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Western Civilizations Pre-1500 Midterm
30 Terms, Beginning of Civilization to Rome
35
History
Undergraduate 1
10/12/2010

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Term
Political States
Definition
People living in a defined territory and organized under a central political authority
Term
Hunter-gatherers
Definition
People who roamed all their lives, hunting wild animals and foraging, never settled permanently in one place
Term
Hierarchy
Definition
The system of ranking people in a society according to their importance and dominance
Term
Patriarchy
Definition
Dominance by men in society and politics
Term
Civilization
Definition
A way of life that includes political states based on cities with dense populations, large buildings constructed for communal activities, diverse economies, a sense of local identity, and some knowledge of writing.
Term
Polytheism
Definition
The worship of multiple gods.
Term
City-state
Definition
An urban center exercising political and economic control over the surrounding countryside.
Term
Empire
Definition
A political state in which one or more formerly independent territories or peoples are ruled by a single sovereign power.
Term
Hammurabi
Definition
King of Babylonian the 18th century B.C.E., famous for his law code.
Term
Maat
Definition
The Egyptian goddess embodying truth, justice, and cosmic order.
Term
Cyrus
Definition
Founder of the Persian Empire
Term
Arete
Definition
The Greek value of competitive individual excellence.
Term
Arete
Definition
The Greek value of competitive individual excellence.
Term
Homer
Definition
Greece's first and most famour author, who composed The Iliad and The Odyssey.
Term
Polis
Definition
The Greek city-state, an independent community of citizens.
Term
Solon
Definition
Athenian political reformer whose changes promoted early democracy.
Term
Rationalism
Definition
The philosophic idea that people must justify their claims by logic and reason, not myth.
Term
Themistocles
Definition
Athen's leader during the great Persian invasion of Greece
Term
Delian League
Definition
The naval alliance led by Athens in the Golden Age that became the basis for the Athenian Empire.
Term
Pericles
Definition
Athens' political leader during the Golden Age.
Term
Radical Democracy
Definition
Athenian system of democracy established in the 460s and 450s B.C.E. That extended direct political power and participation in the court system to all adult male citizens.
Term
Plato
Definition
A follower of Socrates who became Greece's most famous philosopher
Term
Hellenistic
Definition
An adjective meaning “Greek-like” that is today used as a chronological term for the period 323-30 B.C.E.
Term
Patron-client system
Definition
The interlocking network of mutual obligations between Roman patrons(social superiors) and clients(social inferiors).
Term
Res publica
Definition
Literally, “the people's matter” or “the public business”; the Romans' name for their republic and the source of our word republic.
Term
Orders
Definition
The two groups of people in the Roman republic-patricians(aristocratic families) and plebeians(all other citizens).
Term
Twelve Tables
Definition
The first written Roman law code, enacted between 451 and 449 B.C.E.
Term
Cicero
Definition
Rome's most famous orator and author of the doctrine of humanitas.
Term
Optimates
Definition
The Roman political faction supporting the “best,” or highest, social class; established during the late republic.
Term
First Triumverate
Definition
The coalition formed in 60 B.C.E. By Pompey, Crassus, and Caesar.
Term
Principate
Definition
Roman political system invented by Augustus as a disguised monarchy with the princeps(“first man”) as emperor.
Term
Pax Romana
Definition
The two centuries of relative peace and prosperity in the Roman Empire under the early principate begun by Augustus.
Term
Augustus
Definition
The honorary name meaning “divinely favored” that the Roman Senate bestowed on Octavian; it became shorthand for “Roman imperial ruler.”
Term
Praetorian Guard
Definition
The group of soldiers stationed in Rome under the emperor's control; first formed by Augustus.
Term
Apostolic succession
Definition
The principle by which Christian bishops traced their authority back to the apostles of Jesus.
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