Simple Solutions© Social Studies Level 6 Level 6 Social Studies Help Pages 283 Simple Solutions© Social Studies Level 6 Help Pages Glossary the father of Judaism; a prophet of Islam; an ancestor of Jesus and Abraham Muhammad an Egyptian pharaoh; the first major leader to endorse a monotheistic Akhenaten religion Allah the Muslim term for God Alps a large mountain range in Europe the world’s second longest river; the river with the highest volume of Amazon River water Andes the world’s longest mountain range; located in South America Antarctica the southernmost continent; the world’s largest and coldest desert archaeology the study of the things left behind by past cultures (ahr kee ol uh jee) artifacts human-made objects a central Asian people who entered India and changed its culture, Aryan people bringing a caste system and Brahmanism Ashoka the Great a Mauryan (Indian) emperor who converted to Buddhism Atacama Desert the world’s driest desert; located in South America Aztec a Mesoamerican people who thrived in the 14th through 16th centuries CE Babylonian the period of time during which the Hebrews were under the control of Captivity the Babylonian Empire bar graph a graph which compares things bartering the trading of one good or service for another nonreligious common language for dating events that came before the Before Common birth of Jesus; years increase in number as the timeline goes from right Era (BCE) to left. Bhagavad Gita a sacred text of Hindu scripture the primary figure in and founder of Buddhism; born Gautama Buddha Siddhartha, a Hindu prince a major world religion founded by Buddha; beliefs include karma, Buddhism reincarnation, the Four Noble Truths, the Middle Way, and the Eightfold Path the non-human, non-cash resources used to create a good; used for the capital resources long-term production of goods; these are not used up when a good is created; includes machinery, tools, vehicles, buildings, etc. caravan a group making a long trip together, often for trade caste the social group into which an Indian person is born cataract a strong river rapid cause the reason something happens cavalry a troop of soldiers on horseback 284 Simple Solutions© Social Studies Level 6 Help Pages Glossary Christianity a religion based upon the belief and worship of Jesus chronological the order in which events happen order circle graph a graph that shows the parts of a whole; also called a pie chart a region with several farms and villages located around a central urban city-state center and ruled by a king civil refusing to obey certain laws to show dissatisfaction with the disobedience government’s treatment of people civilization an organized, advanced, complex society commerce the trade of a good or service for currency an ancient Chinese belief system which presumes that humans are Confucianism naturally good and should capitalize on their own natures; it promotes good behavior, respect, and politeness cultural diffusion the spread of ideas, philosophies, and customs from culture to culture the way a group of people lives, including their customs, beliefs, arts, culture values, and language cuneiform the Sumerian writing system; the world’s first writing system (kyoo nee uh form) currency money nonreligious common language for dating events that came after the Common Era (CE) birth of Jesus; years increase in number as the timeline goes from left to right the first major emperor of Persia; remembered for his policy of cultural Cyrus the Great and religious tolerance the second major emperor of Persia; remembered for his organization Darius the Great and tolerance a landform that develops when a river divides into many channels at its delta mouth Diaspora the displacement, or scattering, of Jews from their lands (dahy as pur uh) dictatorship rule by force and intimidation diplomacy a way for countries to solve their differences through peaceful means domestication raising plants and animals for consumption a country with a single ruling family; the period of time during which dynasty that family reigns the study of how people allocate limited resources and use them to economics satisfy their wants and needs effect what happens as the result of a cause 285 Simple Solutions© Social Studies Level 6 Help Pages Glossary a set of actions meant to end suffering and help one achieve nirvana Eightfold Path (happiness); Buddhist teaching embalm treat a dead body with chemicals to prevent it from decomposing emperor male leader of an empire empire a group of different lands under the control of a single ruler empress female leader of an empire enlightenment a deep knowledge of life’s truths; a central goal of Buddhists the latitude line at 0º; divides the globe into the Northern and Southern Equator Hemispheres