Laura Handly

EF Block
11/4/09
Chapter Nine Vocabulary List

Arab armies (220) – between 634 and 650, destroyed the Sasanid Empire and captured
Byzantine Egypt, Syria, and Tunisia

enemies of the Byzantine (221) – Slavic and Turkic people to the north on the Eurasian
steppe lands, to the south Turks led by the Seljuk family

patriarchy (221) – social organization in which the father is the head of the family and the
line of descent is from the father’s side

schism (221) – division or disunion, occurred in 1054 between the Latin Church and the
Orthodox Church

plague of Justinian (221) – 6th century epidemic of the bubonic plague, named after
Justinian who ruled from 527-565

Hagia Sophia Cathedral (223) – “Sacred Wisdom”, the greatest Byzantine architectural
monument that dates back to the reign of Justinian

Cyril and Methodius (223) – 9th century, these brothers went on a successful mission to the
Slavs of Moravia (modern day Czech Republic) and preached in native language

Cyrillic (223) – writing system perfected by Cyril and Methodius’ followers, used by
Slavic Christians who followed the Orthodox rite

Carolingian family (223) – the family of Charlemagne; started as the protectors of the
Frankish kings, then as kings under Charlemagne’s family, and finally Charlemagne;
encompassed all of Gaul and parts of Germany and Italy

Treaty of Verdun (223) – in 843, after Charlemagne’s son Louis the Pious died, the empire
was split into three parts; France in the west, Burgundy in the middle, and Germany to
the east

Vikings (223) – sea traders from Scandinavia, appeared as a new threat to western Europe
in 793

dietary conditions (224) – north: beer, butter, bread (barley, rye, wheat), pork, forest game;
south: wheat, wine, olive oil; nobles ate better than peasants, but even the peasants had
relatively balanced diets

manors (224) – a large, self sufficient land holding consisting of the lord’s residence
(manor house), outbuildings, peasant village, and surrounding land
serfs (224) – an agricultural laborer legally bound to a lord’s property and obligated to
perform set services for the lord

feudalism (225) – a system of obligations from lord to vassal to knight to serfs that all
existed self-sufficiently of government

fief (225) – land granted in return for a sworn oath to provide specified military service

vassals (225) – sworn supporters of a king of lord committed to rendering specified

military service to that king or lord

missionaries (228) - Christians who spread Christianity among the Slavs to the east and to
the British Isles and the lands of the Germans to the west

papacy (228) – the office of the pope

canons (228) – rules created by a council of bishops to regulate the priests and laypeople
under their jurisdiction

nepotism (229) – giving preferment to one’s close kin

simony (229) – selling ecclesiastical appointments, often to people who were not members
of the clergy

Holy Roman Empire (229) – loose federation of mostly German states and principalities,
headed by an emperor elected by the princes (962-1806)

Hildebrand (229) – Italian monk-turned-Pope Gregory VII, had extreme views about how
the pope can’t be judged and is extremely holy

investiture controversy (229) – the medieval struggle between the church and the lay ords
to control ecclesiastical appointments

monasticism (230) – living inn a religious community apart from secular society and
adhering to a rule stipulating chastity, obedience and poverty; prominent element of
medieval Christianity and Buddhism; monasteries were the primary centers of learning
and literacy in medieval Europe

Varangians (232) – Swedish Vikings who sailed across the Baltic and down Russia’s
rivers; exchanged forest products slaves for manufactured goods and coins at markets
controlled by the Khazar Turks

Rus (232) – Slavic speaking peoples rued by the Varangians

druzhina (232) – military retainers of the Varagian princes

Vladimir I (233) – 980, ruler of Novgorod returned from exile with band of Varangians
and made himself the grand king of Kievan Russia; chose Orthodox Christianity for his
subjects to follow

horse collar (236) – harnessing method that increased the efficiency of horses by shifting
the point of traction from the animal’s neck to the shoulders; its adoption favors the
spread of horse-drawn plows and vehicles

communes (236) – groups of leading citizens who banded together to defend their cities
and demand the privilege of self-government from their lay or ecclesiastical lord

Crusades (237) – armed pilgrimages to the Holy Land by Christians determined to

recover Jerusalem from Muslim rule; the Crusades brought an end to Western Europe’s
centuries of intellectual and cultural isolation

Truce of God (237) – reforming leaders of the Latin Church popularized this document
which limited fighting between Christian lords by specifying times of truce, such as Lent
and on Sundays

pilgrimages (238) – journey of religious followers to their Holy Land; for Muslims,
Mecca and Jerusalem; for Jews and Christians, Jerusalem