abacus (AB-a-cus). A block with a square base, placed horizontally, forming the top of a capital of a column providing support to the architrave. In the Doric order, a thick plain slab without dressing; in the Ionic order, with a molded lower edge; in the Corinthian order, with concave sides and the corners removed. In the architecture of ancient Egypt a large thick cube. By working the ends of such blocks artisans produced a laterally spreading form of capital, later detailed by addition of moldings, multiplication of parts, and ornamentation with abstract, floral, zoomorphic forms. 

abbot (AB-bot). The overseer, head, overseer, or superior of a monastery.

abecedarian (ABE-ce-DAR-i-an). As a noun, primarily one learning alphabet characters but also used to describe a novice undertaking to learn something or anyone learning the rudiments or fundamentals of something or as an adjective, arranged alphabetically or in alphabetical order.

abecedarius (ABE-ce-DAR-i-us). A poetic piece wherein each stanza proceeds according to the letters of the alphabet such as Psalm 119 in Hebrew.

abecedary (ABE-ce-DA-ry). A primer for learning the alphabet.

abraded (a-BRAD-ed). Roughed up or worn away by abrasion due to rubbing.

absolute chronology (AB·so·lute chro·NOL·o·gy). A chronology based upon chronometric dates.

absolute dating (AB·so·lute DAT·ing). An absolute date is a chronometric date. The burning of the Second Temple in Jerusalem on 9 Ab (August 5, 70) by the Romans is an absolute date. That is, the date is known with such certainty that to reject it would be scientifically, if not logically, absurd. See Chromomeric Dating.  

absolution (AB·so·LU·tion). The release from consequences or penalties or the process of freeing from consequences or penalties. In Roman Catholic theology a remission of sin or the punishment due to sin made by a priest in the process of penance. In Protestant theology a declaration or assurance of forgiveness made by a penitent individual after confession of sins.

abutment (a-BUT-ment). Reinforcing block or wall of masonry supporting either end of a structure, e.g., an arch, bridge, or vault, by absorbing its thrust force.

Abydos ware (a-BY-dos ware). Pottery of Canaanite (Syro-Palestinian) origin found in the royal tombs of the First and Second Dynasties (The Old Kingdom) at Abydos, Saqqara, Abusir el-Melek, and other sites in Upper Egypt, dating to Early Bronze Age II (3300-2700 BCE). The pottery, often red-rose slipped and burnished or painted with geometric motifs, includes jugs, bottles, and jars. Most common are the red-slipped jugs, some of a hard-baked “metallic” quality, with handles attached to the rim and a typical stamped base. This pottery class took its name from Abydos, the first site at which it was found, in Upper Egypt. Abydos pottery was not made in Egypt, but imported into Egypt from the Canaan.

acanthus (a·CAN·thus). Any of several herbs of the genus Acanthus native to the Mediterranean region, having spiny or toothed leaves. Acanthus leaves sometimes serve architectural ornamental purposes, e.g., as in a Corinthian capital.

accession year (ac·CES·sion year). The actual year in which a monarch ascends the throne. See regnal year.

Achaemenid (a-CHAE-me-nid). A member of the Persian ruling dynasty dating from the reign of Cyrus the Great (ca. 550 BCE) to the death of Darius III (330 BCE) following his defeat by Alexander the Great in the Battle of Gaugamela. The dynasty took its name from Achaemenes (Persian, Hakhamanish), its early 7th century BCE putative founder.

Acheulean (a-CHEU-le-an). Lower Paleolithic culture.

