APUSH Unit 1 & 2 Terms

feudalism

A social system in medieval Europe characterized by the exchange of land for service, where lords owned the land and vassals served in exchange for protection and maintenance.

joint stock company

a business entity where shares are owned jointly by shareholders, allowing for the pooling of capital for large ventures.

encomienda

A system where Spanish colonists were granted land and the right to extract labor from Indigenous peoples, ostensibly in exchange for their protection and Christianizing.

casta system

A racial hierarchy established in Spanish colonial Latin America, categorizing individuals based on their ethnicity and lineage, influencing social status and rights.

Pueblo Revolt

A successful uprising by Indigenous Pueblo peoples against Spanish colonial rule in 1680, aimed at restoring their traditional way of life and sovereignty.

indentured servitude

A labor system where individuals worked for a set number of years in exchange for passage to the New World, room and board, and eventual freedom.

Bacon’s Rebellion

A 1676 rebellion in Virginia led by Nathaniel Bacon against Governor William Berkeley's administration, fueled by colonists' frustrations over land policies and Native American raids.

quakers

A religious group known for their pacifism, equality, and simplicity, who played an important role in the early American colonies, particularly in Pennsylvania.

House of Burgess

The first elected legislative assembly in the American colonies, established in Virginia in 1619, which allowed colonists to participate in governance.

Mayflower Compact

A 1620 agreement made by the Pilgrims aboard the Mayflower, establishing a self-governing colony based on majority rule.

triangular trade

A transatlantic trading system in the 16th to 19th centuries that involved the exchange of goods, enslaved people, and raw materials between Europe, Africa, and the Americas.

mercantilism

An economic theory that emphasizes the importance of accumulating wealth through trade, primarily by maximizing exports and minimizing imports, prevalent in European colonial policy.

Navigation Acts

A series of English laws that restricted colonial trade to Britain and its colonies, aiming to strengthen mercantilism.

chattel

A form of personal property that includes enslaved people, allowing ownership and transferability in a legal sense.

Stono Rebellion

A 1739 slave revolt in South Carolina that resulted in the deaths of several colonists and led to harsher laws against enslaved people.

Enlightenment

An intellectual movement in the 17th and 18th centuries emphasizing reason, individualism, and skepticism of traditional authority, influencing political thought and the American Revolution.

Great Awakening

A religious revival movement in the 18th century that emphasized emotional experiences and personal faith, challenging established religious authority.

Anglicization

The process by which immigrants and their descendants in the American colonies adopted English culture, customs, and norms, leading to a more cohesive colonial identity.

Molasses Act

A British law enacted in 1733 that imposed a tax on molasses imported into the American colonies, aimed at maintaining the sugar market in the West Indies.

French and Indian War

A conflict between Britain and France in North America (1754-1763) that was part of the larger Seven Years' War, resulting in British dominance in North America.