Language, Religion and Government of Europe Study Guide
1. What language family is the most widely spoken in the world and contains English and German? Germanic
2. What language family includes Russian? Slavic
3. What language family is based on Latin and contains French, Italian and Spanish? Romance
4. Who founded Judaism? Abraham
5. What is the holy book of Judaism? The Torah
6. What are followers of Judaism called? Jews
7. Who founded Islam? Muhammad
8. What is the holy book of Islam called? Quran or Koran
9. What are followers of Islam called? Muslims
10. What is the oldest of the three major religions found in Europe? Judaism
11. What is the fastest growing religion in the world? Islam
12. What is the largest religion in the world today? Christianity
13. What is the holy book of Christianity called? The Bible
14. What is a Jewish house of worship called? Synagogue
15. In which type of democracy do you see a prime minister that heads up the lawmaking body and the government?
Parliamentary democracy
16. In which type of democracy do you find a president that is head of state and chief executive? Presidential
democracy
17. What are two examples of federal governments in Europe? Germany and Russia
18. What is an example of a confederation in Europe? The European Union or the British Commonwealth of States
19. Which branch of the parliament in the UK has the most power? The House of Commons
20. Which branch of parliament in the UK has members appointed by the monarch or the House of Lords members? The
House of Lords
21. What is the lawmaking body of the United Kingdom called? Parliament
22. What are the two houses of Parliament in Germany called? The Bundestag and the Bundesrat
23. Which of these houses is more powerful and its members are elected by the citizens? Bundestag
24. What is the Federal Assembly of Russia? The legislature or lawmaking body of Russia
25. Who is the chief executive in the UK? The Prime Minister
26. Who is the head of state in the UK? The Monarch
27. Who is the head of state in Russia? The President
28. How is the prime minister of Russia selected? He is appointed by the president and then approved by the State
Duma
29. What is the chancellor of Germany? The chief executive of the country
30. Which branch of Russia’s Federal Assembly has its members selected by the country’s citizens? The State Duma
***Know all of your vocabulary words.
***Know the different ways governments divide power (unitary, federal, and confederation)
***Know the ways citizens participate in government (autocracy, oligarchy, and democracy)