Acheulean tradition (a·CHEU·le·an tra·DISH·an). The stone tool technology of some populations of Homo erectus, found in Africa and Europe dating to the Lower Paleolithic Age.

achzib ware (ach-ZIB ware). A Phoenician, Iron Age II, red slip pottery type consisting primarily of jugs with trefoil mouth of “mushroom” rims, red slipped, and highly burnished.

acropolis (a·CROP·o·lis). The citadel or official, administrative, or royal part of an ancient city, often elevated or the highest of its precincts.

acroterium (AC-ro-TER-i-um) or acroterion (AC-ro-TER-i-on), pl., acroteria. The ornamental finial at the apex or corner of a roof, or the lower angles of a pediment or an ornamental projection from a pediment serving as a base for a sculptured figure.³

acroteria (AC-ro-TER-i-a). The statuary or ornamentation placed at the apex and ends of a pediment.

adaptation (AD-ap-TA-tion). The process of microevolutionary change in a species enabling it to become better fitted to survive within changing environmental conditions or other external stimuli.

Aelia Capitolina (a·LI·a CAP·i·to·LI·na) or Colonia Aelia Capitolina (co·LO·ni·a a·LI·a CAP·i·to·LI·na). Jerusalem of the Late Roman Period (CE 132–324). More Information.

Aggadah (Ag·GA·dah). The non-legal or narrative material in the Talmud and other rabbinic literature. See Gemara.

agora (AG·o·ra). Originally in ancient Greece a public square or open marketplace. Later agora referred to a popular political assembly or the place where such an assembly would meet.

agriculture (AG·ri·CUL·ture). In anthropology the cultivation of domesticated crops. The invention of agriculture occurred in the Near East during the Neolithic period (8500-4300 BCE). In contemporary parlance agriculture refers to both crop and animal production.

agriculture, intensive (in·TEN·sive ag·RI·cul·ture). Field crop production by means of the annual preparation of fields intended for cultivation on a more or less permanent basis facilitated by use of the plow and other machinery, draft animals, fertilizers (anciently often animal and human fetal matter), irrigation, water storage technologies, and the like.

Akkadian or Accadian (ak·KA·di·an). The ancient eastern Semitic language of the Assyrians and Babylonians written in a cuneiform script.

aliyah (a·li·AH and a·li·YAH), pl. aliyahs (a·LI·yos and a·LI·yot). An ascent or the act of going up, a reflection of going up to Jerusalem in biblical times, now broadened to refer to the immigration of Jews to Israel, either individually or in groups. Retaining elements of its earlier meaning a reference to the act of proceeding to the reading table in a synagogue of the Jews for recitation of the blessings prior to and following Torah readings.

allele (al-LEL). Alternative forms of a gene occurring at a given locus (a specific location on a gene on a chromosome). Some genes have only a single allele and others have more. Most loci possess more than one possible allele. Different alleles convey different instructions for the development of a certain phenotype, e.g., different blood types. A population’s gene pool consists of the total aggregate of genes in that population at any one time.

allele frequency (al-LEL FRE-quen-cy). The percentage of times a particular allele appears in a population, The same as gene frequencies, but the preferred term.

alphabet (AL·pha·BET). A set of symbols enabling a language to be set forth in a written form through representing words by sound sequences. The basis of alphabetic writing is the assignment of a symbol or sign to each basic unit of sound in a language. These discrete units of sound are known as phonemes. Most languages possess from 12 to 60 phonemes. Reducing each word to phonemes and then representing the phoneme sequence in writing by symbols enables the recording of every word in a language. The invention of the alphabet provided an efficient means for record keeping, communication, and transmission of knowledge. The archaic Hebrew is that of the Hebrew abecedary,  1200-1000 BCE, found at Izbet Sartah.

altar (AL·tar), altars (pl.). An elevated place or structure, such as a mound or platform, for the practice of religious rites, for a memorial, or for the offering of sacrifices to ancestors, deities, and the like. See Altars in Hebrew Worship.

amulet (AM·u·let). A talisman or charm worn to ward off evil and to bring about good luck.

anachronistic (a·NACH·ro·NIS·tic). Refers to the representation of something as existing or occurring at other than in its proper time, particularly earlier, and involving or containing anything out of its proper time, e.g., without minimizing the symbolic significance of the phrase “breaking of bread” (Acts 2:42; Acts 20:11; cf. Luke 24:30) the reading of a Eucharistic service into the apostle Luke’s writings by equating the expression “breaking of bread” as the liturgy of the Eucharist (called Divine Liturgy in the Orthodox Eastern Church, Mass in the Roman Catholic Church, and generally Holy Communion in Protestant churches) is anachronistic. Separation of the Eucharist, then embedded together with a full meal, known as the Lord’s Supper and in the second and third centuries as the agape, included in the fourteenth of Nisan Christian Passover observance, from the annual re-enactment of the Last Supper, was a post-70 CE event. Simply put, reading the “breaking of bread” in Acts as a Eucharist service is an anachronism.

