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Glossary

Below is a glossary of Ancient History terms.

Abu Simbel

Site of two massive rock temples build by Ramesses II of Egypt around c. 1250 BC. Abu Simbel was originally located on the banks of the nile. It was moved in the 1960s onto the shore of Lake Nasser.

Achemenid Empire

Persian empire named after its founder Achemens. The empire lasted from about 550 to 330 BC when it was conquered by Alexander the Great.

Anatolia

A historical term for the land that includes most of the Asian part of Turkey.

Ashur

City in northern Mesopotamia located on the river Tigris.

Assyria

An ancient empire in Mesopotamia.

Attica

The territory extending around the city of Athens.

Babylonia

A region of southern Mesopotamia named after the city of Babylon.

bireme

A galley having two banks of oars.

Boeotia

Region in central Greece; Thebes was located in Boeotia

Canaan

A historical and bibilical term used to describe the strip of land which includes most of present day Gaza Strip and Israel and the Western part of Jordan. The term was found on Egyptian writings from the 15th century BC.

Carthage

An ancient city in North Africa destroyed by Rome in the Third Punic Wars.

Chu

Major feudal state of the Zhou kingdom in southern China.

Cohort

A sub-unit of the Roman Legion. Approximately 600 men; a Legion is composed of ten Cohorts.

Consul

Title of the two leading magistrates of the Roman Republic. Consuls were elected annually.

Delian League

Athenian-led alliance formed to stop Persian advances into Greek territories. Named after the island of Delos where the alliance's funds were held.

Etruscans

A group of people who lived in Italy south of the river Arno and north of the river Tiber (approximately modern day Tuscany) around 1000 BC.

Fertile Crescent

First used by Henry Breasted a 19th century scholar. The area of land arching from the Persian Gulf over the watersheds of the Tigris and Euphrates river in Iraq through the western coast of the Mediterranean into Egypt.

Greek Fire

a pottery container filled with flaming naptha and catapulted from a warship onto a target.

Hellespont

Narrow passage of sea between ancient Anatolia and the ancient Greek mainland.

Helots

Enslaved people located in Messenia; the Spartans enslaved the Helots and used them to provide food.

Judah

Region in Palestine from about 922 to 587 BC named after one of the tribes of Israel.

Legion

A Roman military unit composed of about 6,000 men. Legion comes from legio which means levy or draft.

Linear A

Script developed by the ancient Minoan culture

Maniple

A sub-unit of a Roman Legion. About 160 men. Three Maniples to a Cohort.

Megiddo

Town located in Palestine; location of one of the earliest battles recorded in history.

Mesopotamia

An ancient region in southwest Asia between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, site of the ancient civilizations of Sumer, Babylon and Assyria. Roughly equivalent to present-day Iraq and part of Syria.

Messenia

Soutwest region of the Peloponnese conquered by Sparta.

Minoan

Civilization that lived on Crete around 2000 BC; named after King Minos, the legendary ruler of the island.

Nubia

Region located south of Egypt along the Nile.

Nubia

Region along the Nile, south of Egypt.

Oligarchy

Rule by the few.

Parthenon

Name of the temple built on the Acropolis in Athens. Built for Athena the patron goddess of Athens.

Peloponnese

The large peninsula of southern Greece.

Pharaoh

Wasn't used until 1400 BC but is now used generally for the kings of ancient Egypt.

Punic Wars

A series of three wars between Rome and Carthage: 264 - 241 bc; 219 - 202 bc; and 149 - 146 bc.

Rhodes

Island located off the southwestern tip of modern day Turkey.

Sardis

Capital of the Lydian kingdom; located in western Anatolia.

Sea Peoples

A group of people who migrated to eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea around 1400 BC.

Semites

People who spoke a Semitic language which originated in Arabia and Mesopotamia. Some of the peoples include the: Arabs, Hebrews, Canaanites, and Phoenicians.

trireme

A galley having three banks of oars.

Triumvirates

A group of three people in power. There were two Triumvirates in Roman times: Crassus, Pompey and Caeser; and Antony, Octavian and Lepidus.

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