Ancient Middle East and Egypt (3200 B.C.

Study Notes

Ancient Middle East and Egypt (3200 B.C. – 500 B.C.)

Fertile Crescent: Region in the Middle East where civilizations first developed.
Mesopotamia: Region within the Fertile Crescent, located between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers.
Sumer: Site of the world's first civilization, located in southeastern Mesopotamia.
The Epic of Gilgamesh: Mesopotamian narrative poem, first told orally in Sumer.
Hierarchy: System of ranking groups.
Ziggurat: Large, stepped platform in ancient Mesopotamia, likely topped by a temple dedicated to a city's chief god or goddess.
Cuneiform: System of writing in ancient Middle East using wedge-shaped marks.
Sargon: Ruler of Akkad, who conquered neighboring city-states of Sumer.
Hammurabi: King of Babylon, who expanded Mesopotamian control, improved irrigation, established a strong army, and repaired temples.
Codify: To arrange or set down in writing.
Civil Law: Branch of law dealing with private rights and matters.
Criminal Law: Branch of law dealing with offenses against others.
Nebuchadnezzar: Second king who ruled Babylon.
Barter Economy: Economic system where goods or services are exchanged for other goods or services.
Money Economy: Economic system where goods or services are paid for using a token of agreed value.
Zoroaster: Persian thinker who lived around 600 B.C., rejecting old Persian gods and teaching a single wise god, Ahura Mazda.
Colony: Territory settled and ruled by people from another land.
Alphabet: Writing system where each symbol represents a single basic sound.
Cataract: Waterfall.
Delta: Triangular area of marshland created by river deposits at the river mouth.
Dynasty: Ruling family.
Pharaoh: Title of rulers of ancient Egypt.
Bureaucracy: System of government with multiple officials.
Vizier: Chief minister in ancient Egypt.
Hatshepsut: First female pharaoh who ruled with full authority.
Thutmose III: Great military leader who expanded Egypt's borders.
Ramses II: Pharaoh of the New Kingdom, ruled for 66 years.
Amon-Re: Principal god of ancient Egypt.
Osiris: Egyptian male god.
Isis: Egyptian female god, known for love and jealousy.
Akhenaton: Pharaoh who changed the Egyptian religion to focus on the sun god Aten.
Mummification: Preserving dead bodies through embalming and wrapping in cloth.
Hieroglyphics: System of writing in ancient Egypt that used pictures to represent objects, concepts, or sounds.
Papyrus: Plant used to create writing material in ancient Egypt.
Decipher: To determine the meaning of a code or language.
Rosetta Stone: Stone monument with the same passage written in hieroglyphics, demotic script, and Greek, used to decipher hieroglyphics.
Monotheistic: Believing in one god.
Torah: The most sacred text of the Hebrew Bible (first five books).
Abraham: Mesopotamian who migrated to Canaan and is considered the father of the Israelites.
Covenant: Binding agreement, especially between God and Abraham.
Moses: Israelite who led his people out of Egypt.
David: Second king of Israel, united tribes.
Solomon: David's son, built an impressive capital city in Jerusalem.
Patriarchal: Relating to a society where men hold greater authority.
Sabbath: Holy day of rest and worship.
Prophet: Spiritual leader who interprets God's will.
Ethics: Moral standards of behavior.
Diaspora: Spreading of the Jews beyond their homeland.