WESTERN CIVILIZATION I CLEP master set

Temple

(Judaism) the place of worship for a Jewish congregation

Solomon

(Old Testament) son of David and king of Israel noted for his wisdom (10th century BC)

David

(Old Testament) the 2nd king of the Israelites

Moses

(Old Testament) the Hebrew prophet who led the Israelites from Egypt across the Red sea on a journey known as the Exodus

Saul

(Old Testament) the first king of the Israelites who defended Israel against many enemies (especially the Philistines)

bronze age

(archeology) a period between the Stone and Iron ages, characterized by the manufacture and use of bronze tools and weapons

Phillip II

336 BC, was an ancient Greek king of Macedon from 359 BC until his assassination in 336. He was the father of Alexander the Great.

Phalanxes

A Macedonian battle formation of infantry standing in close ranks with their shields and long spears overlapping each other.

Ur

A city of ancient Sumer in southern Mesopotamia on a site in present-day southeast Iraq. One of the oldest cities in Mesopotamia, it was an important center of Sumerian culture after c. 3000 B.C. and the birthplace of Abraham.

polis

A city-state in ancient Greece

sumer

A group of ancient city-states in southern Mesopotamia; the earliest civilization in Mesopotamia.

archilochus

A soldier and poet living in the first half of the 7th century BCE, an example of how poetry began challenging traditional values and expressing personal views

Giza

An ancient city capital of Upper Egypt; site of the Great Pyramids

Cleisthenes

An aristocrat, created a council of 500 and helped from Athenian democracy

Draco

Athenian lawmaker whose code of laws prescribed death for almost every offense (circa 7th century BC)

solon

Athenian reformer of the 6th century; established laws that eased the burden of debt on farmers, forbade enslavement for debt

pericles

Athenian statesman whose leadership contributed to Athen's political and cultural supremacy in Greece

Thasos

City besieged by Athens; Thasos turns to Sparta for help.

Carthage

City located in present-day Tunisia, founded by Phoenicians ca. 800 B.C.E. It became a major commercial center and naval power in the western Mediterranean until defeated by Rome in the third century B.C.E.

Persians

Ethnic group that settled in what is now Iran. They were rivals for control of Mesopotamia with the Greeks, and later the Arabs.

Abraham

Founder of Judaism who, according to the Bible, led his family from Ur to Canaan in obedience to God's command.

pindar

Greek lyric poet remembered for his odes (518?-438? BC)

pythagoras

Greek philosopher and mathematician who proved the Pythagorean theorem

democritus

Greek philosopher who developed an atomistic theory of matter (460-370 BC)

aristotle

Greek philosopher. A pupil of Plato, the tutor of Alexander the Great, and the author of works on logic, metaphysics, ethics, natural sciences, politics, and poetics, he profoundly influenced Western thought. In his philosophical system, which led him to criticize what he saw as Plato's metaphysical excesses, theory follows empirical observation and logic, based on the syllogism, is the essential method of rational inquiry.

hesiod

Greek poet whose existing works describe rural life and the genealogies of the gods and the beginning of the world (eighth century BC)

sophocles

Greek writer of tragedies; author of Oedipus Rex

Hellenistic

Greek-like

Hittites

Groups like the ______ in Anatolia gained control over iron weapons and were able to subjugate their less powerful neighbors.

sexagesimal

Is a numeral system the people of Sumer used that has a numeral base of 60

Jacob

Old Testament) son of Isaac nounEx. brother of Esau; father of the twelve patriarchs of Israel; Jacob wrestled with God and forced God to bless him, so God gave Jacob the new name of Israel (meaning 'one who has been strong against God

sparta

Powerful city in Ancient Greece that was run like a military state. It competed with Athens for dominance

Phoenicians

Sailing and trading people who had many colonies on the Mediterranean coast

peisistratus

Seized power from Solon and exiled nobles who disagreed with him. He also distributed those nobles' land to poor farmers in need.

marathon

Site of the famous battle fought between the armies of Persia and the outnumbered Athenians. Athens was victorious and a messenger was sent to run the 26 miles back to the city with the news.

xerxes

Son of Darius; became Persian king. He vowed revenge on the Athenians. He invaded Greece with 180,000 troops in 480 B.C.

anatolia

The peninsula between the Mediterranean and the Black Seas that is now occupied by most of Turkey; also called Asia Minor

Hyksos

The people who invaded Egypt thus beginning the second Intermediate period during which the ______ ( a word meaning "foreigner) ruled as pharaohs in Lower Egypt and exacted tribute from the royal families in Thebes.

peloponnesian

This war, between Athens and Sparta, resulted in the defeat of Athens.

consuls

Two officials from the patrician class were appointed each year of the Roman Republic to supervise the government and command the armies

odyssey

a Greek epic poem (attributed to Homer) describing the journey of Odysseus after the fall of Troy

Iliad

a Greek epic poem (attributed to Homer) describing the siege of Troy

Elijah

a Hebrew prophet in the Old Testament who opposed the worship of idols

Chaeronea

a battle in which Philip II of Macedon defeated the Athenians and Thebans (338 BC) and also Sulla defeated Mithridates (86 BC)

