| A | B |
|---|
| city-state | a city with political and economic control over the surrounding countryside |
| ziggurat | a massive stepped tower on which was built |
| theocracy | government by divine authority |
| empire | a large political unit, usually under a single leader that controls many people or territories |
| patriarchal | dominated by men |
| polytheistic | having many gods |
| cuneiform | "wedge shape" a system of writing developed by the Sumerians using a reed stylus to create wedge shaped impressions on a clay table |
| dynasty | a family of rulers whose right to rule is passed on within the family |
| pharaoh | the most common of the various titles for ancient Egyptian monarchs; the term originally meant "great house" or "place" |
| bureaucracy | ad aministrative organization that relies on nonelective officials and regular procedures |
| vizier | a high government official in ancient Egypt or in Muslim countries |
| mummification | a process of slowly drying a dead body to prevent it from decaying |
| hieroglyphics | "priest-carvings" or "sacred writings;" a complex system of writing that used both pictures and more abstract forms; used by the ancient Egyptians and Mayans |
| hieratic script | simplified version of hieroglyphics used in ancient Egypt for business transaction record keeping, and the general needs of daily life |
| Where was Mesopotamia? | between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers |
| What did the Sumerians do that was so great? | Formed city states and created forms of communication |
