Introduction to Early American History Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards covering key historical terms, explorers, and systems mentioned in the lecture transcript.

Paleo-Indians

Nomadic hunters, meaning 'old Indians' to archaeologists, who migrated from Siberia across the Bering Strait into North America in search of large game.

Eric the Red

A Norse Icelander who colonized the west coast of Greenland around 985 CE.

Caravels

New ocean-going sailing ships developed by the Portuguese, adapted from Arab vessels, which were better suited for sailing against winds and achieving greater speeds.

Astrolabe

A navigational instrument adopted by the Portuguese from Arabs that allowed sailors to determine their ship's position through latitude calculations.

Treaty of Tordesillas (1494)

An agreement between Spain and Portugal establishing a line west of the Cape Verde Islands, granting Spain exploration rights to the west and assigning Africa and Brazil to Portugal.

Amerigo Vespucci

An Italian explorer who sailed to South America in 1499 and asserted it was a new continent, leading European mapmakers to name the New World after him.

John Cabot

A Venetian explorer sponsored by King Henry VII of England who became the first European to view the North American continent in 1497.

Vasco Núñez de Balboa

A Spanish explorer who became the first European to view the Pacific Ocean in 1513 after crossing the Isthmus of Panama on foot.

Conquistadores

Unpaid Spanish soldiers and adventurers who plundered, conquered, and colonized the Americas in search of wealth, power, and glory.

Tenochtitlan

The capital city of the Aztec Empire built on Lake Texcoco, home to approximately 200,000 residents, stone pyramids, wide canals, and paved roads.

Encomienda

A Spanish socioeconomic system where privileged landowners managed indigenous villages, offering protection and religious care in exchange for goods and labor.

Hacienda

A large farm or ranch system that replaced the encomienda system as land ownership became a primary source of wealth in Spanish America.

Bartolomé de las Casas

A Catholic priest in Cuba who denounced forced conversions in 1514 and spent twenty years advocating for the humane treatment of indigenous peoples.

Saint Augustine

A Spanish outpost established in 1565 on the Florida coast that became the first permanent European town in the present-day United States.

Popé

A charismatic leader who orchestrated a major uprising in 1680 among 20 Pueblo towns, temporarily driving the Spanish out of Santa Fe.

Martin Luther

A German theologian who posted his 95 Theses in 1517 challenging Catholic Church corruption, particularly the sale of indulgences, initiating the Protestant Reformation.

Virginia Dare

The granddaughter of Governor John White, recognized as the first English child born in the New World on Roanoke Island.