Anastasis (AN·as·TA·sis). The Church of the Resurrection (Anastasis), a rotunda in the form of the royal mausoleum built over the tomb known as the Tomb of the Redeemer, at the order of the Emperor Constantine, is the west end of the Constantinian Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Many Christians believe this site is the location of the tomb into which Jesus’ followers placed his body. The facade of this circular structure had eight doors over which opened up eight windows elongated skyward. Twelve large columns supported the rotunda alternated by three groups of pillars supporting a balcony over which rose a cupola with an oculus (eye). All around the lower part of the rotunda large decorated windows filtered the light which filled this space. Light entered the interior from the facade, the windows and the oculus illustrating that the Light of the Resurrection defeated the powers of darkness.

Anastasis (AN·as·TA·sis). The Church of the Resurrection (Anastasis), a rotunda in the form of the royal mausoleum built over the tomb known as the Tomb of the Redeemer, at the order of the Emperor Constantine, is the west end of the Constantinian Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Many Christians believe this site is the location of the tomb into which Jesus’ followers placed his body. The façade of this circular structure had eight doors over which opened up eight windows elongated skyward. Twelve large columns supported the rotunda alternated by three groups of pillars supporting a balcony over which rose a cupola with an oculus (eye). All around the lower part of the rotunda large decorated windows filtered the light which filled this space. Light entered the interior from the façade, the windows and the oculus illustrating that the Light of the Resurrection defeated the powers of darkness.

Anat (a·NAT).  A Semitic goddess of fertility, sexual love, hunting and war.

aniconic (an·i·CO·nic). A seal bearing no image.

animatism (AN·i·ma·tism). The attribution of humanlike consciousness, personality, and powers to inanimate objects (e.g., heavenly bodies, volcanoes, rocks, and stones), natural phenomena (e.g., eclipses, earthquakes, thunderstorms, tornadoes), plants and animals, and the universe itself.

animism (AN·i·mism). The belief that disembodied beings in the form of ghosts, gods, souls, and spirits, populate the world and can live in objects such as altars, idols, and rocks. See Ziggurats and Household Idols.

ankh (ankh), pl. ankhs (ankhs). A tau cross with a loop at the top symbolic of generation or enduring life. The ancient Egyptians saw the ankh as symbolic of life. Often seen in tombs of pharaohs the symbol held multiple meaning and its exact origin is unknown.

anomalistic month (a·NOM·a·lis·tic month). An anomalistic month is the time that the moon takes to go from perigee (the point nearest to the earth in the orbit of the moon) to perigee.

anthropological linguistics (AN·thro·PO·log·I·cal lin·GUIS·tics) or linguistic anthropology (lin·GUIS·tic AN·thro·PO·logy). A core subfield of anthropology focusing on the nature of human language and its relationship to culture. Historical linguistics, a specialty in linguistic anthropology of importance to biblical archaeology, consists of the classification and comparison of different languages to discern the historical links between languages.

anthropologist (AN·thro·POL·o·gist). A specialist in the study of anthropology. Anthropologists share a common perspective that is diachronic, holistic, and comparative.

anthropology (AN·thro·POL·o·gy). The systematic study of the nature, diversity and similarity of humankind over time through four traditional sub-fields concentrating on (1) the origins and biological diversity of humans [biological anthropology], (2) their technological and cultural development over time [archaeology], (3) their languages [anthropological linguistics], and their social customs and beliefs [social and cultural anthropology also called sociocultural anthropology or ethnology]. Slowly emerging as a fifth subfield is applied anthropology.

