unknown death
“Sea Peoples”
-Destroyed Egyptian power in Palestine and drove the Egyptians back to their old frontier borders
Hatshepsut
-Only women Pharaoh
Herodotus
-Wrote of specializations
Fringes of Civilization
- Neolithic people of Europe also domesticated animals & farmed
- Megalithic structures: Earliest in Europe 4,000 B.C. (Stonehenge- Best known 2,100 B.C.)
Abraham
- First patriarch, brought Hebrews to Canaan from Northern Mesopotamia
- Monotheism
- Yahweh
Moses
- Mt. Sinai
- Ten Commandments
- Exodus
Phoenicians
-Western Asian society created by trade, not war
Carthage
Planted colonies in the Mediterranean
Assyrians
- Homeland: Northern Iraq
- Spoke Semitic language
- Army between 100,000 & 200,000 strong
Royal Road of Persia
Susa (capital) to Sardis
Ten Thousand Immortals
-The King’s personal body guards
King Cyrus
-Persian King that conquered most of Western Asia and much of Central Asia within a 20 year period
Ahura-Mazda
-god of truth & light
Ahriman
-god of evil & darkness
Polis
City-states
Olympic Games
Began in 776 B.C.
Sparta
- No colonization
- Constitution of Lycurgus
- Perpetual military state
- All citizens are subordinated to the state
- No private property
Athens
- Evolution from Monarchy to Democracy
- Aristocracy with elected rulers
Solon
-Reform & timocracy
Cleisthenes
-Rise of Democracy
Persian Wars 490-479 B.C.
- Ionian Revolt
- Invasion of Greece
- Marathon
- defining moment for Western culture
Tyranny
Extra-legal rule by one man
Socrates
Executed by Athens in 399
Plato
Was taught by Socrates
- Taught in the dialogue form
- Concerned with how one acquires knowledge
- Chief concern: ethics
Aristotle
Was taught by Plato
- Primary concern: everything
- Organization of human knowledge
- Division of learning into fields & subfields
Alexander the Great (336-323)
- Conquered most of known world
- Great military leader & ruler
- Educated student of Aristotle
- Reorganized governments of conquered areas
Crete
Location of Europe’s first civilization…Around 2000 B.C.
King Minos
-Ruled a great sea empire from his palace at Knossos
Hoplites
-(Infantrymen) Amateur soldiers
Spartan Government
Two hereditary kings, a council of elders (gerousia), and an assembly of all equals over 30 (apella)
Thucydides
Wrote about war between Athens & Sparta
Helot
A member of a class of serfs in ancient Sparta, intermediate in status between salves & citizens
Messenia
Regional unit in the southwestern part of the Peloponnese
Pentathlon
Contest featuring five events
Plebeian
Free people. Most were ordinary people, though some were wealthy
Patricians
Monopolized the senate & priesthoods, and they did not intermarry with plebeians
Phalanx
A body of troops, standing or moving in close formation
