APUSH Periods 1 & 2 Vocabulary

Aztec Empire

Powerful Mesoamerican empire in central Mexico; conquered by Hernán Cortés in 1521.

Mayan Empire

Advanced Mesoamerican civilization in Yucatán; known for writing, math, and calendars.

Inca Empire

Large empire in Andes (Peru); conquered by Francisco Pizarro in 1530s.

Vikings

Norse explorers who reached North America around 1000 CE (Vinland).They were known for their shipbuilding, raiding, and trading across Europe and the North Atlantic.

Christopher Columbus

Italian explorer, sailed for Spain in 1492, “discovered” the New World.

Hernan Cortes

Spanish conquistador who conquered the Aztecs.

Conquistadores

Spanish conquerors who claimed land in the Americas for Spain.

Tenochtitlan

Capital of the Aztec Empire; later became Mexico City.

Francisco Pizarro

Spanish conquistador who defeated the Inca Empire.He co-founded the city of Lima and is known for his harsh treatment of the native population.

Encomienda System

Spanish labor system forcing Native Americans to work for colonists.

Bartolomé de Las Casas

Spanish priest who criticized mistreatment of Native Americans.

Hernando de Soto

Spanish explorer who led expeditions in the southeastern U.S.He is known for his encounters with various Native American tribes and being one of the first Europeans to cross the Mississippi River.

Reformation

16th-century movement challenging the Catholic Church; led to Protestantism.It sought to address corruption and practices within the Church.

Martin Luther

German monk who started the Reformation by posting the 95 Theses.

95 Theses

Document criticizing Catholic Church abuses, sparking Protestant Reformation.

John Calvin

Reformation leader; developed Calvinism emphasizing predestination.He was a French theologian whose teachings influenced many Protestant denominations.

Calvinism

Protestant belief in predestination and strict moral code.

Henry VIII

King of England who broke with Catholic Church and formed Anglican Church.

Queen Elizabeth

Protestant queen of England; supported exploration and defeated Spanish Armada.

Puritans

English Protestants who wanted to reform the Church of England.

Defeat of the Spanish Armada

1588 English naval victory; ensured England’s dominance in North Atlantic.

Roanoke Island

“Lost Colony” founded in 1587; disappeared mysteriously.

Sir Walter Raleigh

Englishman who sponsored Roanoke colony.

Virginia Company

Joint-stock company that founded Jamestown in 1607.

Powhatan

Native American leader near Jamestown; interacted with English settlers.

Captain John Smith

Leader of Jamestown; helped colony survive with discipline.

Jamestown

First permanent English settlement in North America (1607).

Bacon’s Rebellion

1676 uprising of poor settlers and indentured servants in Virginia.

Proprietary Colony

Colony owned by individuals granted land by the king.

Plymouth

Colony founded in 1620 by Pilgrims for religious freedom.

John Winthrop

Puritan leader; governor of Massachusetts Bay Colony; “City upon a Hill.”

Roger Williams

Founded Rhode Island; promoted religious freedom and separation of church/state.

Anne Hutchinson

Challenged Puritan authority in Massachusetts; banished to Rhode Island.

Pequot War

Conflict (1630s) between New England colonists and Pequot tribe.

Metacom’s War

(1675–1676) Native resistance against New England colonists; also called King Philip’s War.

Iroquois Confederacy

Alliance of Native American tribes in Northeast; powerful in trade and politics.

Quaker

Religious group promoting equality, peace, and tolerance.

William Penn

Founded Pennsylvania as a Quaker haven.

Indentured Servants

Workers who exchanged labor for passage to America.

Slavery

Forced labor system using Africans in colonies, especially in the South.

Protestant

Christians who broke away from the Catholic Church.

Triangular Trade

Trade route linking Europe, Africa, and the Americas.

Columbian Exchange

Exchange of plants, animals, diseases between Old and New Worlds.

“Half-Way Covenant”

Allowed partial church membership for Puritans’ descendants.

Salem Witch Trials

1692 trials in Massachusetts where people were executed for witchcraft.

Enlightenment

Intellectual movement emphasizing reason, science, and progress.

Benjamin Franklin

Enlightenment thinker, inventor, and colonial leader. Founding Father, a diplomat, a scientist, and a printer. He significantly contributed to the nation's founding through his involvement in drafting key documents like the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution

Great Awakening

Religious revival movement in the 1730s–1740s in the colonies.

George Whitefield

English Anglican preacher who toured the American colonies; famous for emotional, dramatic sermons that drew massive crowds and spread the Great Awakening across regions

Jonathan Edwards

New England preacher and theologian; emphasized God’s sovereignty and human sinfulness; his famous sermon “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” sparked religious fervor during the Great Awakening.

Joint-stock company

Business where investors share profits and risks; funded colonization.

Mayflower Compact

1620 agreement by Pilgrims to form a self-governing colony.

James Oglethorpe

Founder of Georgia; hoped it would be a refuge for debtors.

House of Burgesses

First representative assembly in the colonies (Virginia, 1619).

Navigation Acts

English laws restricting colonial trade to benefit England.

Mercantilism

Economic policy of controlling trade to build wealth for the mother country.

Salutary neglect

England’s policy of ignoring colonies, allowing self-rule.

Sir William Berkeley

Governor of Virginia; opposed Bacon’s Rebellion.

Pueblo Revolt

1680 Native uprising in New Mexico against Spanish rule.

Headright System

Land grant system encouraging settlement by giving land for bringing laborers.

Indentured Servants

Workers bound by contracts to work for a set time.

Subsistence Farming Growing enough food to feed one’s family, not for trade.

Hereditary Aristocracy

Social class based on inherited wealth and land.