World History Study Guide Essays

Submitted By HannahD10115
Words: 1708
Pages: 7

Abbasids-dynasty that ruled much of the Muslim Empire from AD 750 to 1258
Adulis- Aksum's chief seaport
Aksum-an African Kingdom, in what is now Ethiopia and Eritrea, that reached the height of its power in the 4th century
Al-Andalus-a muslim-ruled region in what is now Spain, established in the 8th century
Almohads-a group of Islamic reformers who overthrew the Almoravid dynasty and established an empire in North Africa and southern Spain in the 12th century A.D.
Almoravids-an Islamic religious brotherhood that established and empire in North Africa and southern Spain in the 11th century
Anatolia-the SW Asian peninsula also called Asia Minor
Animism-the belief that spiritsare present in Animals and other natural objects
Aryans-an Indo-European people who began to migrate into the Indian subcontinent
Asoka- Chandragupta's grandson who brought the Mauryan Empire to its greatest heights
Assimilation- the adoption of a conquerors culture by a conquered people
Assyria-a southwest Asian kingdom that controlled a large empire
Attila- Mongolian chieftain who attacked Rome (hun leader who ransacked them)
Augustus- Julius Caesar's grandnephew, became the first unchallenged ruler of Rome
Autocracy- govnm’t where ruler has unlimited power and uses it in an arbitrary manner
Bantu-Speaking peoples-the speakers of a related group of languages who migrated from west Africa to the southern half of Africa
Benin-a kingdom that arose near the Niger River delta in the 1300s and became a major West African state in the 1400s
Brahma- Hindu god considered the creator of the world
Bushido- the strict code of behavior followed by samurai warriors in Japan
Caliph-a supreme religious and political leader in a Muslim government
Cambyses-Persian emperor who took over Egypt destroying many temples and buildings
Centralized Government- a government in which power is concentrated in a central authority to which local governments are subjects
Chaldeans-a SW Asian people who helped to destroy the Assyrian Empire
City-state- city and its surrounding lands functioning as an independent political unit
Civil Service-the administrative departments of a government- especially those in which employees are hired on the basis of their scores on examinations
Confucius- Chinese philosopher who taught that proper societal roles would bring peace and prosperity
Constantinople- the capital of East Roman Empire, formally known as Byzantium
Consuls- in the Roman republic, one of the 2 powerful officials elected each year to command the army and direct the government
Cyrus- Persian Emperor who set precedent of religious and cultural tolerance when he conquered neighboring kingdoms
Daoism-a philosophy based on the ideas of a Chinese thinker Laozi, who taught that people should be guided by a universal force
Darius- Persian Emperor who greatly increased the size of the Persian Empire, put down rebellions, and brought back peace
Diocletian- Roman emperor who divided the empire into two parts
Djenne-Djeno- ancient city in the Sahel
Dynastic cycle-the historical pattern of the rise, decline, and replacement of the dynasties
Ezana- a strong ruler of Aksum who brought the kingdom to its greatest power and converted to Christianity
Fatimid- a member of a Muslim Dynasty that traced its ancestry to Muhammad’s daughter Fatima and that built an empire in North Africa, Arabia, and Syria
Fertile Crescent- an arc of rich farmland in Southwest Asia, between the Persian Gulf and the Mediterranean Sea
Feudalism- A political system in which nobles are granted the use of lands that legally belong to their king, in exchange for their loyalty, military service, and protection of the people who live on the land
Genghis Khan- Mongol leader who unified all the Mongol. name means "universal ruler"
Gentry- a class of powerful, well-to-do people who enjoy a high social status
Ghana-W African kingdom that grew rich from taxing and controlling gold