Ancient Civilizations Overview Flashcards
Grade 5 · Social Studies · Flashcards
Key terms, people, and places from the world's major ancient civilizations.
Flashcards
- Civilization
- A complex human society with cities, organized government, written language, and specialized jobs.
- Mesopotamia
- The region between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers (present-day Iraq), home to some of the world's earliest civilizations.
- Cuneiform
- The world's earliest writing system, developed by the Sumerians of Mesopotamia around 3200 BCE using wedge-shaped marks on clay.
- Hammurabi's Code
- One of the world's oldest written law codes, created by Babylonian king Hammurabi around 1754 BCE.
- Ancient Egypt
- A major civilization that developed along the Nile River in Africa around 3100 BCE, famous for pyramids, pharaohs, and hieroglyphics.
- Pharaoh
- The ruler of ancient Egypt, considered both a political king and a divine god.
- Hieroglyphics
- The ancient Egyptian writing system using pictures and symbols, used for over 3,000 years.
- Ancient Greece
- A civilization that developed around the Aegean Sea, known for democracy, philosophy, the Olympics, and advances in science and art.
- Socrates
- An ancient Greek philosopher known as a founder of Western philosophy, who taught by asking probing questions (the Socratic method).
- Ancient Rome
- A civilization centered in Italy that became a vast empire; known for law, architecture, roads, and the Latin language.
- Ancient China
- One of the world's longest-lasting civilizations, developing along the Yellow and Yangtze rivers; credited with paper, printing, gunpowder, and the compass.
- Artifact
- An object made or used by humans in the past, studied by historians and archaeologists to learn about ancient civilizations.
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