Definitions

Search Definitions

Browse Content (p. 12)

Naram-Sin
Definition

Naram-Sin - The God-King of Akkad

Naram-Sin (reign 2254-2218 BCE) was the last great king of the Akkadian Empire and the grandson of Sargon the Great (reign 2334-2279 BCE), who founded the empire. He is considered the most important Akkadian king...
Zulu Kingdom
Definition

Zulu Kingdom - Southern Africa's Dominant Power

The Zulu Kingdom was one of the most powerful states in Southern and Central Africa during its peak in the mid-19th century. The Zulu expansion and domination of their neighbours is credited to the inspirational...
Sargon of Akkad
Definition

Sargon of Akkad - From Gardener to King of the Four Corners of the World

Sargon of Akkad (reign 2334-2279 BCE) was the king of the Akkadian Empire of Mesopotamia, the first multinational empire in history, who united the disparate kingdoms of the region under...
Mesopotamian Literature
Definition

Mesopotamian Literature - The Earliest Works of the Imagination

Ancient Mesopotamian literature developed circa 2600 BCE after scribes, who had formerly been record-keepers, began composing original works in the region of Sumer. The Sumerians invented writing...
Enheduanna
Definition

Enheduanna - The World's First Author Known by Name

The Akkadian poet Enheduanna (circa 2300 BCE) is the world's first author known by name and was the daughter of Sargon of Akkad (Sargon the Great, reign 2334-2279 BCE). Whether Enheduanna was, in fact...
Civilization
Definition

Civilization - From Nomadic Life to the Farm and City

Civilization (from the Latin civis=citizen and civitas=city) is a term applied to any society which has developed a writing system, government, production of surplus food, division of labor, and urbanization...
Script
Definition

Script - The Written Record of Humanity

Script is the written expression of a language. Cuneiform, the first script, was invented in Sumer, Mesopotamia, circa 3600/3500 BCE; hieroglyphics sometime prior to the Early Dynastic Period in Egypt (circa...
Cuneiform
Definition

Cuneiform - The Writing System That Made History

Cuneiform is a system of writing first developed by the ancient Sumerians of Mesopotamia circa 3600/3500 BCE. It is considered the most significant among the many cultural contributions of the Sumerians...
Secession of the Plebs
Definition

Secession of the Plebs - One of History's First Class Conflicts

The Secession of the Plebs (secessio plebis) refers to a series of general strikes in the early history of the Roman Republic, when the plebeians – or commoners – left the city en masse and...
Year of the Four Emperors
Definition

Year of the Four Emperors - When Four Men Battled For Control of the Roman Empire

The Year of the Four Emperors (69 CE) was a brief period of political upheaval and civil war in the Roman Empire. In the aftermath of the death of Emperor Nero, four men – Galba...
Support Us Remove Ads