AP U.S. History Period 1 Flashcards

Flashcards covering key vocabulary and concepts from AP U.S. History Period 1 (1491-1607).

Columbian Exchange

The widespread transfer of plants, animals, diseases, and technologies between the Old and New Worlds following Columbus's voyage in 1492.

Encomienda System

A labor system used by the Spanish in the Americas that compelled Native Americans into labor under Spanish control.

Jamestown

The first permanent English settlement in North America, founded in Virginia in 1607.

Matrilineal Kinship

A social system in which ancestry is traced through the female line, common in some Native American societies like those in the Southeast United States.

Northwest Passage

A sea route through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America, connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. It was sought by explorers to facilitate trade.

Muscovy Company

An English trading company that financed expeditions to find the Northwest Passage and map the northeastern coast of North America.

Roanoke

An early English colony (1585-1587) also known as the 'Lost Colony' that mysteriously disappeared.

Indentured Servitude

A labor system where people contract to work for a fixed period (typically 4-7 years) in exchange for passage to the New World and other considerations.

Technological Advances (1491-1607)

Improvements such as the compass, astrolabe, and better ships allowed longer ocean voyages and exploration