AP World History Exam Study Guide
Civilization - correct answer-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 answer-People who support themselves by hunting wild animals and
gathering wild edible plants and insects.
Cuneiform - correct answer-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 answer-The study of past events and changes in the development,
transmission, and transformation of cultural practices.
City-state - correct answer-A small independent state consisting of an urban center and the
surrounding agricultural territory. A characteristic political form in early Mesopotamia,
classical Greece, Phoenicia, and early Italy.
Culture - correct answer-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 answer-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 answer-The period of the Stone Age associated with the evolution of
humans. It predates the Neolithic period.
Neolithic - correct answer-The period of the Stone Age associated with the ancient
Agricultural Revolution (s). It follows the Paleolithic period.
Mohenjo-Darro - correct answer-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 answer-1) Mesopotamia, 2)
Egypt, 3) Pakistan, 4) northern China
,What are the characteristics of civilization? - correct answer-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 answer-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 simple digging stick, but it leaves the region vulnerable to devastating
earthquakes.
Daoism - correct answer-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 answer-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 answer-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.
Mandate of Heaven - correct answer-Chinese religious and political ideology developed by
the Zhou, according to which it was the prerogative of Heaven, the chief deity, to grant power
to the rule of China and to take away that power if the ruler failed to conduct himself justly
and in the best interests of his subjects.
Shang - correct answer-The dominant people in the earliest Chinese dynasty for which we
have written records (ca. 1750-1045 B.C.E.). Ancestor worship, divination by means of
oracle bones, and the use of bronze vessels for ritual purposes were major elements of
_____ culture.
Hittites - correct answer-A people from central Anatolia who established an empire in
Anatolia and Syria in the late Bronze Age. With wealth from the trade in metals and military
power based on chariot forces, the _____ vied with New Kingdom Egypt for control of
Syria-Palestine before falling to unidentified attackers ca. 1200 B.C.E.
Hatshepsut - correct answer-Queen of Egypt (r. 1473-1458 B.C.E.). She dispatched a naval
expedition down the Red Sea to Punt (possibly northeast Sudan or Eretria), the faraway
source of myrrh. There is evidence of opposition to a woman as ruler, and after her death
her name and image were frequently defaced.
Akhenaten - correct answer-Egyptian pharaoh (r. 1353-1335 B.C.E.) He built a new capital at
Amarna, fostered a new style of naturalistic art, and created a religious revolution by
imposing worship of the sun-disk. The Amarna letters, largely from his reign, preserve official
correspondence with subjects and neighbors.
,Ramesses II - correct answer-A long-lived ruler of New Kingdom Egypt (r. 1290-1224
B.C.E.). He reached an accommodation with the Hittites of Anatolia after a standoff in battle
at Kadesh in Syria. He built on a grand scale throughout Egypt.
Minoan - correct answer-Prosperous civilization on the Aegean island of Crete in the second
millennium B.C.E. The Minoans engaged in far-flung commerce around the Mediterranean
and exerted powerful cultural influences on the early Greeks.
Mycenae - correct answer-Site of a fortified palace complex in southern Greece that
controlled a Late Bronze Age kingdom. In Homer's epic poems Mycenae was the base of
King Agamemnon, who commanded the Greeks besieging Troy. Contemporary
archaeologists call the complex Greek society of the second millennium B.C.E.
"Mycenaean."
Library at Ashurbanipal - correct answer-A large collection of writings drawn from the ancient
literary, religious, and scientific traditions of Mesopotamia. It was assembled by the
7th-centry B.C.E. Assyrian ruler Ashurbanipal. The many tablets unearthed by
archaeologists constitute one of the most important sources of present-day knowledge of the
long literary tradition of Mesopotamia.