anthropomorphism (AN·thro·po·MOR·phism). The attribution of human characteristics, e.g., hands, feet, emotions, and the like, to nonhuman beings or objects. People often use anthropomorphic terms to describe God. For most people to not do so relegates God to ethereal terms hard to understand. But does God have form and shape? These are anthropomorphic terms. Christians divide over this issue some viewing the Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament in more literal terms and others in metaphoric terms.

antitype (AN·ti·TĪP). In biblical prophecy the fulfillment of something or someone foreshadowed by a type or symbol such as a New Testament event prefigured by an exemplar or symbol in the Hebrew Scriptures. For example, Aaron and Jesus Christ are the type and the antitype for the high priest that made atonement for the sins of the people. The Jewish Passover was the type and the crucifixion of Jesus the antitype. The type is the pattern or symbol, and the antitype is the fulfillment. The type prefigures the antitype. One substitutes the antitype into the symbolism of the type to arrive at the full meaning. See type.

apocalyptic (a·POC·a·LYP·tic). From the Greek apokalypsis “unveiling” defining a work of or like any of a class of Jewish or Christian writings on divine revelation that appeared from about 200 BCE to CE 350 forecasting the ultimate destiny of the world.

apostles (a·POS·tles). Anciently individuals charged with a specific commission, by those with authority, and granted power to execute it. More Information.

Apostolic Age (AP·os·tol·ic age) or Apostolic Period. The first of the historical epochs in the work of the Church of God, focused in the Greco-Roman world and often identified as the Apostolic Age, consisted of the period of the apostles and their immediate successors.

Apostolic Fathers (AP·os·tol·ic FA·ther). A reference to the body of the earliest Christian literature after the New Testament. The Apostolic Fathers are virtually all of orthodox Gentile authorship. The term comes from the work of seventeenth century scholar Jean Cotelier (Richardson 1970:15). The earliest, known as First Clement, dates to about CE 96 and the latest to about the middle of the second century. The prescript of the letter of First Clement, a noncanonical epistle attributed to Roman bishop Clement, identifies its origin as “The Church of God which sojourns in Rome” and its recipient as “the Church of God which sojourns in Corinth (Clement, First Epistle to the Corinthians 1 in Roberts and Donaldson 1987:5).

applied anthropology (ap·PLIED AN·thro·POL·o·gy). The use of data and information from the four core subfields of anthropology to provide practical solutions to problems in society.

apse (apse). In church architecture a vaulted semicircular or polygonal recess serving primarily decorative and devotional functions. Illustrated is the great apse in the Basilica of St. Pudentiana, located at at 160 Via Urbana Rome, which records major Jerusalem landmarks ca. 400 CE.

archaeoastronomy (AR·chae·o·as·TRON·o·my). A specialty in archaeology dealing with the study of the astronomical significance of ancient structures and other phenomena preserved in the archaeological record as they relate to ancient astronomical phenomena and understanding.

The apse in the Basilica of St. Pudentiana in Rome. A BIBARCH™ Photo.

archaeological culture (AR·chae·o·LOG·i·cal CUL·ture). A set of assemblages, generally in a continuous space that exhibit a consistent association of distinctive stylistic elements, representing the surviving remains of an extinct culture.

archaeological record (AR·chae·o·LOG·i·cal re·CORD). A more or less continuous distribution of material culture over the surface of the earth with highly variable density characteristics consisting of artifacts, ecofacts, features, and structures.

archaeological unit (AR·chae·o·LOG·i·cal U·nit). An arbitrary unit of classification designed to separate one grouping in time from another. Sets of distinctive assemblages, from a series of sites in a given region when taken as a whole, reflecting a cohesive set of cultural practices generally provide the basis of an archaeological unit.

archaeology (AR·chae·ol·o·gy) also archeology (AR·che·ol·o·gy). A core subfield of anthropology dedicated to the scientific study of the life and cultures of ancient peoples through excavation of their material culture. The Latin equivalent archaeologia gave rise to the English word archaeology. Restated in procedural terms archaeology consists of the systematic recovery of the surviving remains of ancient peoples in an effort to reconstruct their cultural history. The goal of archaeological endeavor is the recovery, classification, and description of the durable remnant of human activities of antiquity to expand the knowledge of the present about the past.

