Midterm1

Question 1

polytheistic

Answer 1

who - most ancient civilizations, beginning with the Sumerian’s
what - belief in many gods
where - ancient Mesopotamia
when - 5300 B.C.E.
historic significance - dates back to one of the earliest civilizations and carried to each century, until the Hebrews/Israelites adoption of monotheism. Each culture had gods unique to them and the gods themselves seemed to represent things in nature that could not be other wise explained. For instance, the Sumerian father of the gods, Anu, ruled the sky. Enlil was the god of wind and guided humans in the proper use of force. There were gods for rivers, earth, love, sex, warfare, fertility, etc…

Question 2

divination

Answer 2

who - ancient Mesopotamia
what - practice of discerning the future by looking for messages imprinted in nature
where - Mesopotamians would observe the normal processes of the natural world, then look for the signs/omens that are not normal and divine the messages from those (example: if a man’s chest hair curled upward, then he would be a slave)
when - dates back to the beginning of this civilization, sometime around 5300 B.C.E.
historical sig - This was a way for the people of this time period to observe the signs around them and to look for the messages that their gods were trying to tell them. The omens would also determine if they would be successful in battle, have enough crops, and the rituals involved in helping to attain their destiny’s.

Question 3

cuneiform

Answer 3

who - ancient Sumer
what -kind of writing in which wedge-shaped symbols are pressed into clay tablets to indicate words and ideas.
when - Uruk, 4000 B.C.E. was the earliest form of documentation. Officials would keep records on small clay tokens, but by 3100 B.C.E. began keeping records on flat piece of clay
historical sig - This was the first example of writing. The Sumerians used these to keep records and as the commodities and trade became more complex, the number of symbols multiplied.

Question 4

monotheism

Answer 4

who - Foundation of Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and Zoroastrianism; argued that the Amarna Period were eh first people in history to develop this.
what - belief in only one god, first attributed to the ancient Hebrews.
where - Egypt Empire, the New Kingdom
when - 1388-1334 B.C.E., Late Bronze Age
historical sig - Akhenaten decided that Aten, the solar disc associated with the sun god Re, would be the only god worshipped. This period was short lived because the Egyptians were unwilling to abandon the many traditional gods. After the death of this pharaoh, Tutankhamun rebuilt the temples and re-established the worship of the many gods. The Hebrews would adopt monotheism once they left Egypt.
Monotheism did not fully develop until after transcendental theology (omnipotent) with the Hebrew’s.

Question 5

syncretism

Answer 5

who - Hebrews
what - the practice of blending foreign religious beliefs with an indigenous religious system; a common practice throughout the Roman Empire
where - Canaan
when - late 6th century/early 5th century
historical sig - It is the blending of different religious beliefs. The Israelites began this with the adoption of Yahweh, which they could have found traveling through Midian.

Question 6

covenant

Answer 6

who - Hebrews
what - contract or binding agreement between the Hebrews and Yahweh
where - Began when Moses was leading the people enslaved by the pharaohs from Egypt.
when - about 1250 B.C.E.
historical sig - This was the beginning of the Hebrew religion. It began with a pact with Yahweh, which was outlined with the 10 commandments. The first commandment began with, “I am the Lord thy God…” This would also begin the groundwork for monotheism, but would not fully develop until after transcendental theology.

Question 7

pharaoh

Answer 7

who - Egyptian kings
what - god-king and had access to other gods.
where - Egypt
when - 3100 B.C.E.
historical sig - The pharaohs were seen as a human and god. They were the links to the gods of Egypt, like Re, the sun god and many others.

Question 8

anthropomorphic

Answer 8

who - Egyptian gods
what - human like animals
where - 
when - 3100 B.C.E.
historical sig - the gods could appear as human like animals, for instance, Anubis was portrayed as a man with an animal face.

Question 9

monolatry

Answer 9

who - Hebrews
what - recognizing the chief deity (Yahweh), but still worshipping less deities
where -
when - 1250 B.C.E.
historical sig -The Hebrews were not fully following the covenant. They were still worshipping other lesser gods, for instance Baal, who was portrayed as a golden calf. The Canaanites were still conducting ritual sacrifices to the lesser gods. In this time frame, Yahweh would sometimes be portrayed with a female counterpart. This stilted the process of monotheism.

Question 10

Solomon

Answer 10

who - king of the Hebrews
what - David’s son, who fulfilled father’s dream
where - kingdom of Israel and kingdom of Judah
when - late 900 B.C.E.
historical sig - He was a very tough king and created high taxes and forced labor to fulfill his fathers dream of building Solomon’s Temple. It is believed that he stored the Ark of the Covenant in this temple. With the many years of overwork and over taxation, the people would revolt, civil war would break out, and the kingdom would be split into the two groups (Israel and Judah) after his death.

Question 11

giza

Answer 11

who - King Khufu commissioned the pyramid.
what - Consisted of more than two million stones and covers 13 acres and reaches over 480 feet into the sky. Contained compartments where king would dwell in afterlife and had secret treasure rooms.
where - Egypt
when - about 2700 B.C.E.
historical sig - Largest human-man made structure in the ancient world. 70,000 worked on the pyramid.

Question 12

Hebrews

Answer 12

who - very small civilization compared to others
what - Sematic speaking people from Mesopotamia; Abraham’s family from Sumer
where -
when - 20th century B.C.E.
historical sig - The story of the Hebrews are written in the Old Testament of the Bible beginning the the Egyptian exodus and beyond. During 1900 B.C.E., they migrated to Canaan and went by the name of Israelites.

