| A | B |
|---|
| Fertile Crescent/Mesopotamia | region located in the middle east known for its rich soil and curved shape |
| Tigris/Euphrates | two rivers located in Mesopotamia; site of early river valley civilization |
| silt | a thick bed of nutrient-rich mud left by floodwaters; good for planting |
| city-state | a city that develops its own government; functions as its own independent country |
| dynasty | a series of rulers from a single family |
| cultural diffusion | a process in which a new idea or product spreads from one culture to another |
| polytheism | a belief in many gods |
| "cradles of civilization" | the 4 earliest river valley civilizations: Mesopotamia, Egypt, Indus and Huang He |
| empire | bringing together several peoples, nations, or previously independent states under control of one ruler |
| Hammurabi | emperor of Babylon when it reached it's peak; put together a single uniform code of laws |
| cataract | Rapids along a river, specifically the Nile |
| delta | the place where a river begins to join a larger body of water and creates a triangular-shaped ("ribbons" of streams) towards the mouth |
| Narmer | Egyptian king who united Upper and Lower Egypt |
| pharoah | a king/god of Egypt |
| theocracy | a type of government in which rule is based on religious authority |
| pictographs | the earliest form of writing in Egypt |
| hieroglyphics | a more flexible writing system developed in Egypt based on pictographs |
| Rosetta Stone | an ancient text based on hieroglyphics and Greek writing |
| Hindu Kush | a mountain range found in lower Asia |
| Himalayas | a large mountain range found in upper India |
| Indus/Ganges | rivers found in India |
| monsoons | seasonal winds that dominates India's climate |
| Khyber Pass | passage through the Hindu Kush mountain range that links modern-day Pakistan and Afghanistan |
| Mohenjo-Daro | one of the largest city-settlements in the Indus Valley; archaeological site of the Harappan civilization |
| Harappans | early advanced group of people that lived in India and developed a civilization there |
| loess | fertile yellow soil found on the banks of China's rivers |
| Xia Dynasty | first Chinese dynasty that brought advanced technology |
| Shang Dynasty | first Chinese dynasty to leave written records |
| oracle bones | Shang kings used these to consult the gods for answers |
| Zhou Dynasty | a ruling family that overthrew the Shang and established a mandate of heaven |
| Mandate of Heaven | a ruler who has divine rule blessed by the gods |
| dynastic cycle | a pattern of rule based on the rise, decline and replacement of dynasties |
| feudalism | a political system of rule in which nobles are granted land by a king in exchange for loyalty |
