The second largest continent in the world after Asia. Africa is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south, the Indian Ocean to the east and south, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north. It is connected to Asia by the Sinai Peninsula. The Nile, Congo, and Zambezi Rivers, the Ec[000000]f[16]LFSahara Desert, Lake Victoria, and Mount Kilimanjaro are all found in Africa.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLAltamira CaveB
A cave in northern Spain, discovered by accident in 1879, that is famous for its Stone Age ceiling paintings, which mostly depict animals such as horses, cattle, and bison. Altamira's paintings are believed to be examples of Cro-Magnon man's artistry from the period 14,000-10,000 B.C.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLarchB
The spanning of a wall opening by the use of bricks or stone blocks arranged in an upward curve. The weight of the wall is converted to outward lateral and then downward pressures, which are received by the piers flanking the opening. The arch was first used by the ancient Ec[000000]f[16]LFBabylonians, Egyptians, and Greeks, mostly for underground drains, and by the Assyrians in the construction of vaulted and domed chambers. The arch was developed further by the Romans, Muslims, and Europeans.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLarchaeologistsB
Archaeologists work with the material remains of cultures, providing the only source of information for prehistoric societies and augmenting sources for historical and contemporary groups. Archaeology is a branch of anthropology, the science of human beings. Some Ec[000000]f[16]LFrecent archaeological discoveries of prehistoric human remains in East Africa are believed to show that humans have been around for several million years.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLAsia MinorB
A large peninsula in extreme west Asia that encompasses what is now Asian Turkey, also called Anatolia. Asia Minor is bordered on the north by the Black Sea, on the south by the Mediterranean Sea, and on the west by the Aegean Sea. To the east of Asia Minor lies a mountainous Ec[000000]f[16]LFregion that joins it to the rest of southwest Asia. In ancient times, many western and eastern civilizations intersected in Asia Minor, for it was connected with Mesopotamia by the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers and with Greece by the Mediterranean and Aegean Seas. The famous ancient city of Troy was sited on the Aegean coast of Asia Minor, which, Ec[000000]f[16]LFcoincidentally, is not far from the site of a noted World War I battle, Gallipoli.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLAsiaB
The largest continent, comprising nearly 30 percent of the world's land, Asia is also the most populous, containing nearly 60 percent of all the world's people. Asia's northernmost region, Siberia, is bordered on its northern shore by the arms of the Arctic Ocean: the Kara, Laptev, East Ec[000000]f[16]LFSiberian, and Chukchi Seas. To the east, Asia is bordered by the Pacific Ocean, the Bering Sea, the Sea of Okhotsk, the Sea of Japan, and the Yellow, East China, and South China Seas. Asia's southern shore is lapped by the Indian Ocean, the Arabian Sea, and the Bay of Bengal. Asia and Europe are really part of the same land mass, but Asia's western limit is Ec[000000]f[16]LFconsidered to be the Ural Mountains, although the countries of the Middle East jut further to the west. Asia is also the location of the world's highest mountain range--the Himalayas.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLAssyrian EmpireB
An ancient empire that developed around the ancient city of Assur on the upper Tigris River and around the later capital Nineveh. The Assyrians were one of the many groups that conquered Mesopotamia in ancient times. Their military successes, such as the capture of Babylon in 910 Ec[000000]f[16]LFB.C., were due primarily to their ability to forge weapons of iron, while their enemies still fought with bronze weapons. The Assyrians were infamous for their cruelty, and defeat at their hands meant obliteration for many unfortunate ancient cities and their citizens.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBastronomyB
The branch of science that studies the motions and natures of celestial bodies, such as the planets, stars, and galaxies. More generally, it is the study of matter and energy in the universe. Astronomy is the oldest of the physical sciences. In many early civilizations, the regularity of Ec[000000]f[16]LFcelestial motions was recognized, and attempts were made to keep records and predict future events. The first practical function of astronomy was to provide a basis for the calendar. Later, astronomy aided in navigation and timekeeping.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLB.C.B
Stands for Ibefore ChristI. This abbreviation used after calendar years denotes that they were before the birth of Christ in order to avoid confusion with the calendar years after his birth.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLcalendarB
