Chapter 6 The Persian Connection: Its Impact and Influences, 2000 B.C.E. - 637 C.E.
1) Farming in the Zagros region dates to about what time?
A) 7000 years ago
B) 10,000 years ago
C) 50,000 years ago
D) 5000 years ago
2) How did the foundation of Persian civilization differ from the foundations of other ancient societies?
A) It developed without the use of agriculture.
B) It developed without a strong central government.
C) It developed in an area without river valleys.
D) It developed without connections with other civilizations.
3) Entering the Iranian plateau, the Medes and Persians were part of what larger migration?
A) Neo-Babylonian
B) Mongols
C) Aryan
D) Assyrian
4) The destruction of which empire made possible the rise of Persia?
A) Chaldean
B) Roman
C) Assyrian
D) Sumerian
5) Who founded the Persian Empire?
A) Cyrus
B) Darius
C) Xerxes
D) Philip II
6) Ancient Persia is present-day
A) Iraq.
B) Iran.
C) Israel.
D) Palestine.
7) The discovery of obsidian artifacts in Iran is significant because it indicates
A) the early Iranians were militaristic.
B) there was trade between the early Iranians and other civilizations.
C) a reliance on materials native to the Zagros mountain region.
D) the early Iranians were geographically isolated.
8) Which of the following does NOT accurately describe the Medes?
A) They spoke Farsi, as did the Persians.
B) They warred periodically with invaders from the Assyrian Empire.
C) They were well protected geographically by the Zagros mountains.
D) They never developed a reliable way to water their crops.
9) The language of the Persians was
A) Latin.
B) Farsi.
C) Greek.
D) Sanskrit.
10) The name "Iran" means
A) land of the prophet.
B) land between the mountains.
C) land between the rivers.
D) land of the Aryans.
11) The Medes irrigated their crops from
A) nearby lakes.
B) the Mediterranean Sea.
C) melted snow.
D) frequent rains.
12) Which man unified the Persian tribes and eventually united the Medes and Persians?
A) Alexander the Great
B) Cyrus the Great
C) Xerxes
D) Darius
13) Defeat of the Lydians brought the Persian Empire to which of these?
A) the Indus River
B) the Oxus River
C) the Aegean
D) the Mediterranean
14) Which of the following was NOT a factor contributing to the downfall of the Assyrian Empire?
A) The Chaldeans allied with the Medes.
B) Cyaxares strengthened his army.
C) Babylonia and Assyria erupted into civil war.
D) Cyrus the Great conquered Nineveh, causing Assyria to crumble.
15) The Achaemenids were the ruling family of the
A) Assyrians.
B) Persians.
C) Athenians.
D) Chaldeans.
16) How did Persian rule differ from that of other conquerors?
A) The Persians were more ruthless.
B) The Persians were less harsh.
C) The Persians were less organized.
D) The Persians used terror and torture.
17) Which of the following words most accurately describes Cyrus?
A) tolerant
B) coercive
C) ruthless
D) merciless
18) Who killed Cyrus the Great?
A) Alexander the Great
B) Darius
C) Cambyses' widow
D) Queen Tomyris
19) Conflicts with the __________ led to the demise of Cyrus the Great.
A) Greeks
B) Medes
C) Assyrians
D) Massagetae
20) Darius did all of the following EXCEPT
A) reorganize the Persian army.
B) conquer India.
C) conquer China.
D) conquer Egypt and Libya.
21) The rule of Cyrus and Darius resembled each other in what way?
A) both failed to conquer Egypt
B) both conquered extensive new territories
C) both succeeded their fathers as Persian kings
D) both died peacefully
22) Who were "the eyes and ears of the Great king"?
A) priests
B) Persian nobles
C) satraps
D) cavalrymen
23) Which of the following is NOT generally true of the satraps?
A) They were Persians.
B) They were governors.
C) They were selected for their loyalty.
D) They exercised considerable authority.
24) Which man codified Persian law in an attempt to place his reputation as a lawgiver on the same plane as that of King Hammurabi?
A) Cyrus
B) Cambyses
C) Darius
D) Xerxes
25) Which of the following best describes the connections between Persia and Mesopotamia?
A) The Persian emperors had no interest in Mesopotamia, as they viewed the inhabitants of that region as infidels.
B) The Persians were most influenced by the Mesopotamian culture in the area of religion.
C) In areas such as law, government administration, and society, Persia was significantly influenced by Mesopotamia.
D) The relationship between Persia and Mesopotamia was adversarial in nature because Mesopotamia continually rebelled against Persian domination.
26) Which of the following statements regarding slavery in Persia is NOT true?
A) Some slaves were prisoners taken in battle.
B) Some slaves were taken because of debts.
C) Slaves were the property of their owners.
D) Slaves were allowed to choose their spouses, but nothing else.
27) Which of the following does NOT accurately describe Persian society?
A) The Persians loved celebrations and festivals.
B) The Persians took great pride in their appearance.
C) The Persians enjoyed fine jewelry made of gold and silver.
D) The Persians preferred a simple, linear style of architecture.
28) Which of these was NOT a Persian royal capital city?
A) Ecbatana
B) Babylon
C) Baghdad
D) Persepolis
29) Which of the following statements concerning N¬¬¬o Roz is NOT correct?