ethnic group a group of people who have the same heritage (cultural connection) an area of land stretching from the mouth of the Nile to the northwest Fertile Crescent tip of the Persian Gulf Five Pillars of five acts considered crucial to the Muslim faith Islam Four Noble Buddha’s philosophy on the nature of suffering and how to end it Truths free market an economic system in which buyers and sellers can choose what they system want to buy and sell Gobi Desert a cold desert located in Asia Hammurabi a Babylonian emperor; author of one of the first known codes of law Hammurabi’s one of the first written codes of law Code the Chinese dynasty that followed the Qin and expanded the Chinese Han Dynasty Empire; less emphasis on Legalism and more emphasis on Confucianism Harappan also Harappa; an ancient Indian civilization that developed along the civilization Indus River in west India Hebrews the Jews; also called the Israelites hemisphere half of the globe hieroglyphics the ancient Egyptian writing system (hahy roh glif iks) Himalayas the world’s tallest mountain range; located in Asia Hindu-Arabic the numerals upon which modern numbers are based numerals one of the world’s oldest belief systems; polytheistic; developed from Hinduism Brahmanism; beliefs include karma, reincarnation, and reunion with god history the study of events of the past hominids ancestors and close relatives of early humans (ho muh nidz) 286 Simple Solutions© Social Studies Level 6 Help Pages Glossary Homo sapiens the human species (hoh moh say pee inz) hunter-gatherers people who get food by hunting animals and foraging for plants Ice Age a period when large portions of the Earth were covered in frozen water a South American people who thrived despite their lack of a written Inca language the cost of what is required to produce a good, including natural, inputs capital, human, and financial resources irrigation diverting water from rivers in order to water crops Islam a religion based upon the teachings of Muhammad Israelite a descendant of Abraham’s grandson, Jacob; also called Hebrew (iz ree uhl ahyt) a Jewish rabbi believed by Christians to be the son of God; believed by Jesus Christians and Muslims to be the Messiah; also called Jesus Christ Jews practitioners of Judaism; also called the Hebrews one of the first monotheistic religions; scriptures focus on justice, Judaism kindness, and obedience to the law karma the belief that one’s good or bad deeds affect one’s soul kingdom country ruled by a king or queen kingdom one of the three main eras of ancient Egypt (Egyptology) parallel, horizontal lines measuring out from the Equator; also called latitude lines parallels an ancient Chinese belief system which presumes that humans are Legalism naturally evil and that only the law can restore order and maintain harmony line graph a graph; good for showing change over time north-and-south lines which measure out from the Prime Meridian and longitude lines intersect at the poles; also called meridians maize corn Mandate of the Chinese belief that the gods decide who should be in power Heaven market anywhere that buyers and sellers meet masonry stonework an ancient Mesoamerican people; one of only two cultures known to Maya have developed their own writing system (along with Sumer) Mesoamerica a region including modern-day Mexico and Central America Mesoamerican a game invented by the Olmec with cultural and religious significance in ball game many Mesoamerican cultures 287 Simple Solutions© Social Studies Level 6 Help Pages Glossary a part of the Fertile Crescent where many important ancient civilizations Mesopotamia were born; Greek for “between the rivers” “the anointed one”; a figure, foretold in Jewish scripture, who will restore Messiah the Jewish people to greatness; Christians and Muslims believe Jesus of Nazareth to be the Messiah to move to a new place; human migration has often been caused by lack migrate of food, discrimination, war, or new job opportunities missionary one who travels in hopes of spreading a religious message Mississippi River the largest river system in North America monarchy government ruled by royalty, such as a king or queen (mon ahr kee) monopoly when there is only one seller of a necessary good or service monotheism the worship of one god (mon oh thee izuhm) monsoon seasonal wind Muhammad the primary prophet of Islam mummification the process by which the dead are dried and their bodies preserved Muslim practitioner of Islam Christian scriptures that tell the life and teachings of Jesus as well as the New Testament early Christian church Nile River the world’s longest river; located in Africa nirvana concept common to many Indian religious traditions; a state of pure (nur von uh) happiness nonviolent the refusal to