A system of estimating time for recording past events and calculating dates for future plans. Calendars were necessary for the ancients to determine when crops had to be planted every year or to predict recurring annual events, such as the Nile floods in ancient Egypt. Historically, Ec[000000]f[16]LFcalendars have been based on astronomical observations of the cycles of the earth, sun, moon, and stars. The discrepancies between these cycles led to many different solutions to harmonize them. These solutions include the Roman calendar, the Julian calendar, the Gregorian calendar (our current calendar), the Christian Ecclesiastical calendar, the Jewish calendar, and the Muslim calendar.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBCanadaB
Canada is the northernmost country in North America and, of all countries in the world, is second only to Russia in size. Canada is bordered on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the west by the Pacific Ocean, on the east by the Atlantic Ocean, and on the south by the United States. It Ec[000000]f[16]LFis also bordered on its extreme northwest corner by Alaska. Canada's population of 27,000,000 (about one-tenth the U.S. population) is concentrated within a few hundred miles of its border with the United States. Its principal languages are English and French. Its capital is Ottawa.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLChaldeaB
The southernmost region of the valley of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, Chaldea flourished in the sixth and seventh centuries B.C. Chaldea encompassed the great city of Babylon but declined soon after, coming to an end when Babylon fell to the Persians in 539 B.C.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLChinaB
China is located in East Asia and is the most populous nation in the world. With 1,160,000,000 people, China contains more than one-fifth of the world's population. China is bordered on the east by the Korean peninsula and the Yellow and East China Seas. To the north, China Ec[000000]f[16]LFis bordered by Russia and Mongolia. The former Soviet republics of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan, along with Afghanistan's panhandle region, form China's western borders. On China's southern borders are Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bhutan, Burma, Laos, and Vietnam. China's capital is Peking.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLclassicalB
This term refers to the ancient Greek and Roman civilizations. During the Renaissance, there was a revival of interest and admiration for ancient Greek and Roman art, literature, and architecture. Since then, the term Iclassical IorI classicism Ihas been used to describe those forms.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBcopperB
One of the first metals known to man, copper was probably first mined in the Tigris-Euphrates valley around the fifth century B.C. Cyprus, from which the metal's name comes, was the primary source of copper in the ancient world. The discovery and use of the metal was Ec[000000]f[16]LFimportant for the development of the Bronze Age, as copper, along with tin, make up the alloy bronze, which is more durable than its base metals.B Ec[000000]f[16]BLCro-Magnon manB
Cro-Magnon man was anatomically identical to modern humans and lived in Europe about forty thousand years ago. Finely crafted stone and bone tools, shell and ivory jewelry, and colorful paintings found on cave walls testify to the cultural advancement of Cro-Magnon man.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBcuneiformB
A system of writing developed before the last centuries of the fourth millennium B.C. in the lower Tigris and Euphrates valley, probably by the Sumerians. The characters consisted of arrangements of wedge-shaped strokes impressed with a stylus on wet clay tablets that were then dried or baked.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBDawn Stone AgeB
Also known as the Old Stone Age or the Paleolithic period, the Dawn Stone Age was the earliest period of human development and the longest phase of mankind's history, beginning about two million years ago and ending about forty thousand years ago. During this period, Ec[000000]f[16]LFman evolved from an apelike near-man to a true Homo sapiens.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLDog StarB
Another name for Sirius, this star is in the constellation Canis Major and is the brightest star in the heavens. In Greek mythology, Sirius, which means "sparkling" in Greek, was the hunter Orion's dog. The Greeks gave many of their mythological characters places of honor in the night skyEc[000000]f[16]LF--many of these names for stars and constellations still exist today. Hence, Orion and his hunting dog Sirius were placed next to each other in the night sky. Sirius was known as Sothis to the ancient Egyptians, who knew that it rose just before sunrise at that time of year immediately before the annual Nile flood. Among the ancient Romans, the hottest Ec[000000]f[16]LFpart of the year was associated with the rising of Sirius just before the sun, a connection that survives today in the expression "dog days."
