Americas

Flashcards covering early American civilizations (Hohokam, Maya, Aztec, Inca), the Age of Exploration, European colonization, and the Atlantic slave trade.

What was the population of Cahokia, the largest Mississippian city?

It had a population of up to $20,000$ people and more than $100$ mounds.

What specific items found in Hopewell mounds prove the existence of an extensive trade network?

Daggers of obsidian from the Rocky Mountains and shells from the Gulf of Mexico.

What is the term for the underground rooms used by the Anasazi for religious ceremonies?

Kivas

How did the Iroquois and the Plains Indians differ in their internal communication and organization?

The Iroquois formed a joint government called the Iroquois League with five nations, while the Plains Indians developed sign language to communicate between tribes that spoke different languages.

What were the early Olmec towns primarily used for according to scholars?

Ceremonial, political, and religious centers.

Which city was the first true city in Mesoamerica, and what was its peak population?

Monte Alban, built by the Zapotec, which had as many as $35,000$ people at its height.

What farming technique did the Maya use to clear forest land?

Slash-and-burn-agriculture

What were the two components of the Maya calendar system?

A $365$-day farming calendar and a $260$-day religious calendar.

What was the basis of the Aztec economy?

Tribute, or a tax, paid by conquered people.

What were 'chinampas' in the Aztec city of Tenochtitlan?

Floating gardens built because there was not much land available for farming.

How many people were sacrificed per year in Aztec society?

As many as $20,000$ people per year.

What was the significance of the Nazca Lines?

They were huge designs on the desert floor showing geometric shapes and animal outlines, possibly created due to the location of water.

What was the 'mita' in the Incan Empire?

A labor tax that common people had to pay by working wherever the government told them to.

How did the Incas keep records without a written language?

They used quipu, a set of colored or knotted cords to track goods, taxes, livestock, and census data.

Which Portuguese explorer was the first to attempt to sail around the southern tip of Africa?

Bartolomeu Dias in $1488$.

What was the purpose of the astrolabe for navigators?

It allowed them to calculate their location based on the position of the sun and stars in relation to the horizon.

Who were the first people to circumnavigate the world?

The $18$ survivors of Ferdinand Magellan’s voyage who returned in September $1522$.

What was the 'encomienda system' introduced by the Spanish in the Caribbean?

A system where a colonist was given land and Native Americans to work it in exchange for teaching them Christianity.

Who was the Native American woman who served as the translator for Hernan Cortes?

Malinche

What did the Treaty of Tordesillas ($1494$) establish?

An imaginary line through the Atlantic where lands to the west belonged to Spain and lands to the east belonged to Portugal.

What were the primary economic resources the French found in New France?

Fish and valuable fur.

According to the principles of mercantilism, how is a nation's strength measured?

By its wealth in gold and silver.

What are 'subsidies' in the context of mercantilist government policy?

Grants of money provided to help businesspeople start new industries.

Define 'inflation' as it occurred during the rise of capitalism in Europe.

A steady increase in prices due to rising demand from a growing population and an increase in the money supply.

What was the 'Middle Passage' in the Triangular Trade?

The second leg of the journey that brought captured Africans to the Americas to be sold as slaves, lasting between $3$ to $6$ weeks.

What is the 'African Diaspora'?

The spread of people of African descent throughout the Americas and Western Europe, leading to the diffusion of African culture, music, art, religion, and food.