| A | B |
|---|
| A.D. | Anno Domini; the period of history which begins with the birth of Christ |
| Akkad | Mesopatamian city-state; world's first empire |
| ancient history | first civilizations that wrote and kept records; 3500 B.C. to 476 A.D. |
| Assyrian Empire | ancient Mesopotamian empire |
| Babylon | ancient Mesopotamian empire |
| B.C. | the period of ancient history before the birth of Christ. |
| Canaan | area where the first Hebrews lived |
| city-state | ancient area with its own government and culture |
| civilization | complex society that has language, religion, a division of labor, and a social hierarchy |
| cunneiform | first form of writing |
| empire | large area of city-states controlled by one ruler |
| Fertile Crescent | area between Tigres and Euphrates Rivers where the first civilizations emerged |
| Gilgamesh | ancient Babylonian epic poem |
| Hammurabi Code | collection of ancient Babylonian laws |
| Judaism | the religion practiced by the Hebrews, who were ancestors of Jewish people |
| Kingdom of Israel | second kingdom of Israelites established by king David |
| Mesopotamia | region in the Fertile Crescent where the first civilization began; means "the land between the two rivers" |
| Monotheism | belief in one god |
| prehistory | time before recorded history |
| Sumer | Mesopotamian city-state |
| Torah | sacred text of Judaism; first five books of the Bible |
| ziggurat | Mesopotamian pyramid-shaped structure used for religious ceremonies |