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLEarly African man
B
Fossils of the first creatures anthropologists and archaeologists consider worthy of the name "human" have been discovered in East Africa and are thought to be from two to four million years old. These fossils are believed to show that Africa was apparently the birthplace of the human race.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBEgyptB
Egypt is located at the extreme northeast corner of the continent of Africa. It is bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Libya to the west, Sudan on the south, the Red Sea to the east, and Israel to the northeast. From deep within the interior of Africa, the Nile River flows Ec[000000]f[16]LFthrough Egypt to empty into the Mediterranean. Egypt is primarily a desert country bisected by the lush Nile Valley, which gave rise to the great ancient Egyptian civilization from whence came the builders of the pyramids that still stand thousands of years later. Egypt is connected to the Asian countries of the Middle East by the Sinai Peninsula, which Ec[000000]f[16]LFwas a crossroads in human migrations between Africa and Asia. Egypt today still holds a strategic importance--it is home to the Suez Canal. Egypt's capital and largest city is Cairo.B Ec[000000]f[16]BLEgypt's Loss of IndependenceB
Egypt was conquered in about 750 B.C. by the Nubians, or Kushites, who were black Africans from the ancient kingdom of Kush (now part of present day Ethiopia and Sudan). Then the Assyrians invaded in 673 B.C., but Assyrian rule was short-lived--by 650 B.C., Egypt was once more Ec[000000]f[16]LFindependent. In 525 B.C., the Persians invaded and, after a brief period of weak Egyptian independence, invaded again in 341 B.C. The Greek Alexander the Great defeated the Persians in 332 B.C. and became master of Egypt, along with much of the known world. Later, Alexander's general became king of Egypt and was known as Ptolemy I. Egypt had thus Ec[000000]f[16]LFbecome part of the Hellenistic, or Greek, world and remained so until the coming of the Romans in 58 B.C. and their final conquest of Egypt in 30 B.C.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLEthiopiaB
Ethiopia is located in East Africa and is bounded on the north by the Red Sea, on the west by Sudan, on the south by Kenya and Somalia, and on the east by Somalia and Djibouti. Ethiopia was the ancient home of the Nubians, or Kushites, who conquered Egypt in 750 B.C. Its capital and largest city is Addis Ababa.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBEuropeB
Europe is part of the great Eurasian land mass and is sometimes called the peninsular continent. Europe is bounded by the Arctic Ocean on the north; the Atlantic Ocean on the west; the Mediterranean Sea, the Black Sea, and the Caucasus Mountains on the south; and Ec[000000]f[16]LFthe Ural Mountains, the Ural River, and the Caspian Sea on the east. Europe is the second smallest continent, having only 7 percent of the world's land.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLflintB
Flint is a variety of quartz that was used by primitive people for making such tools as hand axes, knives, spearheads, and arrowheads. Although it is very hard, the edges of flint can be flaked off with comparative ease by exerting pressure with a piece of stone or bone. In this way, Ec[000000]f[16]LFthe edges can be made sharp. It was the use of flint tools that defines Stone Age cultures.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLFranceB
France is the largest country in western Europe, and is only exceeded in size in all of Europe by Russia and the Ukraine. France is bordered by the North Sea, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Germany in the north; the Atlantic Ocean and the Bay of Biscay in the west; the Mediterranean Ec[000000]f[16]LFSea, Spain, and Andorra in the south; and Germany, Switzerland, and Italy in the east. France's capital and largest city is Paris.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLGermanyB
Located in the center of Europe, Germany borders the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, and France on the west; Switzerland and Austria on the south; Czechoslovakia and Poland on the east; and Denmark and the Baltic and North Seas on the north. The postwar division Ec[000000]f[16]LFof Germany into West Germany and East Germany, which began in 1945 with Germany's World War II defeat, ended in 1990 with reunification. The capital and largest city in Germany is Berlin.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLglaciersB
Slowly moving masses of ice that survive year to year, formed by the compacting of accumulated snow and set in motion by gravity and the stress of their own mass. Glaciers are usually found in high altitudes and latitudes. Continental glaciers are huge ice sheets that were far more Ec[000000]f[16]LFwidespread during glacial periods, or Ice Ages. Today, the only continental glaciers are in Antartica and Greenland.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLGreat PyramidB
The Great Pyramid of Khufu or Cheops, completed in Egypt at Giza around 2680 B.C., was designated one of the Seven Wonders of the World and is the largest pyramid ever built.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLGreeceB
