APUSH Ch. 1 and 2 Vocab

Christopher Columbus

Christopher Columbus

Italian navigator who, in 1492, was granted a voyage of three ships by the Spanish queen Isabella l. He sought a quicker path to the indies. Instead of the Indies Columbus discovered the ‘New World’. Columbus brought permanent connection between Europe and the Americas

Treaty of Tordesillas

Agreement between Portugal and Spain in 1494 that created an imaginary line in the Atlantic Ocean. Everything west of it was Spain’s property while east was Portugal’s

Columbian exchange

The transmission and interchange of plants (Cocoa, Banannas, and Peanuts), animals (cattle, sheep, pigs), diseases (smallpox,influenza,typhus),cultures,human populations, and technologies from 1492 until 1800. This exchange greatly benefitted Europe and Asia, but it decimated American Indian populations and cultures.

Batolome de Las Casas

16th century Spanish friar and social reformer. Bartolome was the first European to advocate for the rights of Native Americans in the New World.

Encomienda

Labor system instituted by the Spanish crown in the American colonies. In this system, a Spanish encomendero was granted a number of native laborers who would pay tributes to him in exchange for his protection.

Conquistadores

Spanish conquerors of Mexico and Peru in the 16th century. The spanish sought gold in Mexico

Aztecs

members of  the American Indian people dominant in Mexico before the Spanish conquest of the 16th century.They made advances in art, architecture and astronomy. They built huge and unique structures and roads so that they could trade since they didn't have much wood.

Mayan

Members of a Mesoamerican Indian people inhabiting southeast Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize, whose civilization reached its height around a.d. 300-900.

Mesoamerica

A region and culture area in the Americas, extending approximately from central Mexico to Honduras and Nicaragua, within which a number of pre-Columbian societies flourished before the Spanish colonization of the Americas in the 15th and 16th centuries.

Tribute

The practice of collecting goods from conquered peoples.

Cahokia

An Indian center for trade in 1200 A.D. that was once located near present-day St. Louis.It is an example of how advanced peoples had been in the Americas well before the arrival of the colonists in the early 1600's. They also had an evolving road network that covered the valleys.

Hiawatha

The legendary founder of the Iroquais Confederacy, an alliance of five different tribes in New York that was the first example of a political orginazation in the new world

matriarchy

when a women is the head of the house. They make all the major decisions and rules for their family.

Animism

spiritual beliefs that center around the natural world. Ex. Native Americans

Subsistence agriculture

the practice of small famers planting and reaping only what they needed

Patriarchy

A gendered power structure in which social identity and property descend through the male line and male heads of family rule over women and children.

Primogeniture

The legal principle that the oldest son inherits all family property or land.

Peasants

a class of people in Europe that was mostly poor agricultural laborers.

Republic

where the head of state is not appointed through hereditary means, but usually through an election , A philosophy of limited government with elected representatives serving at the will of the people.

Civic Humanism

emphasizing a person's capacity for self-realization through reason with the added belief that one must be an active and contributing member to one's society.

Renaissance

Period of reformation and social upheaval beginning in Florence, Italy. This period brought about unparalleled levels of learning and artistic expression

Guilds

An association of craftsmen or merchant that was large during the Renaissance era; partnerships between guilds and monarchs helped prepare Europe for exploration. These associations would impose taxes or tariffs to gain money

Christianity

A universaling religion coming from the Middle East and Europe that believe in one God in 3 parts,: father, son, and holy spirit. They recognize Jesus Christ as the son of God; forced onto native americans by Europeans; most followers of any religion in the world.

Heresy

Any opinions or doctrines at variance with an official or orthodox position; usually harshly punished

Islam

Religion that threatened Christianity and believed that Muhammad is God’s last prophet; also a universalizing religon

Crusades

A series of military expeditions made by European Christians to recover the Holy Land from the Muslims in the 11th,12th, and 13th centuries

Predestination

The Calvinist doctrine that God has selected some people to be saved and some to be damned

Protestant Reformaton

A religious movement in Europe intent on reforming the Catholic Church; began by Martin Luther in an attempt to remove problems from the clergy

Martin Luther

A German priest and professor that began the Protestant Reformation and whose theological beliefs formed Lutheranism. He opposed the Roman Catholic Church by translating the Bible into German; He nailed his 95 Theses to the door of a church.

Counter-Reformation

The reformation of the Church of Rome in the 16th and 17th centuries that was started by the Protestant Reformation. The Catholic Church resurged and aimed to fix the problems addressed by the reformation

Mansa Musa

The 9th ruler of the kingdom of Mali from 1312 to 1332. He led Mali to its peak and was known for his wealth and generosity

Trans-Saharan Trade

A network of routes that crossed the Saharan desert that were used to transport a variety of good, like golf, ivory, salt, and slaves.