Indigenous Cultures and Spanish Colonization in the Americas

This set of flashcards covers key concepts, events, and figures related to indigenous cultures and Spanish colonization in the Americas, supporting students in their exam preparation.

What were the three general forms of indigenous cultures in Pre-Hispanic America?

1. Nomadic, 2. Semi-Sedentary, 3. Sedentary.

Which civilization is considered the 'mother culture' of Mesoamerica?

The Olmecs (1200-400 BC).

What were some valued trade items in Mesoamerica?

Cacao beans, obsidian, jade, and feathers.

Name 5 shared characteristics of Mesoamerican civilizations.

1. Polytheistic religions, 2. Rulers with religious/secular roles, 3. Warfare for sacrificial victims, 4. Solar calendar & rituals, 5. Pyramid construction, 6. Base-20 numeric system, 7. Long-distance trade.

What does 'Teotihuacan' mean?

Place of the Gods.

What was the Mesoamerican ritual 'ball game' an ancestor of?

Soccer.

What was unique about the Maya writing system?

It was logosyllabic (using syllables and whole words/concepts), not alphabetic.

What was the indigenous name for the Aztec capital city?

Tenochtitlan.

How did the Aztecs expand their power?

Through military expansion and strategic alliances.

What were 'Chinampas'?

Artificial 'floating gardens' used for agriculture around Tenochtitlan.

What was the primary political unit of Aztec society?

The Altepetl (city-state).

Who was the Aztec feathered serpent god?

Quetzalcoatl.

What recording device did the Inca use?

The Khipu, a system of knotted strings.

What was the European 'Reconquest' (Reconquista)?

The centuries-long war to recapture Iberian territory from Muslims, creating a culture of holy war.

What class of Spanish nobles often became conquistadors?

Hidalgos (the lesser nobility).

What was the significance of Antonio de Nebrija's 'Grammar' (1492)?

It argued that 'language is the perfect instrument of empire,' linking conquest and cultural domination.

What did Christopher Columbus believe he had found?

He believed he had reached Asia (the Indies/Japan).

What is the 'Columbian Exchange'?

The transatlantic transfer of plants, animals, diseases, and ideas between the Americas and the Old World.

Give two examples of items transferred FROM the Americas to Europe.

Maize, potatoes, tomatoes, tobacco, chocolate.

Give two examples of items transferred TO the Americas from Europe.

Horses, wheat, sugar, smallpox, measles.

What was the 'Requerimiento'?

A document read to indigenous peoples (in Spanish) demanding their submission to the Crown and Church, justifying conquest.

What was an 'Entrada'?

An expedition of exploration, conquest, and settlement.

What was an 'Adelantado'?

A title granted by the Crown to lead a private expedition of conquest and settlement.

What was the 'Encomienda' system?

A grant of indigenous labor to a Spaniard, who was to protect and Christianize them in return. Often abusive.

Who was Hernán Cortés?

The strategic and ambitious Spanish conquistador who led the conquest of the Aztec Empire.

Who was Malinche/Marina/Doña Marina?

Cortés's indigenous interpreter, translator, and cultural advisor. Essential to the Spanish success.

How does Bernal Díaz del Castillo portray Malinche in his account?

As intelligent, loyal, indispensable, and a 'valuable instrument' to the conquest.

What indigenous group became crucial allies to Cortés against the Aztecs?

The Tlaxcala.

What is the 'Lienzo de Tlaxcala'?

A painted canvas from the Tlaxcalan perspective, showing their role in the conquest and featuring Malinche.

What happened during the 'Massacre of Cholula'?

Cortés's forces killed thousands of unarmed nobles in the city, as a display of power.

When did Cortés and Moctezuma first meet?

November 8, 1519.

What was 'La Noche Triste' (The Sad Night)?

June 30, 1520, when the Spanish were driven out of Tenochtitlan with heavy losses.

When did the Aztec Empire finally fall?

August 13, 1521.

Who was the last Aztec emperor?

Cuauhtemoc.

Who were the two main conquistadors of the Inca Empire?

Francisco Pizarro and Diego de Almagro.

What key situation did Pizarro exploit upon arriving in the Inca Empire?

A civil war between the Inca brothers Atahuallpa and Huascar.

