| A | B |
| Paestine Liberation Organization | nationalist Palestinian group |
| Parliament | law-making body in Great Britain |
| patriarchal | oldest male heads the household |
| Pax Mongolia | period of stability through much of Asia under Mongol rule from late 1200's to mid-1300's |
| perestroika | economic changes in USSR under Gorbachev - some capitalism |
| pogrom | violent attack on Jewish communities |
| propaganda | spreading of ideas to promote one cause or damage another |
| Quran | Islamic holy book |
| Reconquista | Christians recapturing Spain from the Muslims |
| Red Guards | radical students in China |
| refugee | person forced to leave their homeland |
| reincarnation | Hinduism, rebirth of the soul in a new body |
| Renaissance | creativity and change in Europe, rebirth |
| reparations | payment for war damages |