History 110A CSUF midterm – Flashcards
88 test answers
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Neanderthals (10)
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Group of Homo erectus with brains as large as those of modern humans that flourished in Europe and western Asia between 150,000 and 30,000
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Megafaunal extinction (13)
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Die-off of large animals in many parts of the world about 15,000-10,000 BCE, caused by climate change and perhaps human hunting
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division of labor (13)
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differentiation of tasks by gender, age, training, status, or other social distinction
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animism (15)
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idea that people, animals, plants, natural occurrences, and other parts of the physical world have spirits
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shamans (16)
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spiritually adept men and women who communicated with the unseen world
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agricultural revolution (17)
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dramatic transformation in human history resulting from the change from foraging to raising crops and animals
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domesticated (18)
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plants and animals modified by selective breeding so as to serve human needs; domesticated animals will behave in specific ways and breed in captivity
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horticulture (18)
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crop raising done with hand tools and human power
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pastoralism (22)
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an economic system based of herding flocks or goats, sheep, cattle, or other animals
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social hierarchies (24)
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divisions between rich and poor, elites, and common people that have been a central feature of human society since the neolithic era
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patriarchy (25)
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social system in which men have more power and access to resources than women and some men are dominant over other men
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Polytheism (39)
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the worship of many gods and goddesses
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cuneiform (40)
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sumerian form of writing; the term describes the wedge-shaped marks made by a stylus
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epic poem (41)
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an oral or written narration of the achievements and sometimes the failures of heroes that embodies peoples' ideas about themselves
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hammurabi's law code (42)
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a proclamation issued by Babylonian king hammurabi to establish laws regulating many aspects of life
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pharaoh (45)
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the title given to the king of egypt in the new kingdom, from a word that meant "great house"
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indo-european languages (48)
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a large family of languages that includes english, most of the languages of modern europe, ancient greek, latin, persian, hindi, bengali, and sanskrit, the sacred tongue of ancient india
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iron age (50)
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period beginning about 1100 BCE when iron became the most important material for weapons and tools in some parts of the world
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phoenicians (50)
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people of the prosperous city-states in what is now Lebanon who traded and founded colonies throughout the Mediterranean and spread the phonetic
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Yahweh (52)
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all-powerful god of the hebrew people and the basis for the enduring religious traditions of Judaism
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zoroastrianism (58)
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religion based on the teachings of zoroaster that emphasized the individuals responsibility to choose between good and evil
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Harappan
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the first indian civilization; also known as the indus valley civilization
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Aryans
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the dominant people in north india after the decline of the indus valley civilization; they spoke an early form of sanskrit
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rig veda
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The earliest collection of Indian hymns, ritual texts, and philosophical treatises, it is the central source of information on early Aryans.
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Brahmins
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Priests of the Aryans; they supported the growth of royal power in return for royal confirmation of their own religious rights, power, and status
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caste system
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the indian system of dividing society into hereditary groups whose members interacted primarily within the group, and especially married within the group
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samsara
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the transmigration of souls by a continual process of rebirth
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karma
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the tally of good and bad deeds that determines the status of an individual's next life
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brahman
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the unchanging ultimate reality, according to the upanishads
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jainism
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indian religion whose followers consider all life sacred and avoid destroying other life
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Four Noble Truths
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The buddhas message that pain and suffering are inescapable parts of life; suffering and anxiety are caused by human desires and attachments; people can understand and triumph over these weaknesses; and the triumph is made possible by following a simple code of conduct
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eightfold path
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the code of conduct set forth by the buddha in his first sermon, beginning with "right conduct" and ending with "right contemplation"
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Mahayana
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the "great vehicle" a tradition of buddhism that aspires to be more inclusive
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bodhisattvas
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buddhas-to-be who stayed in the world after enlightenment to help others on the path of salvation
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dharma
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the sanskrit word for moral law, central to both buddhist and hindu teaching
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Mauryan empire
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the first indian empire founded by chandragupta
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code of manu
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the codification of early indian law that lays down the family, caste, and commercial law
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loess
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soil deposited by wind; it is fertile and easy to work
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anyang
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one of the shang dynasty capitals from which the shang kinds ruled for more that two centuries
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taotie
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a stylized animal face commonly seen in chinese bronzes
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logographic
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a system of writing in which each word is represented by a single symbol, such as the chinese script
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book of documents
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one of the earliest chinese books, containing documents, speeches, and historical accounts about early Zhou rule
