Latin America Terms

3 G’s of Spanish conquest

the three main incentives for Spanish conquest in Latin America; Gold, God, and Glory

Amazon Rainforest

large tropical rainforest occupying the drainage basin of the Amazon River and its tributaries in northern South America

Andes

Runs through N and S of South America; Longest above-water mountain range in the world

Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna

a caudillo (a military or political dictator) who was able to seize power six times between 1832 and 1855; led the Mexicans at the Battle of Alamo

aristocracy

the highest social class in Latin America; old money; name matters more than money; owned large land estates

Atacama Desert

the driest desert in Latin America; affected by ocean currents; extreme dryness is partly due to the “rain shadow” from the Andes

Atahualpa

the last Inca Emperor; his death enabled the conquistadors to secure the Inca lands for the Spanish crown

Augustin de Iturbide

a conservative military leader who won Mexican independence from Spain; first emperor of independent Mexico

Aztecs

Center plateau of Mexico; Tenochtitlan, paid tribute; human sacrifices; chinampas

Bartolomeo de las Casas

a Spanish friar who was the first to expose the oppression of indigenous peoples by Europeans in the Americas and to call for the abolition of slavery

Benito Juarez

 a Mexican hero who fought for reforms that benefited the poor and wrote laws that reduced the wealth and power of the Catholic Church and the army

Banana Republic

a small country that is politically unstable and has an economy dependent on one export, such as bananas

Cabildo

Councils that Spanish set up to rule better; often made up of wealthy landowners; governed towns

Chasqui

Messengers who quickly spread info in the Inca Empire

Columbian exchange

the exchange of diseases, ideas, food, and populations between the New World (the Americas) and the Old World (Africa, Europe and Asia) following Christopher Columbus’ voyage to the Americas

Conquistadors

the Spanish conquerors of America

coup d’état

a seizure and removal of a government and its powers

Creole

a European born in Latin America

Cuzco

a town in the Andes in southern Peru; formerly the capital of the Inca empire

embargo

a government order that restricts buying and selling with a specified country or the exchange of specific goods

Encomienda system

a system that gave a Spanish owner (who usually lived in Spain) the right to demand taxes or labor from the people living on the land; land was about the size of a state

Ferdinand Magellan

a Portuguese explorer best known for having planned and led the 1519 Spanish expedition across the Pacific Ocean

Good Neighbor Policy

a policy in which the US government said they would not get involved in Latin American affairs

haciendas

large plantations; owners lived on the land

Hernando Cortes

Conquistador who takes over the Aztec empire in 1521; mistaken as Aztec God Quetzalcoatl

Incas

Andes of South America; largest land-wise; “Children of the Sun”, irrigation systems and terraces; plenty of gold

Jose de San Martin

an Argentine general and governor who led his nation during the wars of Independence from Spain

Jose Morelos

the Mexican liberal who replaced Father Miguel Hidalgo

maize

an early form of corn grown in Latin America

maroon colony

runaway slave communities; often in remote mountainous regions

Mayans

Yucatan peninsula; first civilization; no central government; astronomy and calendars

mercantilism

an economic system in which governments sought to ensure that exports exceeded imports; the idea that colonies existed for the benefit of the Mother Country

Mestizo

someone with a mix of European (mostly Spanish) and Native American parents

missionaries

a person sent on a religious mission, especially one sent to promote Christianity in a foreign country.

Moctezuma

an Aztec emperor who was captured by Spanish conquistador Cortés and is known for the end of the Aztec empire

Monroe Doctrine

a US policy that essentially tells European countries not to interfere in the New World affairs

Mulatto

someone with a mix of white and African parents

Nationalism

the attitude that the members of a nation have when they care about their national identity; loyalty and devotion to one’s country

Nouveaux Riches

people who have recently acquired wealth and are self-made (i.e. Bill Gates)

oligarchy

a form of government in which a small elite has ruling power

pampas

the grassy plains that stretch from Argentina into Uruguay; fertile lowlands; many cows are grown

peasants

people who work the land (mostly work on haciendas); not much money but have the most stability of all the people in the Lower Class

Peninsulares

Europeans born on the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal)

peon

an unskilled farm worker who usually works on a hacienda

Francisco Pizarro

a Spanish conquistador who conquered the Incas

Quetzacoatl

an Aztec creator god who brought wind and rains, and promised to return to lead his people; was believed to be a feathered serpent; many Aztecs believed that Cortes was this god

quipus

an Incan system of knotted strings that recorded information

regionalism

loyalty to a distinct region with a homogeneous population; strong local traditions make people feel more loyalty to their region than their country

Roman Catholicism

a faith that revolves around the Catholic Church in Rome; dominant religion in Latin America

Rural Poor

the poor who live in rural areas and have few chances to climb the social ladder; peasants and wage hands

Sierra Madres

a mountain range in Mexico that is split into the West (along the Pacific Coast) and the East (along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico)

Simon Bolivar

a Venezuelan revolutionary who played a central role in the South American independence movements; liberated 5 countries and is also known as “The Liberator”

Slaver (ship)

a ship used to transport slaves, esp formerly from Africa to the New World

Tenochtitlan

the capital of the Aztec empire (modern day Mexico City); ruled by tribute

Treaty of Tordesillas

a treaty that gave Spain the right to claim any land to the West of the line, while Portugal gets the East

Urban poor

the poor who live in Favelas (slums) in cities; has the least stability; smaller population than rural poor

Urbanization

the process through which cities grow, and higher and higher percentages of the population come to live in the city

Vasco Nunez de Balboa

Spanish conquistador and explorer who helped establish the first stable settlement on the South American continent

viceroy

an official who rules in place of the king

Virgin of Guadalupe

Virgin Mary; Highly focused on in Christianity in L.A.

Wage hands

people who work on commercial farms and have **seasonal**, inconsistent pay; have to move constantly; less stability than peasants

Zambo

someone with a mix of African and Native American parents