1. Final Exam Vocabulary
Review

2. Agriculture
• the business of farming

3. alchemy
• A combination of science, magic, and
philosophy that was practiced in
medieval times

4. Anti-Semitism
• prejudice toward Jews.

5. apprentice
• A person who works for an expert in a
trade or craft in a return for training
A person who works for an expert in a
trade or craft in a return for training

6. aristocracy
• a ruling class of noble families

7. barter
• to buy and sell by trading goods and
services rather than money.

8. Bubonic plague
• a deadly contagious disease caused by
bacteria and spread by fleas

9. bureaucracy
• a highly organized body of workers with
many levels of authority

10. caliph
• a title taken by Muslim rulers who claimed
religious authority to rule.

11. charter
• A written grant of rights and privileges by a
ruler or government to a
community, class of people or organization

12. chivalry
• the medieval knight's code of ideal
behavior, including bravery, loyalty, and
respect for women.

13. commerce
• the buying and selling of goods

14. commoner
• a person who is not of noble rank

15. crusades
• a series of religious wars launched against
Muslims by European Christians.

16. cultural diffusion
• the spread of cultural elements from one
society to another

17. currency
• the form of money used in a country

18. domain
• the land controlled by a ruler or lord

19. elements of culture
• objects, ideas, and customs of a particular
culture

20. excommunicate
• To formally deprive a person membership
in a church

21. feudalism
• the economic and political system that
developed in Europe during the
Middle Ages

22. fief
• land granted by a lord to a vassal in
exchange for loyalty and service

23. genealogy
• an account of the line of ancestry within
the family

24. griot
• A West African Story Teller

25. habeas corpus
• The principle that accused persons cannot
be held in jail without the consent
of a court.

26. heretic
• a person who holds beliefs that are
contrary to the teachings of a church or
other group

27. hierarchy
• a system of organizing people into ranks,
with those of higher rank having
more power and privileges

28. imperial
• China under the rule of emperors

29. inoculate
• to protect against disease by transmitting
a disease-causing agent to a
person, stimulating the body's defensive
reactions

30. inquisition
• a judicial body established by the Catholic
Church to combat heresy and
other forms of religious error.

31. Jerusalem
• a sacred city to Muslims, Jews &
Christians.

32. Magna Carta
• A written agreement from 1215 that limited
the English king's power and
strengthened the rights of nobles.

33. manor
• a large estate, including farmland and
villages, held by a lord

34. mass-produce
• to make similar items in quantity using
standardized designs and dividing
labor among workers

35. matrilineal
• based on a woman's family line

36. meritocracy
• rule by officials of proven merit

37. millets
• communities can rule themselves under
their own system of government

38. monarch
• A ruler, such as a king or queen

39. monotheism
• belief in a single God.

40. noble
• a person of high rank by birth or title

41. nomad
• A person who moves from place to place
often in search of water and
vegetation.

42. patrilineal
• based on a man's family line

43. persecute
• To cause a person to suffer because of his
or her beliefs

44. philosophy
• The study of wisdom, knowledge, and the
nature of reality.

45. pilgrimage
• a journey to a holy site

46. polytheist
• A person who believes in more than one
God.

47. proverb
• A popular saying that is meant to express
something wise or true.

48. province
• a division of a country or an empire.

49. regent
• one who rules in the name of another

50. relic
• an object that is considered holy because
it belonged to, or was touched by,
a saint or holy person

51. rhetoric
• the study of persuasive writing and
speaking

52. schism
• a formal division in a church or religious
body

53. scribe
• A person trained to write or copy
documents by hand.

54. sedentary
• Permanently settled in one place. The
person DOES NOT move from place to
place.

55. segregation
• the forced separation of one group from
the rest of a community

56. siege
• an attempt to surround a place and cut off
all access to it in order to force a
surrender

57. Silk Road
• Camel caravan routes crossing the
deserts of Central Asia to Europe. Silk
was not the only thing traded along this
route.

58. succession
• inheritance of the right to rule

59. sultan
• the sovereign ruler of a Muslim state

60. tribute
• a payment made by one ruler or country to
another for protection or as a sign
of submission

61. truce
• an agreed-upon halt (stop) in fighting

62. urbanization
• the growth of cities

63. Kowtow
• When ambassadors from tributaries come
before an emperor, they kneel before
him three times and each time touch their
heads to the floor.