Latin American History Exam 1 (Readings)

Composite Monarchy

A political system where multiple kingdoms (e.g., Castile and Aragon) were united under a single crown but maintained their own laws and institutions.

Reconquista

A centuries-long Christian campaign to reclaim Iberian territories from Muslim rule, culminating with Granada’s fall in 1492.

Spanish Inquisition (1478) 

Institution established to enforce Catholic orthodoxy against Jews and Muslims.

Age of Exploration

Period of overseas expansion motivated by trade disruptions after the fall of Constantinople in 1453.

Encomienda System 

Grants of indigenous land and labor to Spaniards for development and conversion, often leading to exploitation.

Papal Bulls (1493)

Decrees dividing the New World between Spain and Portugal.

Ferdinand and Isabella 

Monarchs who unified Spain and sponsored Columbus’s voyage.

Christopher Columbus

Explorer who initiated transatlantic contact and advocated exploitation of lands and peoples.

Tomás de Torquemada 

First Inquisitor General who shaped religious policy in Spain.

Maya Civilization 

Advanced Mesoamerican culture with city-states, writing, and calendars (200 BCE–900 CE).

Classical Period (Maya) 

Peak of Maya urbanism, art, and governance (250–900 CE).

Postclassic Period (Maya) 

Militarized Maya states like Chichén Itzá emerged after collapse.

Hieroglyphic Script

Maya writing system using logograms and syllables.

Long Count Calendar

Maya calendar system used for cosmological and ritual cycles.

Bloodletting Rituals

Religious practices to appease gods.

Tikal & Palenque

Major Maya city-states with monumental architecture.

Pacal the Great

Ruler of Palenque known for monumental building projects

Hunac Ceel

Postclassic leader linked to Chichén Itzá’s militarized rise.

Aztec Empire 

Militaristic Mesoamerican empire dominating central Mexico from the 14th to early 16th centuries

Tenochtitlán

Aztec capital built on Lake Texcoco using chinampas.

Chinampas

Man-made agricultural islands that sustained Aztec urban growth.

Triple Alliance (1428) 

Political alliance between Tenochtitlán, Texcoco, and Tlacopan forming the Aztec Empire.

Tribute System

Economic structure requiring conquered peoples to pay goods and labor.

Huitzilopochtli

Aztec sun and war god central to human sacrifice rituals.

Moctezuma I

Emperor who expanded Aztec empire and tribute networks.

Moctezuma II

Last emperor before Spanish conquest – Aztec ruler captured by Cortés.

Itzcoatl 

First Tlatoani, helped consolidate Triple Alliance.

Tawantinsuyu

“Four Quarters” of the Inca Empire.

Ayllu

Kin-based communal unit of Inca society.

Mita Labor System

Rotational labor service for state projects like roads and terraces.

Sapa Inca

Divine emperor of the Inca Empire.

Pachacuti

Ruler who expanded and reorganized the Inca Empire.

Huayna Capac

Last unified Inca emperor before civil war.

Atahualpa

Civil war victor captured by the Spanish – Inca ruler captured at Cajamarca.

Khipu

Inca knotted string record-keeping system.

Inti Worship 

Solar religion central to Inca cosmology.

Hernán Cortés

Spanish conquistador who led the conquest of Mexico.

Francisco Pizarro

Spanish conquistador who conquered the Inca Empire.

Malintzin (La Malinche)

Indigenous interpreter and cultural mediator for Cortés.

Manco Inca

Leader of early Inca resistance against the Spanish.

Tupac Amaru (1572)

Last Inca ruler executed by Spaniards.

Noche Triste

Spanish retreat from Tenochtitlán in 1520.

Papal Bulls

Legal justification for conquest and division of lands.

New Laws (1542)

Reforms limiting encomendero power.

Columbian Exchange 

Transatlantic transfer of plants, animals, people, and microbes after 1492.

Respiratory Pathogens

Diseases like smallpox, measles, and influenza that devastated indigenous populations.

Virgin-Soil Epidemics 

Epidemics affecting populations with no prior exposure or immunity.

Mezquital Valley Case

Example of ecological degradation from overgrazing livestock.

Plantation Economy

Large-scale monoculture using enslaved or coerced labor.

Little Ice Age 

Period of global cooling (14th–19th centuries) that worsened agricultural instability.

Fray Toribio de Benavente

Chronicler of epidemic impacts.

J.R. McNeill

Historian emphasizing environmental factors in conquest.

Mercantilism

Economic theory emphasizing accumulation of wealth through controlled trade.

Silver Mining (Potosí)

Economic backbone of the Spanish Empire.

Haciendas 

Large agricultural estates evolved from encomiendas.

Fleet System 

Spanish regulated trade fleets; often undermined by smuggling

Price Revolution

European inflation from American silver influx.

Corporatism 

Colonial ideology that society was structured in hierarchical, interdependent groups.

República de Indios

Indigenous communities under Spanish rule with limited autonomy.

Mestizo

Person of mixed Spanish and Indigenous ancestry.

Casta System

Racial hierarchy with fluid boundaries.

Gracias al Sacar

Legal mechanism to “buy” whiteness or higher social status.

Bartolomé de las Casas

Advocate for indigenous rights.

Ginés de Sepúlveda

Defender of conquest using natural law arguments

Miguel Cabrera

Artist known for casta paintings

Manco Inca’s Revolt (1536)

Major uprising against Spanish in Peru.

Tupac Amaru’s Resistance (1572)

Final organized Inca resistance.

Tlaxcalans

Indigenous group allied with Cortés, maintaining autonomy.

Guaman Poma

Indigenous chronicler documenting resistance and negotiation.

Codex Mendoza

Record of tribute and indigenous agency.

Mestizaje

Racial and cultural mixing between Spaniards and Indigenous peoples.

Syncretism

Blending of Catholic and Indigenous religious practices.

Casta Paintings

Visual depictions of mixed racial categories.

Hybrid Architecture 

Mission churches and civic buildings combining European and Indigenous styles.

Potosí Silver Mine

Major global source of wealth for Spain.

Manila Galleons

Trade ships linking Spanish America with Asia.

Smuggling

Illegal trade bypassing mercantilist restrictions.

Merchant Guilds (Consulado)

Controlled official colonial trade.

Toledo’s Ordinances (1575) 

Laws regulating mining and labor.

Deforestation .

Large-scale clearing of land for plantations and settlements

Soil Depletion

Loss of fertility due to monoculture.

Feral Animals

Introduced species (e.g., pigs, cattle) that altered ecosystems.

Land Grants (Merced)

Royal land allocations for colonial use.

Alonso de Oviedo 

Chronicler describing early ecological impacts

Native Alliances

Indigenous partnerships that shaped conquest outcomes.

Civil Wars

Internal indigenous conflicts exploited by Spaniards.

Ecological-Economic Nexus 

Interdependence between environment and colonial economy.

Hybrid Governance

Combined Spanish and Indigenous power structures.

Restall’s Seven Myths

Framework challenging heroic conquest narratives.

Environmental History

Study of nature’s role in historical change.

Power and Hybridity

Theme describing layered colonial authority and resistance.