Area (AR·e·a). A sector of units of excavation and consists of a group of closely related, usually contiguous, squares. The numbering of Areas is by capital letters, e.g., Area A, Area M, etc., and squares by Arabic numbers, Area A, Square 1. In some systems of excavation what is an Area in the above description is called a field, and instead of the smaller unit of squares already described, that unit is called an area, e.g., Field 1, Area 1.

Area supervisor (AR·e·a SU·per·VI·sor). At most Levantine excavations a person, reporting directly to the excavation field supervisor, responsible for oversight and record keeping of all work in a given area.

arianism (AR·ian·ism). The teaching attributed to Arias, born ca. 250 in Libya, that Jesus of Nazareth is not coeternal with the Father.

artifact (AR·ti·FACT). Any item, or phenomenon, whose properties result from human activity, e.g., a tell itself exists as an artifact. Some archaeologists further limit artifacts to those items which are transportable. We prefer the expanded sense of the word.

Ascension (As·CEN·sion). The bodily ascension of Jesus Christ into the heavens.

asceticism (as·CET·i·cism). A rigorous self-denial of self-discipline, e.g., fasting, denial of sexual desires, self infliction of pain, mutilation, practiced from ancient times and often found in monastic religion where adherents live a life of austerity such as in Essene asceticism.

ashlar (ASH·lar). A squared or rectangular cut building stone, cut more or less true on all faces, so as to permit laying of the stones in horizontal courses with very thin mortar joints.

assemblage (as·SEM·blage). In an archaeological sense an assemblage consists of a number of artifacts, including their context in space and time, existing together.

assimilation (as·SIM·i·LA·tion. In a sociocultural system the integration of cultural traits from previously distinct cultural groups to the culture, ethnic identity, and language of the dominant cultural group.

assumption (as·SUMP·tion). The act of taking for granted, presupposing, or presuming a fact not in evidence or without proof.

Astarte (as·TAR·te). An ancient Semitic deity, goddess of fertility and reproduction.

astrologer (a·STROL·o·ger). A person whose occupation is the interpretation of the assumed influence of heavenly bodies on human affairs.

astrology (a·STROL·o·gy). The belief in the occult influence of celestial bodies in human affairs based upon the concept that the movements of the sun, moon, and planets among the stars influences the lives of individuals and the fates of nations. Astrologers profess to foretell one’s future by the position of the planets and stars in relation to one another at a given time. One’s destiny is in essence set at the time of one’s birth. Ancient priest-astrologers divided the zodiac into twelve sections or signs of 30 degrees, each designated by a symbol of unknown origin, and assigned to each the name of the constellation that occupied the greatest portion of the 30 degree section at that time.

attribute (at·TRIB·ute). A well-defined element of an artifact that cannot be reduced further, e.g., form, style, technology, and the like.

authority (au·THOR·i·ty). Power or right, usually derived from office or rank, to issue commands and to punish for violations generally perceived by members of a sociocultural system as legitimate rather than coercive.

autosome (AU-to-some). A chromosome that is not directly involved in determining sex, as opposed to the sex chromosome.

¹ This image is.
² This image is a faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, public domain work of art therefore considered to be in the public domain in the United States.
³ A Dictionary of Terms Used in Architecture and Building (New York: Industrial Book Company, 1913:8). Source: A Dictionary of Terms Used In Architecture And Building. New York: Industrial publication Co., 1913 © 1909). Image is in public domain because its publishing in the United States was before 1923; or with a copyright notice from 1923 through 1963 without copyright renewal; or without a copyright notice from 1923 through 1977; or without a copyright notice from 1978 through March 1, 1989, and without subsequent registration within 5 years.