AP World History

Learning AP World History can be a daunting task. However, understanding the general concepts and weaving together a cohesive story can be done with some careful planning and thought. This guide provides an overview of some key concepts that should be understood when learning AP World History.

Themes are overarching ideas that connect different historical events together. There are six main themes in AP World History: interaction between humans and the environment, technology and science, demography and disease, social structures, gender, and religion. These themes provide a framework for understanding the past and its impact on the present.

The historical eras covered in the AP World History exam are organized into six distinct periods:

• The first period, Pre-history (c. 8000 BCE – c. 600 BCE), covers the development of human societies prior to the written word.
• The second period, The Post-Classical Era (c. 600 CE – c. 1450), sees the world increasingly interconnected through trade and the spread of religions.
• The third period, The Early Modern Era (c. 1450 – c. 1750), marks a time of European domination and the beginnings of colonialism.
• The fourth period, The Age of Revolution (c. 1750 – c. 1900), experiences the Industrial Revolution and the rise of liberal and nationalist movements.
• The fifth period, The Twentieth Century (c. 1900 – c. 2000), sees the world engulfed in two world wars and the beginning of the Cold War.
• The sixth and final period, The Contemporary Era (c. 1900 – present), is the most recent period of history, characterized by globalization, decolonization, and the rise of terrorist movements.

In order to understand the events of the past, it is important to know the different ways in which historians can interpret them. The three main approaches to history are political, social, and cultural. Political history focuses on the history of governments, law, and diplomacy. Social history looks at the history of social groups, such as the working class, women, and minorities. Cultural history examines the history of art, literature, and music.

AP World History is a challenging but rewarding class that can give students a new perspective on the world around them. By understanding the key concepts and eras, and by learning to think like a historian, students can be successful in this class and on the AP exam.