Where did Pizarro capture the Inca emperor Atahuallpa?

At Cajamarca in 1532.

What city did Pizarro found as the new capital of Spanish Peru?

Lima (Ciudad de los Reyes) in 1535.

Who led the continued Inca resistance from Vilcabamba?

Manco Inca.

What was the primary early export from Brazil for the Portuguese?

Brazilwood (used to make a valuable red dye).

How was the colonization of Brazil different from the Spanish model?

It was slower, focused on sugar plantations, and relied heavily on enslaved African labor.

What were the two main Viceroyalties established by Spain?

New Spain (1535) and Peru (1540).

Who was the first Viceroy of New Spain?

Antonio de Mendoza.

What was the Council of the Indies?

The supreme administrative body in Spain that governed all colonial affairs.

What was the role of a Viceroy?

To act as the king's direct representative and head of administration in a Viceroyalty.

What were 'Audiencias'?

Royal high courts that also acted as a check on the Viceroy's power.

What was 'Royal Patronage' (Patronato Real)?

The power of the Spanish Crown to control Church appointments and activities in the Americas.

Name the four main religious orders that evangelized in the colonies.

Franciscans, Dominicans, Augustinians, and Jesuits.

Who was Fray Juan de Zumárraga?

The first bishop of New Spain, a supporter of education who founded the first hospital and the Colegio de Santa Cruz de Tlatelolco.

What was the Colegio de Santa Cruz de Tlatelolco?

A school founded in 1536 to educate the sons of indigenous nobility in European and Nahua subjects.

Who was Fray Bernardino de Sahagún?

A Franciscan missionary known as the 'first anthropologist' for compiling the Florentine Codex.

What is the 'Florentine Codex'?

A massive 12-volume ethnographic work by Sahagún, written with indigenous aides, documenting Nahua culture and the conquest.

What does 'In Xochitl, in Cuicatl' mean and what is it?

It means 'Flower and Song.' It is a genre of Nahuatl poetry that uses metaphorical language (difrasismo).

What is a 'difrasismo' in Nahuatl poetry?

A parallel noun construction where two words are combined to mean one metaphorical thing (e.g., 'flower and song' means poetry/art).

Who was Bartolomé de las Casas?

A Dominican friar and former encomendero who became the 'Defender of the Indians,' arguing against their mistreatment.

What did Las Casas initially propose to spare Native peoples from labor?

He recommended the importation of African slaves (a position he later regretted).

What were the 'New Laws of 1542'?

Laws promoted by Las Casas that aimed to abolish the encomienda system and end indigenous slavery.

Who was Guaman Poma de Ayala?

An indigenous chronicler from Peru who wrote a 1000-page letter to the king ('The First New Chronicle…') protesting colonial abuse.

What was the main purpose of the Spanish Inquisition in the colonies?

To enforce Catholic orthodoxy, mainly focusing on Christians (for heresy, bigamy, blasphemy), not indigenous people.

What was an 'auto de fe'?

A public ceremony held by the Inquisition where the condemned confessed their sins and received punishment.

What caused the catastrophic decline of the indigenous population after contact?

Disease (smallpox), military conflict, overwork, and starvation.

What was the 'Repartimiento' (in New Spain) or 'Mita' (in Peru)?

A colonial forced labor system where indigenous communities had to provide a quota of workers for mines, farms, or public works.

What is a 'Criollo' or 'Creole'?

A person of Spanish descent born in the Americas.

What is a 'Mestizo'?

A person of mixed European and Indigenous ancestry.

What is a 'Mulatto' or 'Pardo'?

A person of mixed European and African ancestry.

What was the 'Council of Trent'?

The Catholic Church's response to the Protestant Reformation, emphasizing orthodoxy and influencing missionary work in the Americas.

What was the primary economic activity driving the demand for African slaves in Brazil?

The sugar industry.

Summarize the primary source: Codices (like Boturini, Tovar).

Indigenous painted books that recorded history, genealogy, and culture before and after the conquest.

Summarize the primary source: Hernan Cortés's Second Letter.

A self-serving but detailed account sent to the king, justifying his actions and describing the Aztec Empire.

Summarize the primary source: Bernal Díaz del Castillo's account.

