Social Studies 8 Chapter 1 Vocabulary

Black Death

A deadly plague that swept through Europe between 1347 and 1351

Renaissance

"rebirth"; following the Middle Ages, a movement that centered on the revival of interest in the classical learning of Greece and Rome

Feudalism

A political system in which nobles are granted the use of lands that legally belong to their king, in exchange for their loyalty, military service, and protection of the people who live on the land

fief

land granted by a lord to a vassal in exchange for loyalty and service

vassal

A knight who promised to support a lord in exchange for land

hierarchy

A group organized by rank

noble

a person of high rank by birth or title

manor

a large estate, often including farms and a village, ruled by a lord.

freeman

peasants who rented land or worked for pay

serf

a person who is bound to the land and owned by the feudal lord

monastery

a place where communities of monks live lives of devotion to God in isolation from the outside world

journeyman

a person who has learned a particular trade or craft but has not become an employer, or master

Sumptuary Laws

laws limiting the consumption of certain goods to particular classes of people

tithe

church tax

monastic

relating to or resembling a monastery (where monks or nuns live), esp. by being quiet, secluded, contemplative, strict, and/or lacking luxuries

allegiance

loyalty

guild

an organization of people in the same craft or trade

worldview

A person's view of the world, consisting of the set of beliefs on which s/he bases her/his life.

apprentice

A person who works for another in order to learn a trade

Lord

In feudal Europe, a person who controlled land and could therefore grant estates to vassals

The Crown

royal power or authority, a person having such power, or the government of a country ruled by a king or queen

clergymen

a male priest, minister, or religious leader, especially a Christian one.

merchant

a person who buys and sells goods

rural

countryside

urban

city

Aristocracy

A government in which power is in the hands of a hereditary ruling class or nobility

parishioners

members of the church