Terms and chronology
A companion for reading dates, objects, and historical arguments.
- Alashiya
- An ancient name associated with Cyprus in diplomatic texts. Its precise political scope and the location of its governing center remain questions to examine. See an example →
- Late Cypriot IIC / IIIA
- Archaeological phases used to compare Cypriot sequences around the late thirteenth and twelfth centuries BCE. Boundaries depend on the chronology adopted; these are not exact island-wide event dates. See an example →
- Cypro-Geometric
- A chronological and material-culture designation used for phases of Early Iron Age Cyprus. It does not name a single population. See an example →
- Destruction horizon
- A layer or context interpreted as evidence of destruction. Cause, perpetrators and synchronization with other sites require additional evidence. See an example →
- Stratigraphy
- The study of deposits and their relationships. It can establish a sequence even when absolute calendar dates remain uncertain.
- Radiocarbon
- Dating organic material using radioactive carbon. Calibrated results are probability ranges; samples date material and must be related carefully to an event.
- Dendrochronology
- Dating and comparing tree-ring sequences. Annual resolution is powerful, but the association between sampled wood, climate and historical events still needs argument. See an example →
- Synchronism
- A connection between independent chronological sequences, for example a named official appearing in records of two societies. It may establish a boundary rather than the precise year of an event. See an example →
- Terminus post quem
- The earliest possible boundary: something happened after this point. It is not necessarily a date for the event itself.
- Preferred chronology
- The date model chosen by a particular research account for display. Preferred does not mean all scholars agree. Open the alternative accounts and their source explanations. See an example →
- Regnal year
- A date measured within a ruler’s reign. Converting it to BCE depends on the chronology used for that reign. See an example →
- Provenance
- An object’s origin or archaeological context. A proposed material source is distinct from its excavation findspot and the route it traveled.
- Primary / secondary metallurgy
- Primary smelting extracts metal-bearing products from ore; later processing can include refining, alloying, casting and recycling. See an example →
- Palatial administration
- Institutions centered on a palace that organized some political, economic and ritual activities. Their loss does not demonstrate the disappearance of all households or production.
- Confidence and review
- Confidence expresses the strength assigned to a statement. Specialist review is a separate process requiring attribution. An unreviewed record can contain a confident claim; the badge does not certify it.