Ancient Cultures Study Guide

1. pyramids: very large pointed buildings built by the Egyptians in which to bury their

pharoahs (kings)

2. hieroglyphs: Egyptian picture writing

3. Great Wall: built by the Chinese along their northern border to keep out their

enemies, the Mongols.

4. citizen: a man who was born in Athens or Rome to free parents; his rights included being able to vote, own property, and hold an office. His responsibilities were to serve in the army and pay taxes.

5. slave: could be either men or women; people became slaves if their side lost in a war. Slaves could also be bought from other places or taken as babies if their parents were unable or unwilling to keep them. Slaves had no rights.

6. women: Women had no rights either.

7. direct democracy: the citizens can vote directly for the laws they approve of . Ancient Greece had this kind of democracy.

8. representative democracy: a government in which the citizens elect representatives to make laws. Ancient Rome and the U.S. have this kind of democracy

9. Senate: the governing body of Rome who made the laws; members were called senators.

10. acropolis: the highest hill in a city on which was built the temple to that city’s patron god or goddess. The Parthenon was Athen’s temple in honor of Athena.

11. Colosseum: the huge, round sports arena in Rome.

12. mosaic: a picture made of small tiles used in Rome to decorate floors

13. Zeus: the Greek king of the gods; his Roman name was Jupiter.

14. Hermes: the messenger of the gods; his Roman name was Mercury.

15. Hades: the god of the underworld; his Roman name was Pluto.

16. Athena: the goddess of wisdom and war

17. griot: a storyteller in ancient Mali. Griots memorized their people’s history and told it in the form of stories and songs.

18. Sundiata: the lion king of Mali. He united his people and formed the empire of Mali in 1230 A.D.

19. mansa: the Malian word for “king.” Musa was the greatest of the mansas.

Concepts to know:

1. The country of Greece is made of peninsulas and islands. It is very mountainous. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea on the south. Its capital is Athens which was named for Athena.

2. Rome is the capital of present-day Italy. Italy is a peninsula and two large islands. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea. The Tiber River flows through the city of Rome.

3. Both Greece and Italy have a Mediterranean climate. This means it is hot and dry in the summer and cool and wet in the winter.

4. Crops were planted in October because that is when the rainy season began. The three main crops were olives for oil, grapes for wine, and grains (barley and wheat) for bread. Fruits and vegetables were grown too. The animals that were raised included goats for milk and cheese, sheep for wool, pigs, chickens, oxen to pull plows and carts, and horses. The horses were raised to provide mounts for the army. Seafood ( fish, squid, octopus, shellfish) was harvested from the sea.

5. Only boys attended school. They learned to read, write, and add and subtract. They also were taught various sports. Girls were taught housekeeping skills at home, and may also have learned to play a musical instrument.

6. The ancient Greeks and Romans believed in many gods and goddesses. They made up stories called “myths” to explain how things come to be the way they are in the world. For example, the myth of Arachne explains the origin of spiders. The story of Pandora tells how trouble came into the world.

7. The Olympic games began in ancient Greece. They were held every four years and included 6 events: running, horse racing, wrestling, boxing, chariot racing, and the pentathlon. In Rome, people’s tastes in sports were quite violent. Chariot races were held in the Circus Maximus. Gladiators (trained fighters) fought one another and wild animals in the Colosseum, a huge, round sports arena.

8. We get the use of columns or pillars from the Greeks. The Romans invented the use of domes and arches. You can see these influences in many of our public buildings, especially in Washington, D.C. The Romans were also the first to use aqueducts, or long, arched waterways used to bring water into the bathhouses and fountains of Rome.

9. We are still influenced by ancient Greece and Rome today. Our word “alphabet” comes from the first two Greek letters: alpha and beta. Our letters come from the Roman alphabet. The names of our months, days of the week, and planets come from Rome.

10. Know the Roman numerals 1 through 20 and 50 and 100.

11. The kingdom of Mali stood at the crossroads of the trading routes in Africa. It became very wealthy under the leadership of Mansa Musa in the early 1300s. Its major city was Timbuktu. Its major trading items were gold and salt which was as valuable as gold at the time. Mali is a Muslim nation. This means they follow the Islam religion.