Assyrians - correct answer-Their kings were viewed as both gods and kings and the center
of the universe. They were known as a warrior people who ruthlessly conquered neighboring
countries. They used iron weapons, cavalry, couriers, signal fires, and spy networks as well
as scare tactics and mass deportation to conquer others.Their control was more effective at
the core and less effective in the peripheral parts of the empire. They consisted of free,
land-owning citizens, farmers and artisans, and slaves. They preserved the knowledge
inherited from older Mesopotamian societies and made original contributions to mathematics
and astronomy. They maintained libraries that were attached to temples in the cities, such as
the Library of Ashurbanipal in Ninevah.
Hebrews - correct answer-These people were nomadic herders and caravan drivers who
developed a complex sedentary agricultural civilization. As they did so, their cult of a desert
god evolved into an influential monotheistic religion. They were known by various names:
Canaan, Israel, Palestine; Hebrews, Israelites, and Jews.
Torah/Hebrew Bible - correct answer-A collection of sacred books containing diverse
materials concerning the origins, experiences, beliefs, and practices of the Israelites. Most of
the extant text was compiled by members of the priestly class in the 5th century B.C.E. and
reflects the concerns and views of this group.
Solomon - correct answer-The Israelite monarchy reached the height of its power in King
____'s reign (David's son), who forged alliances and sponsored trade with distant lands. He
also expanded the bureaucracy and the army, and built the first temple in Jerusalem.
Monotheism - correct answer-Belief in the existence of a single divine entity. Some scholars
cite the devotion of the Egyptian pharaoh Akhenaten to Aten (sun-disk) and his suppression
, of traditional gods as the earliest instance. The Israelite worship of Yahweh developed into
an exclusive belief in one god, and this concept passed into Christianity and Islam.
Diaspora - correct answer-A Greek word meaning "dispersal," used to describe the
communities of a given ethnic group living outside their homeland. Jews, for example,
spread from Israel to western Asia and Mediterranean lands in antiquity and today can be
found throughout the world.
Phoenicians - correct answer-Semitic-speaking Canaanites living on the coast of modern
Lebanon and Syria in the 1st millennium B.C.E. From major cities such as Tyre and Sidon,
Phoenician merchants and sailors explored the Mediterranean, engaged in widespread
commerce, and founded Carthage and other colonies in the western Mediterranean.
Olmecs - correct answer-The first Mesoamerican civilization. Between 1200-400 B.C.E., the
____ people of central Mexico created a vibrant civilization that included intensive
agriculture, wide-ranging trade, ceremonial centers, and monumental construction. They had
great cultural influence on later Mesoamerican societies, passing on artistic styles, religious
imagery, sophisticated astronomical observation for the construction of calendars, and a
ritual ball game.
Satrap - correct answer-The governor of a province in the Achaemenid Persian Empire,
often a relative of the king. He was responsible for protection of the province and for
forwarding tribute to the central administration. Satraps in outlying provinces enjoyed
considerable autonomy.
Zoroastrianism - correct answer-a religion originating in ancient Iran that became the official
religion of the Achaemenids. It centered on a single benevolent deity, Ahuramazda, who
engaged in a struggle with demonic forces before prevailing and restoring a pristine world. It
emphasized truth-telling, purity, and reverence for nature.
Polis - correct answer-The Greek term for a city-state, an urban center and the agricultural
territory under its control. It was the characteristic form of political organization in southern
and central Greece in the Archaic and Classical periods. Of the hundreds of city-states in the
Mediterranean and Black Sea regions settled by Greeks, some were oligarchic, others
democratic, depending on the powers delegated to the Council and the Assembly.
Hoplite - correct answer-Heavily armored Greek infantryman of the Archaic and Classical
periods who fought in the close-packed phalanx formation. Hoplite armies-militias composed
of middle- and upper-class citizens supplying their own equipment: Superior to all other
forces.
Tyrant - correct answer-The term the Greeks used to describe someone who seized and
held power in violation of the normal procedures and traditions of the community. Tyrants
appeared in many Greek city-states in the seventh and sixth centuries B.C.E., often taking
advantage of the disaffection of the emerging middle class and, by weakening the old elite,
unwittingly contributing to the evolution of democracy.
