| A | B |
|---|
| Peninsula | An area of land that is surrounded by water on three sides. |
| Minoans | The earliest Greek culture. Built an advanced society on the island of Crete. |
| Mycenaeans | Built towns on the Greek mainland and were the first people to speak the Greek language. They established colonies for trade throughout the Mediterranean and often attacked other kingdoms. |
| City-state | A political unit consisting of a city and its surrounding country side. |
| Classical | An age that is marked by great achievements. |
| Acropolis | A high hill where ancient Greeks built a strong fortress and temples. The town around this was surrounded by walls for protection. |
| Monarchy | A form of government in which one person, a king or a queen, has absolute power over the people. |
| Oligarchy | A form of government in which a few aristocrats rule together with absolute power. |
| Tyranny | A form of government in which a Tyrant rises to power illegally by overthrowing the existing government and stays in power through use of force. |
| Democracy | A form of government in which people rule themselves by voting. The first was in Athens. |
| Citizens | People who have the right to participate in government. |
| Cleisthenes | The leader of Athens who overthrew the aristocracy and developed the world’s first democracy. He is sometimes called the father of democracy. |
| Pericles | Leader of Athens during the Golden Age, who encouraged beautification, democracy and military strength. |
| Mythology | A body of stories about gods and heroes that tried to explain how the world worked. |
| Homer | A Greek epic poet who created the Iliad and the Odyssey. The poems were central to the ancient Greek education system and to ancient Greek history. |
| Cavalry | A unit of soldiers who ride horses. |
| Persian Empire | A vast empire that tried to expand into Greece. |
| Persian Wars | A series of wars fought between Persia and the Greek city-states. |
| Sparta | Greek city-state that was head of the Peloponnesian League and the main focus of society was on the military. Strong army! |
| Athens | Greek city-state that was head of the Delian League and the birthplace of democracy. Valued education and arts. Strong navy! |
| Golden Age of Athens | Period of progress and prosperity in Athens when many advances were made in architecture, arts, literature, science, and math. |
| Alliance | An agreement to work together, usually for military support. |
| Peloponnesian War | War between the Delian League and the Peloponnesian League that led to the ultimate demise of Ancient Greek civilization |
| Philosopher | Believed in the power of the human mind to think, explain and understand life. |
| Socrates | Greek philosopher who believed people must never stop looking for knowledge and taught by using questions. He was accused of challenging the authority of the gods and sentenced to death |
| Plato | Greek philosopher who was Socrates' student and created a school called The Academy. Most famous work was The Republic. |
| Aristotle | Greek philosopher who was Plato's student and believed humans should live lives of moderation and balance. Believed moderation was based on reason. |
| Reason | Clear and ordered thinking. |
| Parthenon | Beautiful temple built in honor of the goddess Athena. Located on top of the acropolis in Athens. |
| Macedonia | Region just north of mainland Greece |
| Phillip II | King of Macedonia who conquered and unified all of Greece. |
| Phalanx | Group of warriors who stood close together in a square form holding shields and long spears. |
| Alexander the Great | Son of Phillip II of Macedonia. Considered one of the greatest conquerors of all time. Conquered Asia Minor, Syria, Persia, Egypt and part of India. |
| Hellenistic | Greek-like – Alexander the Great spread Greek culture throughout Egypt, the Middle East, and Persian Empire (Hellenistic Greece) |
