A guide to the language of history
History glossary
Understand the people, places and ideas behind the stories. Find a term, read its meaning, then explore it in context.
1–33 of 33 terms · D
Clear filtersD-Day
the Allied landings in Normandy on 6 June 1944 that opened a major Western Front against Nazi Germany.
daimyo
powerful regional lords who governed domains in early modern Japan.
Danelaw
the Viking-influenced region of eastern and northern England under Danish law and settlement.
Dayton Accords
the 1995 peace agreement that ended the Bosnian War and created Bosnia's postwar constitutional structure.
Declaration of the Rights of Man
the 1789 statement of revolutionary principles declaring rights, legal equality, and national sovereignty.
Decolonisation
the process by which colonies gained independence from imperial rule.
decolonization
the process by which colonies gained independence from imperial rule.
Defiance Campaign
the 1952 mass civil disobedience campaign against apartheid laws.
Delian League
an alliance of Greek states led by Athens after the Persian Wars.
Democracy
a political system in which citizens take part in choosing or making decisions about government.
Democratic People's Republic of Korea
the official name of North Korea, proclaimed under Kim Il Sung in 1948.
Democratic-Republicans
the early U.S. party associated with Jefferson and Madison, favoring limited federal power and agrarian republicanism.
Department of Homeland Security
the U.S. federal department created after 9/11 to coordinate domestic security and emergency protection.
desegregation
ending enforced racial separation in schools and other institutions.
détente
a relaxation of tensions between rival powers, especially during the Cold War.
dharma
the teaching, moral order or path central to Buddhist life.
dictator
a Roman emergency magistrate given extraordinary authority for a limited crisis, though later rulers stretched the idea toward one-person rule.
Dictatus Papae
a 1075 list of claims asserting sweeping papal authority.
Digest
the part of Justinian's legal compilation that arranged extracts from classical Roman jurists.
Diktat
a dictated settlement imposed without genuine negotiation.
diocesan
relating to a diocese, the territory overseen by a bishop.
diplomacy
negotiation between states or political actors to manage conflict, alliances, or settlements.
direct action
protest that directly challenges a practice rather than only asking officials to change it.
disfranchisement
the denial or removal of the right to vote, including through discriminatory registration barriers.
disinformation
false or misleading information spread deliberately to confuse, persuade, or weaken trust.
dissolution
the legal and political breaking apart of a state or union.
Divine authority
a claim that power is backed by, granted by, or connected to the gods.
Divine kingship
the idea that a ruler's power is connected to gods, religion, or sacred authority.
Doctrine
a formal teaching, principle, or set of ideas used to guide belief or action.
Domesday Book
the great 1086 survey of land, wealth, and obligations across much of Norman England.
Drevlians
an East Slavic group subject to Rus tribute demands, remembered for killing Prince Igor in 945.
Druids
Celtic religious and intellectual specialists who preserved law, ritual, history, and teaching through oral tradition.
Dynasty
a sequence of rulers from the same family or ruling house.