Civilization - correct answer-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 answer-People who support themselves by hunting wild animals and
gathering wild edible plants and insects.
Cuneiform - correct answer-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 answer-The study of past events and changes in the development,
transmission, and transformation of cultural practices.
City-state - correct answer-A small independent state consisting of an urban center and the
surrounding agricultural territory. A characteristic political form in early Mesopotamia,
classical Greece, Phoenicia, and early Italy.
Culture - correct answer-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 answer-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 answer-The period of the Stone Age associated with the evolution of
humans. It predates the Neolithic period.
Neolithic - correct answer-The period of the Stone Age associated with the ancient
Agricultural Revolution (s). It follows the Paleolithic period.
Mohenjo-Darro - correct answer-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 answer-1) Mesopotamia, 2)
Egypt, 3) Pakistan, 4) northern China
,What are the characteristics of civilization? - correct answer-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 answer-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 simple digging stick, but it leaves the region vulnerable to devastating
earthquakes.
Daoism - correct answer-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 answer-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 answer-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.
Mandate of Heaven - correct answer-Chinese religious and political ideology developed by
the Zhou, according to which it was the prerogative of Heaven, the chief deity, to grant power
to the rule of China and to take away that power if the ruler failed to conduct himself justly
and in the best interests of his subjects.
Shang - correct answer-The dominant people in the earliest Chinese dynasty for which we
have written records (ca. 1750-1045 B.C.E.). Ancestor worship, divination by means of
oracle bones, and the use of bronze vessels for ritual purposes were major elements of
_____ culture.
Hittites - correct answer-A people from central Anatolia who established an empire in
Anatolia and Syria in the late Bronze Age. With wealth from the trade in metals and military
power based on chariot forces, the _____ vied with New Kingdom Egypt for control of
Syria-Palestine before falling to unidentified attackers ca. 1200 B.C.E.
Hatshepsut - correct answer-Queen of Egypt (r. 1473-1458 B.C.E.). She dispatched a naval
expedition down the Red Sea to Punt (possibly northeast Sudan or Eretria), the faraway
source of myrrh. There is evidence of opposition to a woman as ruler, and after her death
her name and image were frequently defaced.
Akhenaten - correct answer-Egyptian pharaoh (r. 1353-1335 B.C.E.) He built a new capital at
Amarna, fostered a new style of naturalistic art, and created a religious revolution by
imposing worship of the sun-disk. The Amarna letters, largely from his reign, preserve official
correspondence with subjects and neighbors.
,Ramesses II - correct answer-A long-lived ruler of New Kingdom Egypt (r. 1290-1224
B.C.E.). He reached an accommodation with the Hittites of Anatolia after a standoff in battle
at Kadesh in Syria. He built on a grand scale throughout Egypt.
Minoan - correct answer-Prosperous civilization on the Aegean island of Crete in the second
millennium B.C.E. The Minoans engaged in far-flung commerce around the Mediterranean
and exerted powerful cultural influences on the early Greeks.
Mycenae - correct answer-Site of a fortified palace complex in southern Greece that
controlled a Late Bronze Age kingdom. In Homer's epic poems Mycenae was the base of
King Agamemnon, who commanded the Greeks besieging Troy. Contemporary
archaeologists call the complex Greek society of the second millennium B.C.E.
"Mycenaean."
Library at Ashurbanipal - correct answer-A large collection of writings drawn from the ancient
literary, religious, and scientific traditions of Mesopotamia. It was assembled by the
7th-centry B.C.E. Assyrian ruler Ashurbanipal. The many tablets unearthed by
archaeologists constitute one of the most important sources of present-day knowledge of the
long literary tradition of Mesopotamia.
