artifact
are human-made objects, such as tools and jewelry. These items might hint at how people dressed, what work they did, or how they worshiped.
cuneiform
Sumerian scribes�or professional record keepers�invented a system of writing called cuneiform (KYOO�nee�uh�FAWRM), meaning "wedge-shaped." (Earlier Sumerian writing consisted of pictographs�symbols of the
essential to the growth of civiliza- tions?
object
Fertile Crescent
The region's
curved shape and the richness of its land led scholars to call it the
reincarnation
the Hindu or Buddhist doctrine that person may be reborn successively into one of five classes of living beings (god or human or animal or hungry ghost or denizen of hell) depending on the person's own actions
scribe
professional record keepers
empire
By taking control of both northern and southern Mesopotamia, Sargon created the world's first empire. An empire brings together several peoples, nations, or previously independent states under the control of one ruler.
Paleolithic Age
The earlier and longer part of the Stone Age, called the Old Stone Age or Paleolithic Age, lasted from about 2.5 million to 8000 B.C.
slash-and-burn
in which they cut trees or grasses and burned them to clear a field.
nomad
highly mobile people who moved from place to place foraging, or searching, for new sources of food
enlightenment
in Buddhism, a state of perfect wisdom in which one understands basic truths about the universe
theocracy
This type of government in which rule is based on religious authority is called a theocracy.
polytheism
The belief in more than one god is called
neolithic age
The New Stone Age began about 8000 B.C. and ended as early as 3000 B.C.
bronze age
refers to the time when people began using bronze, rather than cop- per and stone, to fashion tools and weapons.
pharaoh
To the Egyptians, kings were gods. The Egyptian god-kings, called pharaohs (FAIR�ohz), were thought to be almost as splendid and powerful as the gods of the heavens.
Aryans
Indo-European speaking nomads who entered India from the Central Asian steppes between 1500 and 1000 BC and greatly affected Indian society.
feudalism
Feudalism is a political system in which nobles, or lords, are granted the use of lands that legally belong to the king. In return, the nobles owe loyalty and military service to the king and protection to the people who live on their estates.
monotheism
Belief in only one god
hunter-gatherer
Nomadic groups whose food supply depends on hunting animals and collecting plant foods
ziggurat
Within the temple gate, a massive, tiered structure towers over the city. This pyramid-shaped monument is called a ziggurat (ZIHG�uh�RAT), which means "mountain of god.
cultural diffusion
Sumerians exchanged products and ideas, such as living in cities, with neigh- boring cultures. This process in which a new idea or a product spreads from one culture to another is called cultural diffusion.
hieroglyphics
Simple pictographs were the earliest form of writing in Egypt, but scribes quickly developed a more flexible writing system called hieroglyphics
domestication
or taming
bureaucracy
system of managing government through departments run by appointed officials
artisan
skilled workers who make goods by hand
caste system
A social structure in which classes are determined by heredity
city-state
Each city and the surrounding land it controlled formed a city-state.
migration
the movement of persons from one country or locality to another
autocracy
a political theory favoring unlimited authority by a single individual
covenant
a binding agreement
B.C.E
Before Common Era (also known as B.C.)
A.D.
Anno Domini (in the year of our lord)