Greece occupies the southernmost part of the Balkan Peninsula and is bounded on the west by the Ionian Sea; on the south by the Mediterranean Sea; on the east by the Aegean Sea; on the northeast by Turkey; and on the north by Bulgaria, Albania, and the former Yugoslavian state Ec[000000]f[16]LFof Macedonia. Greece's capital and largest city is Athens.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLHanging GardensB
The Hanging Gardens of Babylon were one of the Seven Wonders of the World when the city was at its pinnacle of power and influence under King Nebuchadnezzar around the sixth century B.C. The gardens hung from the brilliantly colored walls of glazed brick.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLHebrewsB
A traditional name for the Jews, descendants of Judah, whose tribes made up the kingdom of Judah. In ancient times, Hebrews were also known as Israelites. Today, all adherents to Judaism are sometimes also known as Hebrews.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLIndiaB
The second most populous country in the world, India has one of the highest population densities of all the world's countries. India makes up all of what is known as the Indian subcontinent, a vast peninsula that juts southward from Asia into the Indian Ocean. India's southern tip Ec[000000]f[16]LFpoints nearly to the center of the Indian Ocean, but the country is bounded on the east and west by the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea, respectively. India is bordered on the northwest by Pakistan; on the north by China, Nepal, and Bhutan; and on the northeast by Myanmar (Burma). Nestled in India's northeastern section is the country of Bangladesh, which has an Ec[000000]f[16]LFeven higher population density than India. India's capital is New Delhi.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLIndiansB
Applies to the natives or inhabitants of India and also to American Indians, who acquired the name IIndiansI through the mistaken belief held by Columbus that the lands he discovered were part of Asia.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBironB
Iron is a lustrous, ductile, malleable, silver-gray metallic element. It is a good conductor of electricity, is easily magnetized, and is chemically active. The use of smelted iron weapons, tools, and ornaments became common during the period 1900 to 1400 B.C., heralding the Ec[000000]f[16]LFend of the Bronze Age and the beginning of the Iron Age.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLIsaiahB
A book of the Hebrew Bible that is a collection of prophecies attributed to Isaiah, who was a Hebrew religious leader in the eighth century B.C.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBJava manB
First-known fossil of the species IHomo erectusI, discovered by E. Dubois in 1891 at Trinil, by the Solo River, in Java. Scientists believe Java man walked fully erect and attained a height of 5 feet 8 inches. Java man lived about 500,000 years ago, predating Peking man and is considered more primitive.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBJeremiahB
A book of the Hebrew Bible attributed to Jeremiah, a prophet who preached (c.628-586 B.C.) in Jerusalem under King Josiah and his successors. His message indicted his contemporaries for social injustice and abandonment of faith. Jeremiah opposed resistance to Babylon, which landed him in prison.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBJerusalemB
The present, and also ancient, capital of Israel, or Palestine. Although occupied as far back as the fourth millennium B.C., Jerusalem became the spiritual and political capital of the Hebrews in the tenth century B.C. The city has become a holy city for Jews, Christians, and Muslims.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLKarnakB
A village on the Nile in central Egypt in which have been discovered many remains of pharaohs. It is one mile northeast of Luxor and occupies part of the site of the ancient Egyptian city of Thebes. Karnak is the site of the Great Temple of Amon.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLKushitesB
Kushites, or Nubians, were black Africans from the ancient kingdom of Kush (or Nubia) who conquered Egypt in about 750 B.C. Kush is thought to have been located in what is now present-day Sudan and Ethiopia.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLLatinB
The ancient language of Rome and, until modern times, the dominant language of school, church, and state in western Europe.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLLuxorB
A city on the east bank of the Nile in central Egypt, a mile southwest of Karnak, and occupying part of the site of the ancient Egyptian city of Thebes. The temple of Luxor, the greatest monument of antiquity in the city, was built during the reign of Amenhotep III as a temple to Amon in about 1400 B.C.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBMediterranean SeaB
The world's largest inland sea, bounded by Europe to the north, Africa to the south, the countries of the Middle East to the east, and the Strait of Gibraltar to the west, which connects it to the Atlantic Ocean. It is also connected to the Black Sea through the Dardanelles, the Sea of Ec[000000]f[16]LFMarmara, and the Bosporus and to the Red Sea through the Suez Canal. In ancient times, civilizations flourished around the Mediterranean. It was opened to commerce by Phoenician merchants, and Greece, Carthage, and Rome were rivals for dominance of its shores and trade.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLmetalB
