| ancient Rome |
a civilization cultivated by the city-state of Rome from the 8th century B.C.E. through its development as a republic and its collapse as an empire in the 5th century A.D. |
| anno Domini |
(Latin) in the year of the Lord (often abbreviated "A.D.") |
| Arius |
a Greek theologian and Christian priest in Alexandria (256?-336 A.D.). |
| Attila |
the king of the Huns that invaded Europe in the fifth century (406?-453 A.D.). |
| Christian Era |
in Christianity, the era beginning at the birth of Jesus Christ, about 1 A.D. |
| Constantine I |
the ruler of the Roman Empire in 306-37 A.D. (b.280A.D.?--d.337 A.D.). |
| Constantinople |
the former name of Istanbul, from 330 A.D. to 1930. |
| Dark Ages |
the Middle Ages, esp. from about 476 A.D. to the end of the tenth century, so called because of intellectual, cultural, and social decline and stagnation. |
| Dead Sea Scrolls |
scrolls dating from about 100 B.C. to 70 A.D. that were found in caves above the Dead Sea, and that contain scriptural and other writings of a Jewish religious community. |
| Eastern Roman Empire |
the eastern division of the Roman Empire, comprising the Turkish peninsula and part of southeastern Europe, esp. from 395 to 476 A.D., after which it is called the Byzantine Empire. (Cf. Western Roman Empire.) |
| Essene |
a member of an ascetic Jewish sect of mystics that existed from the second century B.C. to the second century A.D. |
| Goth |
a member of a Germanic people who invaded the Roman Empire during the third through fifth centuries A.D. [1/2 definitions] |
| hegira |
(cap.) Muhammad's journey from Mecca to Medina in 622 A.D. [1/2 definitions] |
| Hillel |
a Palestinian rabbi who formulated the earliest rules for the interpretation of Jewish scripture (60? B.C.-9? A.D.). |
| Holy Roman Empire |
the empire of central European, Germanic-speaking nations and Italy, beginning with Charlemagne's reign as Roman emperor in 800 A.D. or the crowning of Otto I in 962, and ending in 1806. |
| Hun |
any of a fierce, warring Asian people who, under Attila and others, ravaged much of eastern and central Europe in the fourth and fifth centuries A.D. [1/2 definitions] |
| Jesus Christ |
the founder of Christianity (b.4? B.C.--d.29? A.D.); according to the New Testament, the savior foretold by Isaiah, considered by Christians to be the Messiah and son of God; Jesus of Nazareth. (See Christ.) |
| Manichaeism |
a dualistic religious system originating in the third century A.D., which attempts to unite elements from Gnostic Christianity, Zoroastrianism, Buddhism, and other sources, and which is considered by the Roman Catholic Church to be heretical. |
| Marcus Aurelius |
a Stoic philosopher who was emperor of Rome in 161-180 A.D. (b.121--d.180 A.D.). |
| Merovingian |
of or pertaining to the line of kings who ruled over ancient France from about 500 A.D. to 751 A.D. [1/2 definitions] |
| Middle Ages |
the period of European history between antiquity and the Renaissance, from 500 A.D. to about 1500 A.D. |