Eurasia
the large landmass that includes both Europe and Asia
Taiga
biome with long cold winters and a few months of warm weather; also called boreal forest
Steppe
A large area of flat unforested grassland in southeastern Europe or Siberia.
Tundra
An extremely cold, dry biome.
chernozem soil
A Russian term for dark, fertile soil, often associated with grassland settings in southern Russia and Ukraine.
Baltic Republics
Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania
NATO
an international organization created in 1949 by the North Atlantic Treaty for purposes of collective security
USSR
Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. Created by Lenin in 1922.
Collective farms
Government owned farms, workers were paid by government and they shared profits from products.
Privatization
To change from government or public ownership or control to private ownership or control.
Soviet
council of workers and soldiers set up by Russian revolutionaries in 1917
Czar
A Russian emperor
Proletariat
Marx's term for the exploited class, the mass of workers who do not own the means of production
Bourgeoisie
the middle class, including merchants, industrialists, and professional people
Glasnost
a policy of the Soviet government allowing freer discussion of social problems
Perestroika
A policy initiated by Mikhail Gorbachev that involved restructuring of the social and economic status quo in communist Russia towards a market based economy and society
economic stagnation
a prolonged period of slow economic growth; usually accompanied by high unemployment
Regulated capitalism
a market system in which the government intervenes to protect rights and make procedural guarantees
Karl Marx
Father of Communism
Fredric Engels
aided Karl Marx in composing the Communist Manifesto.
Adam Smith
Scottish economist who wrote the Wealth of Nations a precursor to modern Capitalism.
Wealth of Nations
book spells out the first modern account of free market economies.
Communist Manifesto
A socialist manifesto written by Marx and Engels (1848) describing the history of the working-class movement according to their views.
Czar Nicholas II
Russian Czar during WWI; unpopular with Russian people; overthrown in March 1917; executed by Bolsheviks after November Revolution (1917)
Totalitarianism
A form of government in which the ruler is an absolute dictator (not restricted by a constitution or laws or opposition etc.)
Stalin
Bolshevik revolutionary, head of the Soviet Communists after 1924, and dictator of the Soviet Union from 1928 to 1953. He led the Soviet Union with an iron fist, using Five-Year Plans to increase industrial production and terror to crush opposition
WWI—Czar Nicholas II Abdicate
to step down or give up the throne in 1917 the people blamed the Czar the poor performance in the war. Peace land and bread.
Vladimir Lenin
Leader of the Bolshevik (later Communist) Party. He lived in exile in Switzerland until 1917, then returned to Russia to lead the Bolsheviks to victory during the Russian Revolution and the civil war that followed.
Nikita Kruschhev
a politician who led the Soviet Union during part of the Cold War
Mikhail Gorbachev
Head of the Soviet Union from 1985 to 1991. His liberalization effort improved relations with the West, but he lost power after his reforms led to the collapse of Communist governments in eastern Europe.
Lenin
Founded the Communist Party in Russia and set up the world's first Communist Party dictatorship. He led the October Revolution of 1917, in which the Communists seized power in Russia. He then ruled the country until his death in 1924.
Stalin
Russian leader who succeeded Lenin as head of the Communist Party and created a totalitarian state by purging all opposition (1879-1953)
Red Army
the regular army of the former Soviet Union
White Army
Russians who opposed Lenin and the Bolsheviks.
Domino Theory
A theory that if one nation comes under Communist control, then neighboring nations will also come under Communist control.
Iron Curtain
a "curtain" split between the democratic nations and communist nations in Eastern Europe and Russia
Sputnik
First artificial Earth satellite, it was launched by Moscow in 1957 and sparked U.S. fears of Soviet dominance in technology and outer space. It led to the creation of NASA and the space race.
Space Race
A competition of space exploration between the United States and Soviet Union.
Crimea
(1853-1856) Russian war against Ottomans for control of the Black Sea; intervention by Britain and France cause Russia to lose; Russians realize need to industiralize.
Putin and Syria (Obama)
Russia and Putin support Assad regime with bombing of rebel forces and military aid Wants to have more influence in the region after America backed off
Aral Sea
lake that has lost 80% of water volume from irrigation projects; runoff with chemicals inside it flows into this lake and has made it polluted