A) It was a spring festival.
B) It commemorated the creation of fire.
C) The festival was Jewish in origin.
D) During the festival, people exchanged gifts.
30) Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of Farsi?
A) It possesses a thirty-six-character alphabet.
B) It has a rich vocabulary.
C) It possesses an intricate grammatical structure.
D) It was recorded on clay tablets.
31) According to Zoroastrianism, ______ is worshipped.
A) Ahura and Mazda.
B) Ahriman.
C) Zoroaster.
D) Tomyris.
32) Which of the following statements about Zoroastrianism is NOT true?
A) It teaches that Ahriman was banished from paradise.
B) It teaches that Ahura Mazda created humans.
C) It teaches that actions are guided by predestination, as there is no free will.
D) It teaches that Ahura Mazda and Ahriman fought and Ahriman lost.
33) Who were the scholar-priests of the Persian world?
A) sati
B) magi
C) Avesta
D) Mithras
34) Zoroastrianism survived for over a thousand years in the former Persian Empire until it was displaced by the spread of
A) Christianity.
B) Judaism.
C) Hinduism.
D) Islam.
35) How did Zoroastrianism benefit the rulers of Persia?
A) It encouraged people to pay tithes and taxes.
B) It established a moral order with the king as god's earthly representative.
C) It fostered a belief in democracy.
D) It led to the defeat of competing cultures and religions.
36) The defeat of which of these people brought the Persians and Greeks into contact?
A) Egyptians
B) Medes
C) Lydians
D) Ethiopians
37) Which Greek people revolted in 499, leading eventually to war between the Greeks and Persians?
A) Ionians
B) Athenians
C) Spartans
D) Macedonians
38) What was the outcome of the Battle of Marathon?
A) The Persians won.
B) The Greeks won.
C) The Macedonians united the Greek city states.
D) The Medes won.
39) Which of the following did NOT occur during the reign of Cyrus?
A) The Hebrews were allowed to return to Jerusalem.
B) The Babylonian captivity of the Jews ended.
C) The Battle of Marathon was fought.
D) The Persian Empire expanded.
40) Who succeeded Darius as the ruler of Persia?
A) Cambyses
B) Cyrus
C) Xerxes
D) Alexander
41) The battle of Marathon had the biggest impact on which of these?
A) Persia
B) Greece
C) Egypt
D) Macedon
42) Which Greek city-state was known for its strong navy?
A) Sparta
B) Athens
C) Corinth
D) Thebes
43) Which of these was decisive in the Persian loss to the Greeks in the 480s?
A) the weakness of the Persian forces
B) the distance from the Persian capital
C) the poor organization of the Persian forces
D) the Athenian navy
44) A small group of 300 or more Spartan soldiers held the Persian army of over 10,000 at a mountain pass called
A) Marathon.
B) Thermopylae.
C) Salamis.
D) Ionia.
45) According to the Peace of Callias, Anatolia was left to
A) Athens.
B) Ionia.
C) Persia.
D) Sparta.
46) How did the Greek city-states react to the disappearance of the Persian threat?
A) by engaging in conflict among themselves
B) by launching a massive assault on Persia
C) by a slow migration into Persian lands
D) by rebuilding the inter-city alliance that had defeated Persia
47) Which of the following did NOT occur during the Peloponnesian War?
A) Sparta defeated Athens.
B) Persia helped create a Spartan navy.
C) Rival alliances led by Sparta and Athens battled each other.
D) Athens defeated Sparta.
48) Why didn't Philip II invade Persia?
A) He signed a treaty with Artaxerxes.
B) He couldn't control the rebellious Greek city-states.
C) He was killed before he had the chance to invade.
D) He was busy conquering Egypt.
49) Which of the following Persian rulers is responsible for the disastrous decision to deny offering help to the Athenians in their struggle against Philip II?
A) Xerxes
B) Darius the Great
C) Darius III
D) Artaxerxes
50) Which of the following statements about Darius III is NOT true?
A) He was murdered by one of his own troops.
B) He tried to flee the advance of Alexander's army.
C) He came to the throne after the death of Artaxerxes.
D) He defeated the Macedonians before his untimely death.
51) Which people conquered the Seleucid kingdom and ruled in a manner similar to the Persians?
A) Macedonians
B) Ionians
C) Parthians
D) Romans
52) Which of the following does NOT apply to the Sasanians?
A) They settled in Iran after the Persians.
B) They helped the Parthians fight the Romans.
C) They were the first indigenous ethnic group to conquer the Iranian plateau.
D) They eventually replaced the Parthians and constructed their own empire.
53) Which of these empires was partially revived by the Parthians?
A) Sasanian
B) Persian
C) Egyptian
D) Greek
54) Which of the following statements about King Shapur I is NOT true?
A) He made Zoroastrianism the state religion of Persia.
B) He tolerated the practice of Judaism, Christianity, and Buddhism.
C) He conquered Mesopotamia in 256.
D) He ruled different ethnic groups simultaneously by using harsh legalism and a strong central government.
55) Which of these Sasanian traditions was NOT derived from Persian custom?
A) Zoroastrianism
B) toleration for conquered peoples
C) the circle of equity
D) satrapies