Glossary 1205himation A rectangular outer mantle draped in various
ways and worn by the ancient Greeks.
Hippocratic bench A bench with moveable posts and
straps, used for reducing dislocations and for traction.
Hippocratic oath A statement of basic principles followed
by students and physicians at the ancient school of medi-
cine on the island of Cos and which survives to this day
as a foundation of modern medical ethics.
historical linguistics Th e study of the derivation, changes,
and relationships of languages over time.
ho boulomenos A Greek term literally meaning, “the one
who wishes,” a defi nition of who could initiate a public
lawsuit.
hogging trusses On a ship, thick ropes that could be tight-
ened to keep the bow and stern from sagging.
homoioi Literally “equals,” a term applied to the citizen
body in ancient Sparta.
honestiores and humiliores Two broad classes into which
Roman citizens were divided during the empire. Th e
honestiores were aristocrats, soldiers, and public offi ce-
holders; they suff ered lighter punishments than humilio-
res, who made up the rest of the population.
hoplite A heavily armed Greek foot soldier, protected by a
metal helmet, breastplate, and large round shield.
hoplitodromos A race in ancient Greece that the athletes
ran while wearing armor.
hoplomachus Gladiator armed with Greek heavy-infantry
weapons.
horos (pl. horoi) Stones used to mark boundaries for vari-
ous types of spaces: temple precincts, public spaces, and
the edges of poleis, or city-states.
hubris In ancient Greece, an outrage or a deliberate aff ront
to the dignity of another, particularly a citizen.
humor One of the elemental fl uids of the body in Hippo-
cratic, Galenic, and medieval medicine; the four canoni-
cal humors aft er Galen were blood, black bile, yellow bile,
and phlegm.
hunter-gatherers People who survive by hunting wild ani-
mals and gathering wild plants, without agriculture.
hybris Any act that went beyond the established moral
codes or surpassed human capacities, usually followed
by nemesis, or divine punishment.
hydraulics Th e study of the mechanics of fl uids, especially
with respect to engineering.
hydraulis A water-powered pipe organ developed in ancient
Greece; the world’s fi rst keyboard instrument, it used bel-
lows or a hydraulic pump to force air through pipes.
hydria A vessel to hold water mixed with concentrated
wine.
hydrostatics Th e branch of mechanics dealing with the
equilibrium of weights in water.
hypaspists Members of an elite infantry guard in the army
of Alexander the Great.
hypocaust Th e space underneath the fl oor of a building
from which heat rose to warm the fl oors above it.hypostyle hall A hall with a f lat ceiling supported by
columns.
iamb A poetic foot that has one short syllable followed by
a long.
ibw Tent in which bodies underwent ritual purifi cation be-
fore embalming in ancient Egypt.
ice core a sample of the various layers in large ice sheets
taken by drilling a long, hollow tube down into the ice
sheet and used for research purposes, such as the study of
past climate change or ecological conditions.
iconography Symbolic representation, especially the con-
ventional meanings attached to an image or images.
ideogram A written character that represents an object,
image, or idea.
ideographic In a writing system, having symbols that de-
note ideas rather than words.
idiophone An instrument producing a specifi c, unusual,
oft en atonal sound.
idolatry Th e worship of images or statues of gods instead of
the gods themselves.
igneous rock A type of rock that has been subjected to ex-
tremely hot temperatures, to the point of becoming mol-
ten, and then cooled to a hardened form.
imagines Images of the Roman dead carried by the living
in the form of masks during a funeral procession.
Imperial Cult During the Roman Empire, the belief that
the emperor was divine, usually declared aft er his death.
imperium Th e power of military and civilian command
belonging to certain magistrates and promagistrates
such as consuls and proconsuls.
impiety Th e crime of violating religious law in a way that
was viewed as injurious to the nation.
impluvium Th e shallow pool in the fl oor of an atrium that
collected rainwater directed through an opening in the
roof of a Roman house.
incertum An early technique of Roman masonry in which
blocks of tufa were inserted randomly into drying con-
crete blocks.
incised or raised relief Symbols, images, or writing cut or
hammered into metal surfaces to distinguish them from
the plane surface.
infi nitesimal A number smaller in absolute value than any
positive real number.
infl ected language A language in which words take dif-
ferent forms to refl ect grammatical information such as
gender, tense, and singular and plural.
infl ection Change in the form of a verb, noun, or adjec-
tive (for example, the adding of s in English to form a
plural).
ingot A metal casting that is shaped for easy working or for
recasting, typically oblong in shape.
initiation Any ritual, ceremony, or cultural practice that
marks the transition from childhood to adulthood.
inscription Writing carved into a solid substance such as
stone or bronze.1195-1234_SocCultAnctWrld-v4_bm.1205 1205 10/10/07 3:30:37 PM