AP World History Exam Study Guide
Question & Answers ( Latest 2026 )
Civilization - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔An ambiguous
term often used to denote more complex societies but
sometimes used by anthropologists to describe any group
of people sharing a set of cultural traits.
Foragers - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔People who support
themselves by hunting wild animals and gathering wild
edible plants and insects.
Cuneiform - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔A system of
writing in which wedge-shaped symbols represented
words or syllables. It originated in Mesopotamia and was
used initially for Sumerian and Akkadian but later was
adapted to represent other languages of western Asia.
Because so many symbols had to be learned, literacy was
confined to a relatively small group of administrators and
scribes.
History - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔The study of past
events and changes in the development, transmission,
and transformation of cultural practices.
City-state - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔A small
independent state consisting of an urban center and the
surrounding agricultural territory. A characteristic political
,AP World History Exam Study Guide
Question & Answers ( Latest 2026 )
form in early Mesopotamia, classical Greece, Phoenicia,
and early Italy.
Culture - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔Socially transmitted
patterns of action and expression. Material _____ refers to
physical objects, such as dwellings, clothing, tools, and
crafts. _____ also includes arts, beliefs, knowledge, and
technology.
Agricultural Revolution/Neolithic Revolution-When? -
CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔The change from food
gathering to food production that occurred between 8000
and 2000 B.C.E., independently in various parts of the
world. This also includes the domestication of plants and
animals.
Paleolithic - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔The period of the
Stone Age associated with the evolution of humans. It
predates the Neolithic period.
Neolithic - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔The period of the
Stone Age associated with the ancient Agricultural
Revolution (s). It follows the Paleolithic period.
,AP World History Exam Study Guide
Question & Answers ( Latest 2026 )
Mohenjo-Darro - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔Largest of
the cities of the Indus Valley civilization. It was centrally
located in the extensive floodplain of the Indus River in
contemporary Pakistan. Little is known about the political
institutions of Indus Valley communities, but the large
scale of construction at Mohenjo-Daro, the orderly grid for
streets, and the standardization of building materials are
evidence of central planning.
Name the 4 river valleys where civilization began. -
CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔1) Mesopotamia, 2) Egypt, 3)
Pakistan, 4) northern China
What are the characteristics of civilization? - CORRECT
ANSWERS ✔✔1) Cities that serve as administrative
centers, 2) a political system based on control of defined
territory, 3) specialization, 4) status based on wealth, 5)
monumental buildings, 6) a writing system, 7) long
distance trade, and 8) major advancements in science
and art.
Loess - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔A fine, light silt
deposited by wind and water. It constitutes the fertile soil
of the Yellow River Valley in northern China. Because
_____ soil is not compacted, it can be worked with a
, AP World History Exam Study Guide
Question & Answers ( Latest 2026 )
simple digging stick, but it leaves the region vulnerable to
devastating earthquakes.
Daoism - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔Chinese school of
thought, originating in the Warring States Period with
Laozi. Daoism offered an alternative to the Confucian
emphasis on hierarchy and duty. Daoists believe that the
world is always changing and is devoid of absolute
morality or meaning. They accept the world as they find
it, avoid futile struggles, and deviate as little as possible
from the Dao, or "path" of nature.
Legalism - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔An authoritarian
political philosophy that came to be called ____. These
thinkers believe human nature is essentially wicked and
that people behave in an orderly fashion only if
compelled by strict laws and harsh punishments.
Confucius - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔Western name for
the Chinese philosopher Konzi (551-479 B.C.E.). His
doctrine of duty and public service had a great influence
on subsequent Chinese thought and served as a code of
conduct for government officials.
Question & Answers ( Latest 2026 )
Civilization - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔An ambiguous
term often used to denote more complex societies but
sometimes used by anthropologists to describe any group
of people sharing a set of cultural traits.
Foragers - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔People who support
themselves by hunting wild animals and gathering wild
edible plants and insects.
Cuneiform - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔A system of
writing in which wedge-shaped symbols represented
words or syllables. It originated in Mesopotamia and was
used initially for Sumerian and Akkadian but later was
adapted to represent other languages of western Asia.
Because so many symbols had to be learned, literacy was
confined to a relatively small group of administrators and
scribes.
History - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔The study of past
events and changes in the development, transmission,
and transformation of cultural practices.
City-state - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔A small
independent state consisting of an urban center and the
surrounding agricultural territory. A characteristic political
,AP World History Exam Study Guide
Question & Answers ( Latest 2026 )
form in early Mesopotamia, classical Greece, Phoenicia,
and early Italy.
Culture - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔Socially transmitted
patterns of action and expression. Material _____ refers to
physical objects, such as dwellings, clothing, tools, and
crafts. _____ also includes arts, beliefs, knowledge, and
technology.
Agricultural Revolution/Neolithic Revolution-When? -
CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔The change from food
gathering to food production that occurred between 8000
and 2000 B.C.E., independently in various parts of the
world. This also includes the domestication of plants and
animals.
Paleolithic - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔The period of the
Stone Age associated with the evolution of humans. It
predates the Neolithic period.
Neolithic - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔The period of the
Stone Age associated with the ancient Agricultural
Revolution (s). It follows the Paleolithic period.
,AP World History Exam Study Guide
Question & Answers ( Latest 2026 )
Mohenjo-Darro - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔Largest of
the cities of the Indus Valley civilization. It was centrally
located in the extensive floodplain of the Indus River in
contemporary Pakistan. Little is known about the political
institutions of Indus Valley communities, but the large
scale of construction at Mohenjo-Daro, the orderly grid for
streets, and the standardization of building materials are
evidence of central planning.
Name the 4 river valleys where civilization began. -
CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔1) Mesopotamia, 2) Egypt, 3)
Pakistan, 4) northern China
What are the characteristics of civilization? - CORRECT
ANSWERS ✔✔1) Cities that serve as administrative
centers, 2) a political system based on control of defined
territory, 3) specialization, 4) status based on wealth, 5)
monumental buildings, 6) a writing system, 7) long
distance trade, and 8) major advancements in science
and art.
Loess - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔A fine, light silt
deposited by wind and water. It constitutes the fertile soil
of the Yellow River Valley in northern China. Because
_____ soil is not compacted, it can be worked with a
, AP World History Exam Study Guide
Question & Answers ( Latest 2026 )
simple digging stick, but it leaves the region vulnerable to
devastating earthquakes.
Daoism - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔Chinese school of
thought, originating in the Warring States Period with
Laozi. Daoism offered an alternative to the Confucian
emphasis on hierarchy and duty. Daoists believe that the
world is always changing and is devoid of absolute
morality or meaning. They accept the world as they find
it, avoid futile struggles, and deviate as little as possible
from the Dao, or "path" of nature.
Legalism - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔An authoritarian
political philosophy that came to be called ____. These
thinkers believe human nature is essentially wicked and
that people behave in an orderly fashion only if
compelled by strict laws and harsh punishments.
Confucius - CORRECT ANSWERS ✔✔Western name for
the Chinese philosopher Konzi (551-479 B.C.E.). His
doctrine of duty and public service had a great influence
on subsequent Chinese thought and served as a code of
conduct for government officials.