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mandate of heaven
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the theory that heaven gives the king a mandate to rule only as long as he rules in the interests of the people
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shi
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the lower ranks of chinese aristocracy; these men could serve in either military or civil capacities
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book of songs
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the earliest collection of chinese poetry; it provides glimpses of what life was like in the early zhou dynasty
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warring states period
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the period of chinese history between 403 bce and 221 bce when states fought each other and one state after another was destroyed
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crossbow
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a powerful mechanical bow developed during the warring states period
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ren
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the ultimate confucian virtue; it is translated as perfect goodness, benevolence, humanity, human-heartedness, and nobility
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filial piety
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reverent attitude of children to their parents extolled by confucius
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dao
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the way, a term used by daoists to refer to the natural order and by confucians to refer to the moral order
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legalists
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political theorists who emphasized the need for rigorous laws and laid the basis for chinas later bureaucratic government
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yin and yang
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a concept of complementary poles, one of which represents the feminine, dark, and receptive, and the other the masculine, bright, and assertive
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polis
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generally translated as "city-state" it was the basic political and institutional unit of ancient greece
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hoplites
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heavily armed citizens who served as infantrymen and fought to defend the polis
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democracy
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a type of greek government in which all citizens administered the workings of government
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oligarchy
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a type of greek government in which citizens who owned a certain amount of property ruled
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mystery religions
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belief systems that were characterized by secret doctrines, rituals of initiation, and sometimes the promise of rebirth or an afterlife
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platonic ideals
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in plates thought, the eternal unchanging ideal forms that are the essence of true reality
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hellenistic
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literally means like the greek; describes the period from the death of alexander the great in 323 bce to the roman conquest of egypt in 30 bce when greek culture spread
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hellenization
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the spread of greek ideas, culture, and traditions to non-greek groups across a wide area
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epicureanism
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a system of philosophy based on the teachings of epicurus, who viewed a life of contentment, free from fear and suffering, as the greatest good
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stoicism
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a philosophy based on the ideas of zeno that held that people could only be happy when living in accordance with nature and accepting whatever happened
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senate
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the assembly that was the main institution of power in the roman republic, originally composed only of aristocrats
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consuls
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primary executives in the roman republic, elected for one year terms, who commanded the army in battle, administered state business, and supervised financial affairs
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patricians
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the roman hereditary aristocracy, who held most of the political power in the republic
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plebeians
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the common people of rome, who were free but had few of the patricians advantages
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punic wars
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a series of three wars between rome and carthage in which rome emerged the victor
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paterfamilias
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the oldest dominant male of the family, who held great power over the lives of family members
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pax romana
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the "roman peace" a period during the first and second centuries ce of political stability and relative peace
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messiah
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in jewish belief, a savior who would bring a period of peace and happiness for jews; many christians came to believe that jesus was that messiah
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pagan
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originally referring to those who lived in the countryside, the term came to mean those who practiced religions other than judaism or christianity
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bishop
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a christian church official with jurisdiction over a certain area and the power to determine the correct interpretation of christian teachings
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great wall
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a rammed-earth fortification built along the northern border of china during the reign of the first emperor
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confucian classics
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the ancient texts recovered during the han dynasty that confucian scholars treated as sacred scriptures
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records of the grand historian
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a comprehensive history of china written by sima qian
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silk road
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the trade routes across central asia linking china to western eurasia
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tributary system
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a system first established during the han dynasty to regulate contact with foreign powers. states and tribes beyond its borders sent envoys bearing gifts and received gifts in return
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eunuchs
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castrated males who played an important role as palace servants
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age of division
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the period after the fall of the han dynasty when china was politically divided
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grand canal
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a canal, built during the sui dynasty, that connected the yellow and yangzi rivers, notable for strengthening chinas internal cohesion and economic development
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pure land
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a school of buddhism that taught that by calling on the buddha amitabha, one could achieve rebirth in amitabhas pure land paradise
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chan
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a school of buddhism (known in japan as zen) that rejected the authority of the sutras and claimed the superiority of mind-to-mind transmission of buddhist truths
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shinto
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the way of the gods, japans native religion
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nara
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japans capital and first true city, it was established in 710 and modeled o the tang capital of cahng'an
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