What does A.D. stand for?
Latin for ‘in the year of the Lord’ (a year after the estimated birth of Jesus Christ)
What does B.C. stand for?
Before Christ
What does B.C.E. stand for?
Before the Common Era, equivalent to BC
What does C.E. stand for?
Common Era
What does ‘circa’ mean?
Around or near
What is a civilization?
A human society with highly developed material and spiritual resources and a complex cultural, political, and legal organization
What is Constantinople (Istanbul)?
Istanbul, originally named ‘City of Constantine’ and officially called Istanbul by 1930
What were the Crusades?
Christians from Europe fought Muslims for control of Jerusalem and other holy places in the 11th–13th centuries
What is filial piety?
Virtue of respecting, obeying, and caring for one’s parents and elders, rooted in Confucianism
Who are hunters and gatherers?
People who obtained food by hunting animals and gathering edible plants
What is the Golden Age of China?
Tang (618–907 AD) and Song (960–1279 AD) dynasties, celebrated for culture, economy, and technology
What is the Golden Age of India?
Gupta Empire (4th–6th centuries CE), known for advancements in science, mathematics, religion, philosophy, and the arts
What is Hagia Sophia?
Historic building in Istanbul, originally a cathedral, later a mosque, now serves as both mosque and museum
What is the Huang He River Civilization?
Early Chinese civilization along the Yellow River, known for agriculture, writing, bronze technology, and family-centered social structure
What is an Ice Age?
Long periods of colder global temperatures with recurring glacial expansion; most recent began 2.6 million years ago
What does pastoral refer to?
Nomadic people who travel with domesticated animals for food
What is the Paleolithic period?
Old Stone Age (3.3 million–12,000 years ago), when early humans developed basic stone tools
What are the Andes Mountains?
South American mountain range, home to civilizations like the Inca and Chavín
Who were the Aryans?
Indo-European people who migrated to India, associated with Vedic culture and Hinduism
What is the Agricultural Revolution (Neolithic)?
Transition from hunter-gatherer lifestyles to settled agriculture
What is the Sumer Civilization?
Early civilization in southern Mesopotamia, credited with writing (cuneiform), the wheel, irrigation, mathematics, and early law and literature
What is the Analects?
A collection of sayings and ideas attributed to Confucius and his disciples.
What is Buddhism?
A religion founded by Siddhartha Gautama, focusing on the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path.
What is a Caliphate?
An Islamic government led by a successor to the Prophet Muhammad.