AP World History : Demographic and Environmental History

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for AP World History

varsity tutors app store varsity tutors android store

Example Questions

Example Question #1 : Demographic And Environmental History

The Bantu migration resulted in __________.

Possible Answers:

the spread of the Bantu language

the tradition of large harvests as a symbol of wealth

the written Bantu law code

the trans-Saharan horse trade

the end of nomadic practices in Africa

Correct answer:

the spread of the Bantu language

Explanation:

The Bantu migration, which began circa 1000 BCE, spread the Bantu language, as well as traditions like cattle symbolizing wealth and power. It did not end nomadic practices in Africa, which still continue in some places to this day, nor did it result in the trans-Saharan horse trade, as camels were more common than horses. 

Example Question #1 : Migration, Settlement, And Demography

Which language spread throughout Africa as a result of population migration?

Possible Answers:

Farsi

Gaelic 

Quechua

Bantu

Sumerian 

Correct answer:

Bantu

Explanation:

The Bantu migration spread the Bantu language from Western Central Africa throughout the continent. This represented one of the greatest migrations of early history, and through this process Bantu influence spread throughout the sub-Saharan region.

Example Question #2 : Migration, Settlement, And Demography

Which of the following was not a reason early human civilizations were centered in river valleys?

Possible Answers:

Ready access to food such as fish and waterfowl

Human beings are descended from aquatic creatures

Rivers make long distance trade and transportation possible

A steady supply of silt leading to fertile soil

The ability to irrigate crops

Correct answer:

Human beings are descended from aquatic creatures

Explanation:

Human beings are descended from aquatic creatures, but that is not the reason early human civilizations settled in river valleys. Human civilization began in river valleys because silt and irrigation allowed for expanded agricultural production which led to a food surplus, especially when fish and fowl were plentiful. With a surplus comes a diversity of economic activity, like using the river as a highway to trade with far away communities. A food surplus, long distance trade, and a diversity of economic activity made record keeping necessary, which eventually became literacy.

Example Question #2 : Demographic And Environmental History

That is the name of the Neolithic city that existed approximately 6500 BCE to 5500 BCE? This city housed temples, granaries, trading houses, and political buildings.

Possible Answers:

Mohenjo-Daro

Sumer

Petra

Çatalhöyük

Timbuktu

Correct answer:

Çatalhöyük

Explanation:

You must pay careful attention to the time period. Only Çatalhöyük existed during that specific time frame in the Neolithic Period.

Example Question #2 : Migration, Settlement, And Demography

The famous philosopher Diogenes was forced to abandon his home, the Greek colony of Sinope, due to __________________.

Possible Answers:

a Turkish invasion

the Trojan war

the Greek war of independence

the Black Death

a Persian military invasion

Correct answer:

a Persian military invasion

Explanation:

The Persian empire repeatedly attacked Greek cities and colonies on its border for hundreds of years, including Sinope, which they conquered in the 4th century (when Diogenes was a young man).

The Trojan war, a semi-historical conflict, occurred centuries before Sinope and did not include Persians as factions.

The Greek war of independence occurred in the 20th century, thousands of years after Diogenes.

Although plague was common in the ancient world, the Black Death was a nearly world wide plague in the Middle Ages, thousands of years after the classical period (during which Diogenes was forced to abandon Sinope.)

Today, Sinope is a city in Turkey but the Turks did not conquer it until the Middle Ages.

Example Question #6 : Migration, Settlement, And Demography

One of the Primary cites of the Harappan civilization, this city's pictographic script has never been deciphered, but it is complex and indicative of a vast array of religious, domestic and mercantile activities.

Possible Answers:

Assur

Babylon

Mohenjo-Daro

Nubia

Çatalhöyük

Correct answer:

Mohenjo-Daro

Explanation:

Your clues here are the reference to the Harrapan Culture, which is also known as the Indus River Valley Civilization, Mohenjo-Daro is the most well known site of this Bronze Age people, and the undeciphered pictographic script. The second alone would not be much of a hint but taken together these two things provide you with your answer.

Example Question #1 : Demographic And Environmental History

Evidence of the first people to settle Oceania, ancestors of Aboriginal Australians and Melanesians, __________________.

Possible Answers:

goes back 1000 years

is impossible to determine

goes back only a few hundred years

goes back 40,000-60,000 years

Goes back 10,000 years

Correct answer:

goes back 40,000-60,000 years

Explanation:

Scientists who study the Oceanic fossil and archaeological records believe that human beings arrived 40,000-60,000 years ago.

In the thousands of years since then, large migrations have added different peoples.

European contact with Oceania, on the other hand, goes back only a few hundred years.

Example Question #4 : Migration, Settlement, And Demography

The Etruscans were a community indigenous to the Italian peninsula who ___________________.

Possible Answers:

conquered Rome early in its existence

acted as a link between the eastern Roman empire, based in Byzantium, and the Western empire, based in Rome

taught the Roman army the maniple system of war fighting

never conquered Rome militarily but did hegemonize them culturally

fought diligently on the side of the Trojans during the war between Troy and the Greeks, led by Agamemnon

Correct answer:

conquered Rome early in its existence

Explanation:

The Etruscans were a community indigenous to the Italian peninsula conquered Rome early in its existence. Although Rome was able to overthrow them eventually, Rome's subjection left an indelible mark on the Roman psyche.

The Etruscans spread their culture to the Romans, but through military expansion, not pacifistic expansion.

The Etruscans were not involved the Trojan war.

The Etruscans had been assimilated by the Romans by the time that the Eastern Roman empire came into existence.

The Roman army developed the maniple system of fighting long after the Etruscans disappeared as an independent, and cohesive, cultural group.

Example Question #2 : Demographic And Environmental History

Leaders of early Neolithic societies tended to be __________.

Possible Answers:

women

farmers or hunters

writers or philosophers

merchants or artisans

religious figures or warriors

Correct answer:

religious figures or warriors

Explanation:

Early Neolithic societies were generally ruled either by the strongest warriors or by religious figures who claimed to speak for the Gods. Often these two groups (priests and warriors) ruled together in tandem. Early human society relied heavily on religious figures to protect their crops, explain the universe, and speak to the Gods on their behalf.

Example Question #3 : Demographic And Environmental History

The legendary figure Yu the Great is said to have founded the ________________.

Possible Answers:

Xia Dynasty

Shang Dynasty

Yuan Dynasty

Ming Dynasty

Han Dynasty

Correct answer:

Xia Dynasty

Explanation:

Yu the Great is the legendary figure who is thought to have founded the Xia Dynasty, and by extension, China. The Xia Dynasty is the first dynasty in Chinese history (it actually predates written history).

Learning Tools by Varsity Tutors