Epicureanism

a doctrine of hedonism that was defended by several ancient Greek philosophers

Corinth

a leading city of ancient Greece famous for its architecture, pottery, and shipbuilding

academy

a learned establishment for the advancement of knowledge

Kassites

a member of an ancient people who ruled Babylonia between 1520 and 1170 BC

Etruscan

a native or inhabitant of ancient Etruria

democracy

a political system in which the supreme power lies in a body of citizens who can elect people to represent them

thales

a presocratic Greek philosopher and astronomer (who predicted an eclipse in 585 BC) who was said by Aristotle to be the founder of physical science

Heraclitus

a presocratic Greek philosopher who said that fire is the origin of all things and that permanence is an illusion as all things are in perpetual flux (circa 500 BC)

Assyria

a warlike empire who came into power after Hammurabi in 900B.C.E and was known for inventing weapons and war strategies.

delian

alliance of Greek city-states formed after the Persian War to protect Greece from future attacks by the Persians.

Amos

an Old Testament book telling Amos's prophecies

Hieroglyphics

an ancient Egyptian writing system in which pictures were used to represent ideas and sounds

pyrrhic

an ancient Greek dance imitating the motions of warfare

aristophanes

an ancient Greek dramatist remembered for his comedies (448-380 BC)

aristarchus

an ancient Greek grammarian remembered for his commentary on the Iliad and Odyssey (circa 217-145 BC)

Byblos

an ancient Mediterranean seaport that was a thriving city state in Phoenicia during the second millenium BC

Judah

an ancient kingdom of southern Palestine with Jerusalem as its center

Israel

an ancient kingdom of the Hebrew tribes at the southeastern end of the Mediterranean Sea

cuneiform

an ancient wedge-shaped script used in Mesopotamia and Persia

Aegean

an arm of the Mediterranean between Greece and Turkey

Cyprus

an island in the eastern Mediterranean

Homer

ancient Greek epic poet who is believed to have written the Iliad and the Odyssey (circa 850 BC)

thucydides

ancient Greek historian remembered for his history of the Peloponnesian War (460-395 BC)

mithraism

ancient Persian religion

Ra

ancient hawk-headed Egyptian sun god

ionia

area along the central west coast of Asia Minor colonized by settlers from mainland Greece from about 1000 BC. Ionian Greeks, including Homer, played a central role in the early development of Greek history and literature following the Dark Ages.

Mosaic

decorated with small pieces of colored glass or stone fitted together

Akhenaton

early ruler of Egypt who rejected the old gods and replaced them with sun worship (died in 1358 BC)

Mycenaeans

first Greek-speaking people; invaded Minoans; dominated Greek world 1400 B.C. to 1200 B.C.; sea traders; lived in separate city-states; invovled in Trojan War against Troy

Chaldeans

group that overtook the Assyrians in 612 B.C.E. burned capital city of Nineveh, Hebrews were happy because they had been enslaved by the Assyrians. Made Babylon the new capital

stoicism

indifference to pleasure or pain

extensive

large in spatial extent or range

neolithic

latest part of the Stone Age beginning about 10,000 BC in the middle east (but later elsewhere)

hippocrates

medical practitioner who is regarded as the father of medicine

Salamis

naval battle where the Greek forces defeated the Persians, shortly after the battle at Thermopylae

Archiac

no longer current or applicable; antiquated

Euripides

one of the greatest tragic dramatists of ancient Greece (480-406 BC)

Seleucid

one of the three regions of Alexander's empire; contained Bactria and Anatolia

ptolemaic

one of the three regions of Alexander's empire; contained Egypt

antigonid

one of the three regions of Alexander's empire; contained Greece and Macedon

socrates

philosopher who believed in an absolute right or wrong; asked students pointed questions to make them use their reason, later became Socratic method. condemed to death for corrupting young minds.

paleolithic

second part of the Stone Age beginning about 750,00 to 500,000 years BC and lasting until the end of the last ice age about 8,500 years BC

Alexander the great

son of Philip II; received military training in Macedonian army and was a student of Aristotle; great leader; conquered much land in Asia Minor, Syria, Egypt, and Mesopotamia; goal was to conquer the known world

syracuse

the Athenian siege of Syracuse (415-413 BC) was eventually won by Syracuse

Amorites

the Sumerian civilization fell to this civilization

Herodotus

the ancient Greek known as the father of history

Athens

the capital and largest city of Greece

skepticism

the disbelief in any claims of ultimate knowledge

gilgamesh

the epic story of the king, Gilgamesh, who searched for immortality. This is a Sumerian legend and is believed to be the first story

parthenon

the main temple of the goddess Athena

ostracism

the state of being banished or ostracized (excluded from society by general consent)

Akkadians

this civilization included Semitic people living north of Sumeria; united city-states of Mesopotamia; first empire in history; established by Sargon the Great

Daispora

translated the Hebrew bible into Greek, spreading Jewish ideas.

achean

trojan war was during the ____ rule

fabian

using cautious slow strategy to wear down opposition

Egyptians

we are the people who built great pyramids and were ruled by monarchs called pharaohs