A retrospective 'true history' by a soldier in Cortés's army, providing vivid details and defending the conquistadors' actions.

Summarize the primary source: Isabel de Guevara's letter.

A letter arguing for the recognition of women's roles as settlers and conquerors, detailing their struggles and contributions.

Summarize the primary source: Pedro de Gante's letter.

A letter from a Franciscan friar discussing the efforts to evangelize and educate indigenous peoples.

Summarize the primary source: slavevoyages.org.

A modern database documenting the scale and routes of the transatlantic slave trade.

Summarize the secondary source: 'Painted Books from Mexico' by G. Brotherston.

A scholarly analysis of the content and historical value of indigenous codices.

What was the name of the shipwrecked Spaniard who Malinche initially translated for before Cortés?

Jerónimo de Aguilar.

What was the 'Massacre during Toxcatl'?

A massacre of Aztec nobles performing a ceremony, ordered by Pedro de Alvarado while Cortés was away, which led to the uprising and La Noche Triste.

Who was sent to capture Cortés for defying orders?

Pánfilo de Narváez.

What Inca emperor died of smallpox before the Spanish arrival, triggering a civil war?

Huayna Capac.

Where were vast silver deposits discovered in 1545, fueling the Spanish economy?

Potosí (in modern-day Bolivia).

Who was the Viceroy of Peru who organized the indigenous 'reduction' settlements?

Francisco de Toledo.

What were 'reductions' or 'congregaciones'?

The Spanish policy of forcibly resettling scattered indigenous populations into concentrated towns to better control, tax, and convert them.

Who was Lautaro?

A Mapuche warrior in Chile who was captured by the Spanish, learned their tactics, and then used them to lead a successful rebellion.

Who was Alvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca?

A Spanish explorer who was shipwrecked in Florida, lived for years among indigenous tribes as a slave and healer, and eventually walked to Mexico.

What was the 'capitulación'?

The contract or agreement between the Spanish Crown and an explorer/conquistador (like Pizarro) outlining the terms and rewards for an expedition.

What was the 'Laws of Burgos' (1512)?

The first attempted set of laws by Spain to regulate the treatment of indigenous people in the Americas, though largely ineffective.

What was the Valladolid Debate (1550-1551)?

A moral and theological debate between Juan Ginés de Sepúlveda and Bartolomé de las Casas about the nature and rights of indigenous peoples.

What was Sepúlveda's argument in the Valladolid Debate?

He argued that indigenous people were 'natural slaves' (based on Aristotle) and that war against them was justified to enforce conversion.

What was Las Casas's argument in the Valladolid Debate?

He argued that indigenous people were fully human, rational beings with souls, and that conquest and forced conversion were unjust.

What was Pope Paul III's 1537 papal bull 'Sublimis Deus'?

It officially declared that indigenous peoples were rational beings with souls, opposing the idea that they were natural slaves.

What was an 'Obraje'?

A textile workshop in colonial Latin America, often using repartimiento or forced labor, known for its harsh conditions.

What is the term for an indigenous local leader or chief?

A Cacique (from the Taíno word) or Curaca (in the Andes).

What does 'Malinchista' mean in modern Mexican Spanish?

A person who prefers foreign things over their own; a traitor to their own culture.

What was the 'Casta' system?

The elaborate, hierarchical system of racial classification based on perceived purity of blood in Spanish America.

What was a 'Hacienda'?

A large, landed estate in the colonies that became a primary social and economic institution, often producing food and goods for local markets.

Who was Pedro de Alvarado?

A lieutenant of Cortés, known for his brutality, who led the conquest of Guatemala.

What was the 'War of the Brothers' in the Inca Empire?

The civil war between the Inca princes Atahualpa and Huáscar over control of the empire.

Who was the first Bishop of New Spain?

Fray Juan de Zumárraga.

What was the role of the 'Colegio de Santa Cruz de Tlatelolco'?

To educate the sons of the indigenous nobility in Latin, Spanish, rhetoric, and European medicine, creating a class of literate natives.

What is the 'Codex Mendoza'?

A famous Aztec codex commissioned by Viceroy Mendoza, detailing tribute, history, and daily life.

What was the 'Doctrine of Discovery'?

A legal concept in European international law that justified colonization by claiming rights to lands not inhabited by Christians.