Unit 1: Period 1: 1491-1607 (copy)

Contact Period

The era initiated by Columbus's arrival in 1492, marking sustained interaction between Europe and the Americas.

Bering Land Bridge

The land connection between Eurasia and North America that allowed the first peoples to inhabit the Americas.

Pre-Columbian era

The period in North America before Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World, characterized by the presence of Native American societies.

Columbian Exchange

The wide-ranging exchange of plants, animals, foods, and diseases between the Old World and the New World following Columbus's voyages.

Encomienda System

A system instituted by the Spanish crown granting colonists the authority over a specified number of Native Americans, obliging colonists to protect and convert them while exploiting their labor.

Joint-Stock Companies

Corporate entities funded by shareholders to finance colonial settlements and trade in North America.

Middle Passage

The horrifying sea route used to transport enslaved Africans to the Americas, often marked by brutal conditions.

House of Burgesses

The first legislative assembly in the American colonies, established in Virginia in 1619.

Tobacco cultivation

The primary cash crop that drove economic growth in Virginia and led to the establishment of plantation systems.

Mayflower Compact

An agreement signed by the Pilgrims in 1620 establishing a framework for self-governance in their colony based on majority rule.

Great Puritan Migration

The movement of a significant number of Puritans from England to the New World between 1629 and 1642.

Separatists

A group of Puritans who sought to separate from the Church of England and establish their own religious communities.

Calvinism

A branch of Protestantism emphasizing predestination and the sovereignty of God, influential in shaping the beliefs of New England settlers.

Plantation Economy

An economic system based on large-scale agriculture and the exploitation of labor, particularly enslaved people, prevalent in the Chesapeake and southern colonies.

Coureurs du bois

French fur traders who lived among Native Americans and often intermarried with them.

Maroons

Communities formed by escaped enslaved people, particularly in the Caribbean, who created their own cultural enclaves.

Indigenous societies

Complex societies and cultures native to North America before European contact, composed of various tribes and communities.