Chemical element distinguished from nonmetals by its metallic luster, ability to conduct heat and electricity, and in many cases, ability to be melted and shaped easily when heated. Metals are also mixed with each other in definite amounts to form alloys. Some metals, including Ec[000000]f[16]LFcopper, tin, iron, lead, gold, silver, and mercury, were known to the ancients. Copper is probably the oldest known metal.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLMexicoB
A country in southern North America with the United States on its north border, the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea in the east, Belize and Guatemala in the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean in the south and west. A number of great civilizations flourished in Mexico before Ec[000000]f[16]LFthe arrival of the Spanish conquistadors in the early sixteenth century. The Olmec civilization was the earliest (800 B.C.-400 B.C.), then the Maya (A.D. 300-900), the Toltec (900-1200), and the Aztec (1200-1519). Mexico's capital and largest city is Mexico City.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLNeanderthal manB
Named after the Neander Valley, Germany, where the first specimen was found, Neanderthal man was more robust than contemporary man. He lived in western Europe as early as 125,000 years ago and as late as only 35,000 years ago.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLNew GuineaB
An island in the southwest Pacific Ocean, north of Australia, New Guinea is the world's second largest island after Greenland. Politically, it is divided into two sections: the Indonesian province of Irian Jaya in the west and the independent country of Papua New Guinea in the east.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLNile RiverB
The longest river in the world. From its remote headstream in Burundi, central Africa, to its delta on the Egyptian shore of the Mediterranean Sea, the Nile flows northward for more than four thousand miles. The use of the Nile for irrigation dates back to at least 4000 B.C. in Egypt.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLNorth AmericaB
The third largest continent and the northern of the two continents of the Western Hemisphere. North America includes all of the mainland and related offshore islands lying north of the Isthmus of Panama, which connects it to South America. The continent encompasses Ec[000000]f[16]LFAnglo-America, which comprises the United States and Canada, and Middle America, which is used to describe the region including Mexico, the republics of Central America, and the Caribbean. The continent is bounded on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the west by the Pacific Ocean and the Bering Sea, and on the east by the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBPeking manB
Peking man was identified as a new fossil human by Davidson Black in 1927. An example of IHomo erectusI, Peking man dates to about 350,000 years ago and hunted, used fire, and had a well-developed communal culture. Peking man postdates Java man and is considered Ec[000000]f[16]LFmore advanced for his larger cranial capacity, a forehead, and non-overlapping canine teeth.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBPersepolisB
An ancient city of Persia and ceremonial capital under Darius I and his successors. The administrative capitals were elsewhere, notably at Susa and Babylon. The ruins of Persepolis lie thirty miles northeast of Shiraz in what is now Iran.B Ec[000000]f[16]BLPersian EmpireB
An ancient empire that centered on what is now Iran and, at its height in the sixth century B.C., stretched from North Africa and Greece in the west to India in the east, from the Persian Gulf and the Arabian Sea in the south, to beyond the Black, Caspian, and Aral Seas in the north.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBpost-and-lintel styleB
In building construction, a system in which two upright members, or posts, hold up a third member, the lintel, laid horizontally across their top surfaces. All structural openings have evolved from this system. Such ancient structures as Stonehenge, in Britain, were constructed on the post-and-Ec[000000]f[16]LFlintel system, which was the basis of architecture from prehistoric to Roman times. The interiors of Egyptian temples and the exteriors of Greek temples are marked by their post-and-lintel styles of construction.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLPrehistoric AgeB
The period of human evolution before writing was invented and records kept. The study of prehistory is concerned with the activities of a society or culture, not of the individual, and is limited to the material evidence that has survived.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLpyramidsB
The Egyptian pyramids are considered to be the only true pyramids. They are square at the base with triangular sides that face the points of the compass and incline at about 50 percent towards an apex. The original pyramids were the mastabas of the Old Kingdom (2680-2565 Ec[000000]f[16]LFB.C.)--these, however, were rectangular with only two sloping sides. During the fourth dynasty, the pyramids that are most familiar to us were developed and remained the most popular structure for royal burial through the sixth dynasty. In order to protect his preserved body from sacrilege for eternity, each Egyptian monarch built his own pyramid. Most were Ec[000000]f[16]LFconstructed with rough stone cut into blocks, but many were made up of mud bricks with stone casings while others used limestone blocks. Giza is the site of the three largest pyramids in the world, all of which were built in the fourth dynasty.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBSahara DesertB
