Cyrus
Founder of the Achaemenid Persian Empire. Between 550 and 530 B.C.E. he conquered Media, Lydia, and Babylon. Revered in the traditions of both Iran and the subject peoples.
Darius
The great king of Persia. He was able to become a king after a year of a civil war following the death of someone. He is responsible for the expansion of Persia. He made a province in western India and expanded Persia as far north as Macedonia.Persian ruler who brought order to the Persian Empire. He also built roads; established a postal system; and standardized weights, measures, and coinage
satrap
a official who ruled a state in the Persian Empire under Darius
susa
a port city in eastern Tunisia on the Mediterranean , The place where the Code of Hammurabi was taken by the Elamites, area of the Elamite, Persian and Parthinian empires, east of Mesopotamia, in the lower areas of the Zargos Mountains, modern Iran
Persepolis
an ancient city that was the capital of the ancient Persian Empire, A complex of palaces, reception halls, and treasury buildings erected by the Persian kings Darius I and Xerxes in the Persian homelan (119)
Zoroastrianism
system of religion founded in Persia in the 6th century BC by Zoroaster, system of religion founded in Persia in the 6th century BC by Zoroaster
Polis
Greek city-state
Hoplite
Heavily armored Greek infantryman of the Archaic and Classical periods who fought in the close-packed phalanx formation. Hoplite armies-militias composed of middle- and upper-class citizens supplying their own equipment: Superior to all other forces 128
Tyrant
in ancient Greece, a ruler who had seized power without legal right to it, a ruler or person who has complete power and uses it in cruel or unjust ways
Democracy
a political system in which the supreme power lies in a body of citizens who can elect people to represent them
Humanism
the doctrine emphasizing a person's capacity for self-realization through reason
Herodotus
the ancient Greek known as the father of history
Pericles
Athenian statesman whose leadership contributed to Athen's political and cultural supremacy in Greece
Greco-Persian Wars
Two major Persian invasions of Greece, 490 and 480 B.C.E., in which the Persians were defeated on both land and sea each time.
Trieme
ship sailed by Greeks and Persians, strong bronze bows used as battering rams
Socrates
philosopher who believed in an absolute right or wrong; asked students pointed questions to make them use their reason, later became Socratic method
Plato
ancient Athenian philosopher, Student of Socrates, wrote The Republic about the perfectly governed society
Peloponnesian War
a war in which Athens and its allies were defeated by the league centered on Sparta
Alexander
King of Macedonia in northern Greece. Between 334 and 323 B.C.E. he conquered the Persian Empire, reached the Indus Valley, founded many Greek-style cities, and spread Greek culture across the Middle East. Later known as Alexander the Great. (p. 136)
Hellenism
The civilization that spread from Greece through much of the ancient world. Much of its influence such as philosophy, athletics and architecture penetrated the Middle East.
Ptolemies
Descendents of Macedonian officers under Alexander. Gov't largely took over the system created by Egyptian pharaohs to extract the wealth of the land, rewarding Greeks and Hellenized non-Greeks serving in the military and administration. (p. 138)
Alexandria
the chief port of Egypt, City in Egypt founded by Alexander the Great, center of commerce and Hellenistic civilization