Unit 1: Native American Civilizations and European Exploration

Vocabulary flashcards covering Native American civilizations, European exploration, conquistadores, and early European colonial efforts from Unit 1.

Incas

Large Native American civilization in the Andes of South America known for advanced roads, agriculture, and government. Conquered by Spanish conquistadors in the 1500s.

Aztecs

Powerful civilization centered in present-day Mexico. Built their capital at Tenochtitlán and were conquered by Hernán Cortés in 1521.

Mayans

Mesoamerican civilization known for advanced mathematics, astronomy, writing, and large cities. Their civilization existed before and during European exploration.

Pueblos

Native peoples of the Southwest who lived in permanent settlements and practiced agriculture, especially growing corn.

Creeks

Native American peoples living primarily in the Southeast. They developed complex political systems and later interacted heavily with European settlers.

Choctaws

Native American people from the Southeast who practiced agriculture and traded with Europeans. They were later forced west through U.S. removal policies.

Cherokees

Southeastern Native American nation that adopted some European-American practices, including agriculture and a written language, but still faced forced removal.

Iroquois Confederacy

Alliance of six Native American nations in the Northeast that created a system of collective government and diplomacy.

Hiawatha

Traditional co-founder of the Iroquois Confederacy who helped unite the Iroquois nations.

Vinland

Viking settlement in North America, likely located in present-day Newfoundland, established around 1000 CE.

Portuguese slave trade

Portugal's development of the Atlantic slave trade, transporting enslaved Africans to plantations and colonies, especially beginning in the 1400s.

Vasco da Gama

Portuguese explorer who sailed around Africa and reached India in 1498, opening a direct European sea route to Asia.

Christopher Columbus

Italian explorer sponsored by Spain who reached the Americas in 1492 while searching for a western route to Asia.

Hispaniola

Caribbean island where Columbus established an early Spanish settlement; became an important center of Spanish colonization.

Old World diseases

Diseases such as smallpox, measles, and yellow fever brought by Europeans that devastated Native American populations.

Treaty of Tordesillas (1494)

Agreement between Spain and Portugal dividing newly explored lands outside Europe between the two countries.

Vasco Núñez de Balboa

Spanish explorer who crossed the Isthmus of Panama and became the first European to see the Pacific Ocean from the Americas.

Ferdinand Magellan

Portuguese explorer whose expedition was the first to circumnavigate the globe, although Magellan himself died before it was completed.

Juan Ponce de León

Spanish explorer who explored Florida and established one of the earliest Spanish claims to the region.

Francisco Coronado

Spanish conquistador who explored the American Southwest, searching for the legendary Seven Cities of Gold.

Hernando de Soto

Spanish explorer who traveled through the southeastern United States and explored the Mississippi River.

Hernán Cortés

Spanish conquistador who conquered the Aztec Empire in 1521 with Native allies and Spanish forces.

John Cabot

Italian explorer sailing for England who reached the North American coast in 1497, helping England establish claims in the New World.

Giovanni da Verrazzano

Italian explorer sailing for France who explored the Atlantic coast of North America, including the area around present-day New York.

Robert de La Salle

French explorer who explored the Mississippi River and claimed the Mississippi River basin for France, naming it Louisiana.

Father Junípero Serra

Spanish Franciscan missionary who established Catholic missions in California to convert Native Americans and expand Spanish control.

Nation-states

Centralized political states with defined territories and governments that emerged in Europe and helped fund exploration.

Mound Builders

Native American societies that constructed large earthworks and burial mounds, especially in the Mississippi and Ohio River valleys.

Cahokia

Major Native American city near present-day St. Louis. It was the largest known pre-Columbian settlement north of Mexico.

Caravel

Small, fast, maneuverable European sailing ship used during the Age of Exploration.

Plantation system

Agricultural system based on large estates producing cash crops such as sugar and tobacco, often relying on enslaved labor.

Columbian Exchange

Exchange of plants, animals, people, diseases, and ideas between the Americas and Europe/Africa following Columbus's voyages.

Conquistadores

Spanish soldiers and explorers who conquered Native American civilizations and claimed territory for Spain.

Capitalism

Economic system based on private ownership, investment, competition, and the pursuit of profit.

Encomienda

Spanish colonial labor system in which Spanish colonists received the right to demand labor and tribute from Native Americans.

Mestizos

People of mixed European and Native American ancestry who became a major population in Spanish colonies.

Pope's Rebellion (Pueblo Revolt)

1680 Native American uprising in New Mexico led by Popé against Spanish rule and Catholic missionaries. The Pueblo temporarily drove the Spanish out.

Black Legend

European propaganda portraying Spain as unusually cruel and brutal toward Native Americans and its colonial subjects.

Ferdinand of Aragon

Spanish monarch who, with Isabella, sponsored Columbus's voyage and helped unify and strengthen Spain.

Isabella of Castile

Spanish monarch who, with Ferdinand, sponsored Columbus and supported Spanish exploration and colonization.

Francisco Pizarro

Spanish conquistador who conquered the Inca Empire in South America.

Bartolomé de las Casas

Spanish priest who criticized Spanish mistreatment of Native Americans and advocated for their rights.

Moctezuma

Aztec ruler who encountered Hernán Cortés during the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire.

Queen Elizabeth I

English queen who supported Protestantism and English exploration, including voyages by Sir Francis Drake.

Sir Francis Drake

English explorer/privateer who raided Spanish ships and colonies and became the first Englishman to circumnavigate the globe.

Sir Walter Raleigh

English explorer who sponsored attempts to establish an English colony at Roanoke.

Philip II (Spain)

Spanish king who attempted to defeat England and restore Catholicism through the Spanish Armada.

Spanish Armada

Large Spanish fleet sent against England in 1588. England defeated it, weakening Spanish power and encouraging English colonization.

French Huguenots

French Protestants who faced religious persecution and migrated to other regions, including the Americas.

Edict of Nantes

1598 French law granting Huguenots limited religious toleration and political rights. It was later revoked by Louis XIV.

Laws of Primogeniture

Inheritance laws giving most or all property to the eldest son. They encouraged younger English sons to seek opportunities elsewhere, including America.

Roanoke Island

Failed English colony established in the 1580s. The settlers disappeared, leading to its nickname, the Lost Colony.

Colonial charter

Official document from a monarch granting an individual or company permission to establish and govern a colony.