Ch 24: New Worlds: The Americas and Oceania

These flashcards cover key vocabulary and concepts from Chapter 24 on the Americas and Oceania, focusing on indigenous peoples, colonial structures, and the impact of European colonization.

Taino

The indigenous peoples of the Spanish Caribbean who lived in small villages under chiefs and showed little resistance to European visitors.

Encomienda

A land grant system to Spanish settlers with total control over local indigenous populations.

Hernan Cortés

The Spanish conquistador who conquered the Aztec empire between 1519 and 1521 with only 450 men, aided by tribal resentment and epidemic disease.

Francisco Pizarro

The Spanish conquistador who toppled the Inca empire between 1532 and 1533, aided by internal problems and smallpox.

Viceroys

Officials who governed administrative centers in the Spanish colonial empire in the Americas, overseeing local governments and courts.

Mestizo

The term used for people of mixed ancestry, particularly the children of Spanish or Portuguese men and native women.

Silver Mining

The extraction of silver, especially in Zacatecas and Potosi, which formed the basis of Spanish wealth in the New World.

Haciendas

Large private estates in Spanish America that produced agricultural products, replacing the abusive encomienda system.

Engenho

Sugar mills in Brazil that combined agricultural and industrial operations and became central to colonial Brazilian life.

Virgin of Guadalupe

A national symbol in Mexico, recognized in 1531, representing the Catholic Church's influence and the survival of native religions.

Indentured Servants

Workers under contract who were needed for labor-intensive crops in North America before the rise of African slavery.

Pacific Islands

Islands visited by Spanish mariners after Magellan, where there were regular trade voyages and interactions with indigenous populations.