Assyrians - correct answer-Their kings were viewed as both gods and kings and the center
of the universe. They were known as a warrior people who ruthlessly conquered neighboring
countries. They used iron weapons, cavalry, couriers, signal fires, and spy networks as well
as scare tactics and mass deportation to conquer others.Their control was more effective at
the core and less effective in the peripheral parts of the empire. They consisted of free,
land-owning citizens, farmers and artisans, and slaves. They preserved the knowledge
inherited from older Mesopotamian societies and made original contributions to mathematics
and astronomy. They maintained libraries that were attached to temples in the cities, such as
the Library of Ashurbanipal in Ninevah.
Hebrews - correct answer-These people were nomadic herders and caravan drivers who
developed a complex sedentary agricultural civilization. As they did so, their cult of a desert
god evolved into an influential monotheistic religion. They were known by various names:
Canaan, Israel, Palestine; Hebrews, Israelites, and Jews.
Torah/Hebrew Bible - correct answer-A collection of sacred books containing diverse
materials concerning the origins, experiences, beliefs, and practices of the Israelites. Most of
the extant text was compiled by members of the priestly class in the 5th century B.C.E. and
reflects the concerns and views of this group.
Solomon - correct answer-The Israelite monarchy reached the height of its power in King
____'s reign (David's son), who forged alliances and sponsored trade with distant lands. He
also expanded the bureaucracy and the army, and built the first temple in Jerusalem.
Monotheism - correct answer-Belief in the existence of a single divine entity. Some scholars
cite the devotion of the Egyptian pharaoh Akhenaten to Aten (sun-disk) and his suppression
, of traditional gods as the earliest instance. The Israelite worship of Yahweh developed into
an exclusive belief in one god, and this concept passed into Christianity and Islam.
Diaspora - correct answer-A Greek word meaning "dispersal," used to describe the
communities of a given ethnic group living outside their homeland. Jews, for example,
spread from Israel to western Asia and Mediterranean lands in antiquity and today can be
found throughout the world.
Phoenicians - correct answer-Semitic-speaking Canaanites living on the coast of modern
Lebanon and Syria in the 1st millennium B.C.E. From major cities such as Tyre and Sidon,
Phoenician merchants and sailors explored the Mediterranean, engaged in widespread
commerce, and founded Carthage and other colonies in the western Mediterranean.
Olmecs - correct answer-The first Mesoamerican civilization. Between 1200-400 B.C.E., the
____ people of central Mexico created a vibrant civilization that included intensive
agriculture, wide-ranging trade, ceremonial centers, and monumental construction. They had
great cultural influence on later Mesoamerican societies, passing on artistic styles, religious
imagery, sophisticated astronomical observation for the construction of calendars, and a
ritual ball game.
Satrap - correct answer-The governor of a province in the Achaemenid Persian Empire,
often a relative of the king. He was responsible for protection of the province and for
forwarding tribute to the central administration. Satraps in outlying provinces enjoyed
considerable autonomy.
Zoroastrianism - correct answer-a religion originating in ancient Iran that became the official
religion of the Achaemenids. It centered on a single benevolent deity, Ahuramazda, who
engaged in a struggle with demonic forces before prevailing and restoring a pristine world. It
emphasized truth-telling, purity, and reverence for nature.
Polis - correct answer-The Greek term for a city-state, an urban center and the agricultural
territory under its control. It was the characteristic form of political organization in southern
and central Greece in the Archaic and Classical periods. Of the hundreds of city-states in the
Mediterranean and Black Sea regions settled by Greeks, some were oligarchic, others
democratic, depending on the powers delegated to the Council and the Assembly.
Hoplite - correct answer-Heavily armored Greek infantryman of the Archaic and Classical
periods who fought in the close-packed phalanx formation. Hoplite armies-militias composed
of middle- and upper-class citizens supplying their own equipment: Superior to all other
forces.
Tyrant - correct answer-The term the Greeks used to describe someone who seized and
held power in violation of the normal procedures and traditions of the community. Tyrants
appeared in many Greek city-states in the seventh and sixth centuries B.C.E., often taking
advantage of the disaffection of the emerging middle class and, by weakening the old elite,
unwittingly contributing to the evolution of democracy.
