Studied by 2 people
Feudalism
A political system in which nobles are granted the use of lands that legally belong to their king, in exchange for their loyalty, military service, and protection of the people who live on the land
Vassal
a person under the protection of a feudal lord to whom he or she owes allegiance
Serf
an agricultural laborer bound under the feudal system to work on their lord's estate.
Manorialism
Economic system during the Middle Ages that revolved around self-sufficient farming estates where lords and peasants shared the land; the economic side of feudalism
Great Zimbabwe
A powerful state in the African interior that apparently emerged from the growing trade in gold to the East African coast; flourished between 1250 and 1350 C.E.
Cahokia
The dominant center of an important Mississippi valley mound-building culture, located near present-day St. Louis, Missouri; flourished from about 900 to 1250 C.E.
Mit'a System
economic system in Inca society where people paid taxes with their labor and what they produced; men and women were expected to contribute this labor to the state periodically.
Chinampas
Floating gardens constructed along lake shores by the Mexica/Aztecs to increase agricultural yields.
Waru Waru Agriculture
A form of farming used in the Inca Empire; divided the hills into terraces or flat steps almost like steps; they could then control the amount of water being put into those places; led to vastly improved agriculture for the Incas
Three-field system
A rotational system for agriculture in which one field grows grain, one grows legumes, and one lies fallow. Restores nutrients to the soil to improve crop yields. It gradually replaced two-field system in medieval Europe.
Crusades
A series of holy wars from 1096-1270 AD undertaken by European Christians to free the Holy Land from Muslim rule; ultimately spread culture and increased trade but were not successful
Renaissance
"rebirth"; following the Middle Ages, a movement that centered on the revival of interest in the classical learning of Greece and Rome; began in Florence, Italy and spread throughout Europe
Coercive labor
Any labor system that involves force (slavery, chattel slavery, serfdom, and indentured labor)
Fief
land granted by a lord to a vassal in exchange for loyalty and service
Antisemitism
Hostility to or prejudice against Jews. Between the 13th and 15th century, many Western European countries expelled Jews, forcing many to relocate to Eastern Europe.
Ethiopia/Axum Kingdom
Eastern African kingdom, became Christian, participated in ocean trade; known for carving churches out of solid rock
Ghana
First known kingdom in sub-Saharan West Africa between the sixth and thirteenth centuries C.E. Also the modern West African country once known as the Gold Coast. gold and salt trade; adopted Islam.
Griot
A member of a class of traveling poets, musicians, and storytellers who maintain a tradition of oral history in parts of West Africa.
Humanism
A belief that emphasizes faith and optimism in human potential and creativity. A renaissance intellectual movement.
Inca
Largest and most powerful Andean empire. Controlled the Pacific coast of South America from Ecuador to Chile from its capital of Cuzco.
Magna Carta
King John forced to sign in 1215; a document constituting a fundamental guarantee of rights and privilege for English nobles.
Mansa Musa
Ruler of Mali (r.1312-1337 CE) who made a hajj to Mecca; on the way there, he spread enormous amounts of gold showing the wealth of Mali; on the way back, he brought back education and Islamic culture.
Matrilineal
Relating to a social system in which family descent and inheritance rights are traced through the mother
Mexica
Originally hunter gatherers- migrated form North in 1200s. Created an empire based on collecting tribute with a capital in Tenochtitlan.
Primogeniture
A system of inheritance in which the eldest son in a family received all of his father's land. The nobility remained powerful and owned land, while the 2nd and 3rd sons were forced to seek fortune elsewhere.
Theocracy
A government controlled by religious leaders
Quipu
An arrangement of knotted strings on dyed cord, used by the Inca to record numerical information.
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