Social Studies Background Vocabulary – Flashcards
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Aristocracy
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Group of the most wealthy and privileged
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BCE
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Before Common Era
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CE
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Common Era
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Caste system
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A Hindu social class system that controlled every aspect of daily life
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City state
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A city with political and economic control over the surrounding countryside
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civilization
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A complex, highly organized social order
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conquistador
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A Spanish conqueror of the Americas
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dynasty
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a line of hereditary rulers of a country.
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elite
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The choice members or best of a group
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fertile
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Able to produce good crops
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feudalism
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A system of government based on landowners and tenants
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history
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The study of past events
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hunter
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Someone who kills wild animals for food.
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gatherer
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Someone who gathers and collects berries, seeds and nuts for food.
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latitude
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Distance north or south of the equator
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longitude
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Distance east or west of the prime meridian, measured in degrees
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lord
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In feudal Europe, a person who controlled land and could therefore grant estates to vassals
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matriarchal
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(adj)pertaining to rule or leadership by women or mothers
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medieval
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Another name for the Middle Ages. 500A.D. - 1350 A.D.
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merchant
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A person who makes money by selling goods
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Mongols
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A member of any of the traditionally nomadic peoples of Mongolia
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Monotheism
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The belief in one God
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monsoon
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A strong wind that blows across East Asia at certain times of the year
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Oligarchy
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A form of government in which the power to rule is held by a small, usually self-appointed elite.
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papyrus
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Egyptian paper
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patriarchal
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relating to a society in which men hold the greatest legal and moral authority
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patrician
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In ancient Rome, a member of the privileged upper class.
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philosophy
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An organized system of thought, from the Greek for "love of wisdom"
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plebian
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Common person; lower class person/people.
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polytheism
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The belief in many gods
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prehistory
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The period of time before writing
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Rosetta Stone
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Artifact that unlocked the mystery of Egyptian hieroglyphics
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scribe
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A professional writer
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silk road
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Caravan routes connecting China and the Middle East across Central Asia and Iran.
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tyrant
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a cruel and oppressive dictator
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vassal
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A knight who promised to support a lord in exchange for land
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Zen
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The highest point