Question 13

Helots

Answer 13

Who- Brutally oppressed subject peoples of the Spartans namely the Messenians.
What- They were tied to the land they farmed for Spartan Masters and gave half their produce to their masters.
When- During the 8th century
Where- Peloponnese
His Sig- Showed that the highly militarized still needed a way to produce food, equipment, and goods to keep the Spartan civilization continuing. Also due to the highly militarized lifestyle Spartan economy had no trade, ne elegant crafts, static economy, but had few enemies.

Question 14

Ziggurat

Answer 14

Who- 
What-
When-
Where-
His Sig-

Question 15

Minoa

Answer 15

What- Built cities without walls which suggest very peaceful. Had a large navy for trade protection with northern Africa. Skilled engineers and artisans.
When- 2000 BCE
Where- Located on the island of Crete with in the Mediterranean Sea.
His Sig- One of first major European civilizations which led to Western civilizations. Was a matriarchal society with equal rights to men and women in all areas of society.

Question 16

Sparta

Answer 16

Who- Dorians who invaded Peloponnesian peninsula.
What- 8000 citizens among 400,000 other people. Were a highly militarized society that favored iron discipline. Boys left home at 12 for military training and returned at 30. Led by two kings and council of elders of 28 men.
When- 12th century BCE
Where- Peloponnesian peninsula
His Sig- Very formidable fighting force and helped defeat the Persians whiling bring together the Greek city states with their stand at Thermopylae.

Question 17

Mycenae

Answer 17

Who- Indo- European peoples that invaded mainland Greece. Mixed with the Minoan culture and formed the Mycenae civilization.
What- Were very warlike with fortified cities. Were patriarchal and hade a slave system.
When- 1500 BCE
Where- Located on the Peloponnese peninsula.
His Sig- Created a form of Linear “A” which was called Linear “B” and was the earliest form of Greek. They also earned a reputation for piracy.

Question 18

Thermopylae

Answer 18

What- Battle between 300 Spartans and Greek coalition against the Persian ground force led by Xerxes.
When- 480 BCE
Where- Area along the northern coast of Greece.
His Sig- Gave Athenians precious time to evacuate their city and maneuver ships to a narrow strait of Salamis. Where the Persian fleet was defeated in a single day.

Question 19

Polis

Answer 19

Who-
What- A self-governing community consisting of an urban center with a defensible hilltop. Male citizens would gather and discuss and decide public business.
When- Archaic Age
Where- Greece
His Sig- Living in a polis provided a strong sense of community and a person could only be a citizen to one polis and was expected to put communities interest above their own.

Question 20

Hellenism

Answer 20

Who- ancient Greek
What- spreading Greek culture and language
When- 479 B.C.E.
Where- along the conquered route that Alexander the Great had created during his siege of the world. Each city he conquered, they would leave behind an outpost that was run by Greek people.
His Sig- Each outpost was run by the Greeks along the path of Alexander the Greats conquests, and the outposts would trade among the locals, as well as be able to communicate within each other. The Greek culture and language would spread out of necessity, as well as an outcome of having these outposts.

Question 21

Peloponnesian War

Answer 21

who- Sparta vs. Athens
what - a war that causes the downfall of Athen polis
where - Athens
when - 479 B.C.E.
his sig - Xerxes went home during this period and left a contingency behind. 40 poleis get together and defeat this contingency. Athenians got “too big for their britches,” causing the Spartans to defeat them. The Spartans do not burn Athens down, which will in later years be the down fall of Sparta. The Athenians are not happy to be without the democracy they were accustomed to. An oligarchy was set up, but the Athenians revolted. This is also the period that marks the decline of the archaic age and in came classical Greece.

Question 22

Socrates

Answer 22

who - most famous thinker
what - a philosophy approach to critically think re-examine everything
where - Greece
when - 479 B.C.E.
hist. sig - This was the beginning of Greek philosophy. From Socrates would verbally battle the Sophists, who were usually paid educators that believe that there is no absolute truth. Socrates introduced the philosophy that “The unexamined life is not worth living,” and his student Plato is who made his teachings famous. Socrates did not write any of his teachings down, but Plato did and that is how his teachings still exist.

Question 23

Plato

Answer 23

who - Socrates pupil
what - implements the Socratic Method
where - Greece
when - 6th century B.C.E.
hist sig - He wrote the Allegory of the Caves, cementing his views that absolute truths should be re-examined.

Question 24

Allegory of the Caves

Answer 24

who - Plato
what - parable
where - classical Greece
when - 4th/5th B.C.E.
hist sig - This was a parable within his work “The Republic.” It describes a cave, with prisoners chained, and facing the rock wall. With the shadows created by the fire behind the prisoners, all they can see is the shadows cast on the wall. These shadows are of people and animals crossing the bridge to go to the market, but to these prisoners, the shadows are so distorted that they have their own ideas on what they could be. As one prisoner is released, he has a period of adjustment and can’t believe his new “truths.” Once he gets somewhat of his bearings, he goes back to tell his friends in the cave, but to them, the shadow isn’t their friend, but another distorted shape on the wall. They can’t understand him because they can’t comprehend what he is trying to tell them.
(you can basically input what your views are on this story…)

Question 25

Alexander the Great

Answer 25

who - son of King Philip of Macedon
what - very influential conqueror, proficient in intellect and military strategies
where - began in Macedon
when - 4th century B.C.E.
hist sig - Was a proficient strategist in military tactics, which are still used and studied today. He never lost a battle, starting with the defeat of the Persians, then continues east to conquer the lands all the way to the Indus River. He is the reason that Hellenism spread so widely and became so influential. Alexandria in Egypt was named after him and became the capital of Hellenistic culture, after his death.