Formative Wave Cont. (Models & English Influence)/Creating a Nation

Vocabulary practice flashcards defining key concepts, historical entities, and political models related to early American immigration and citizenship from the lecture.

Overpopulation

The condition where a country has too many people for its resources to support, serving as the primary push factor for most global migrations to the United States, with England being a notable exception.

Fourth Wave of Immigration

The current movement of people into the United States, representing the largest immigration movement in American history.

Asylum Seeker

An individual seeking protection in a foreign country who must hold this status before receiving approval to officially become a refugee.

Virginia Model

A colonial model driven by profit that welcomed large numbers of immigrant laborers for agricultural cash crops like tobacco, but strictly denied them citizenship and voting rights to preserve upper-class power.

Massachusetts Model

A colonial immigration model based on a religious theocracy that granted entry and citizenship exclusively to 'true believers' (Pilgrims and Puritans) while excluding, excommunicating, or banishing all others.

Pennsylvania Model

A colonial immigration model created by William Penn and the Quakers that welcomed all immigrants and granted broad citizenship based on religious freedom and equality.

Separatists

A group of formative Protestants, commonly referred to as Pilgrims, who sought to completely break away from the Church of England.

Puritans

A group of middle-class formative Protestants who wished to reform and purify the Church of England rather than separate from it entirely.

Theocracy

A system of government directed by religious leaders, as established in the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

Society of Friends

The official name of the Quakers, a religious group that advocated for total equality across age, gender, and race, as well as religious freedom for all.

Cultural Pluralism

A social approach that welcomes and celebrates differences among people without requiring them to assimilate into a dominant culture.

Great War for Empire

A global conflict between Great Britain and France (also called the Seven Years' War or French and Indian War) that exposed cultural differences between British soldiers and American colonists and led to post-war colonial taxation.

Articles of Confederation

The first governing framework of the United States, which ultimately failed due to major political and structural weaknesses.

Constitutional Convention

The 1787 meeting in Philadelphia where 55 colonial delegates gathered to address state disputes and draft a new framework for the United States government.

Framers

The group of 55 wealthy, educated delegates—mostly lawyers, landowners, and politicians—who developed the United States Constitution, with 39 ultimately signing it.

Checks and Balances

A system derived from British political concepts that divides governmental authority among executive, legislative, and judicial branches to keep any single branch from holding total power.

Bill of Rights

The first ten amendments to the United States Constitution protecting fundamental human liberties, which apply to every person residing in the United States regardless of citizenship status.