The world's largest desert, North Africa's Sahara is the western part of a great arid zone that continues into southwest Asia. Extending more than three thousand miles from the Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea, the Sahara is bounded on the north by the Atlas Mountains, steppelands and the Ec[000000]f[16]LFMediterranean Sea, and stretches south twelve hundred miles to the Sahel, a steppe in western and central Africa that forms its southern border.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLSardisB
Ancient city in Lydia and a region in west Asia Minor that was conquered by the Persian Empire in the sixth century B.C. Before this conquest, Sardis was the political and cultural center of Asia Minor. It was located about thirty-five miles northeast of what is now modern-day Izmir, Turkey.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBScandinavian countriesB
The northern European countries of Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, and Iceland are known as the Scandinavian countries. Except for the Finns, the Scandinavian peoples speak a closely related group of Germanic languages.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLScripturesB
The books of the Bible.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLshadoofB
A primitive but effective device used to lift water from a well or river for irrigation purposes. The device consisted of a long boom balanced across a horizontal support several feet off the ground. The beam had a long end on which was affixed a bucket or container made from an animal Ec[000000]f[16]LFskin, and a short end on which was mounted a counterweight. The operator pulled on a rope that lowered the container into the water, then released the rope, allowing the counterweight to raise the filled container to the desired level, and then emptied the container and repeated the process.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLSoviet UnionB
A federation of fifteen Soviet republics that disintegrated in 1991 into independent nations, such as Russia, the Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, Georgia, Armenia, etc.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLSusaB
Ancient capital of Elam, where excavations uncovered the code of Hammurabi, which was among the many art objects carried off by the Elamites from Babylonia. Destroyed in the seventh century B.C. by the Assyrians, Susa was revived by the Persians, who built Ec[000000]f[16]LFmagnificent palaces there. Susa was later thoroughly Hellenized and continued to be prominent in the Roman Empire.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLSyriaB
A republic in western Asia, bordering on Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea in the west, on Turkey in the north, on Iraq in the east and south, and on Jordan and Israel in the southwest. Damascus is the country's capital and largest city.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLThebes (Egypt)B
A city of ancient Egypt where the temples of Luxor and Karnak were built. The city became prominent as the royal residence and as a seat of the worship of the god Amon. The temples and tombs that have survived, including the tomb of Tutankhamon, are among the most Ec[000000]f[16]LFsplendid in the world, and the site of the ancient city has been the scene of important archaeological work.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLtribesB
Social groups bound by common ancestry, language, and territory, that are characterized as an organization intermediate between small, family-based bands and larger chiefdoms.
B Ec[000000]f[16]BLUnited StatesB
The most populous country on the North American continent, the republic of the United States of America comprises fifty states and is bordered on the north by Canada, on the west by the Pacific Ocean, on the east by the Atlantic Ocean, and on the south by Mexico and the Gulf of Mexico. Its capital is Washington, D.C.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBUpper EgyptB
A geographical and cultural division of Egypt generally consisting of the Nile Valley south of the 30th parallel. In predynastic times Upper Egypt constituted a political entity separate from Lower Egypt (the Nile Delta region). Around 3000 B.C., Upper and Lower Egypt were Ec[000000]f[16]LFjoined, and each Egyptian king afterward had as one of his royal titles "King of Upper and Lower Egypt."B Ec[000000]f[16]BLUrB
An ancient city in southern Mesopotamia that was an important center of Sumerian culture and is identified in the Bible as the home of Abraham. The city was destroyed and rebuilt throughout the years by various kings and conquerors, including Nebuchadnezzar and Nabonidus in the Ec[000000]f[16]LFsixth century B.C. At about the middle of the sixth century B.C., Ur went into a decline from which it never recovered.B Ec[000000]f[16]BLzigguratsB
Types of temples common to the Sumerians, Babylonians, and Assyrians. The earliest examples date from the third millennium B.C., the latest from the sixth century B.C. The ziggurat was a pyramidal structure made of bricks, built in receding tiers with a shrine at the summit. Access Ec[000000]f[16]LFto the summit shrine was provided by a series of ramps on one side or by a continuous spiral ramp from base to summit. Notable examples are the ruins at Ur and Khorsabad in Mesopotamia.
