APWH Vocabulary Flashcards

APWH Vocabulary Flashcards

Laissez-Faire

An economic system advocating minimal government intervention in the economy.

Divine Right

The belief that monarchs derive their authority directly from God.

Self-Determination

The political doctrine that each nation should have the right to determine its own affairs and government.

Aristocrats

The social, political, and economic system of Europe in the Middle Ages.

Abolition

The end of slavery.

Anti-Semitism

Hostility to or prejudice against Jews.

Enlightenment

A philosophical movement emphasizing reason and individualism.

Reign of Terror

A period of violence during the French Revolution marked by mass executions.

Maroon

Communities formed by escaped slaves in the Americas.

Mestizos

People of mixed European and Indigenous ancestry.

Mulattoes

People of mixed European and African ancestry.

Urbanization

The process of population shift from rural to urban areas.

Economic Imperialism

An economic system where imperial powers control colonies for resources and markets.

Manifest Destiny

The belief that the U.S. was destined to expand across North America.

Corvee Labor

Forced labor imposed on native populations.

Indentured Servitude

A system where laborers are contracted to work in exchange for passage and sustenance.

Plantation

A large-scale farm or estate used for cash crops.

Opium Wars

Conflicts fought between China and Britain over the opium trade.

Great Famine

The mass starvation in Ireland caused by potato blight.

Chinese Exclusion Act

A United States federal law that suspended Chinese immigration.

Crimean War

A war fought between the Russian Empire and the Ottoman Empire.

Russo-Japanese War

A war fought between Russia and Japan.

Communism

A political theory advocating class war and leading to a society in which all property is publicly owned.

Socialism

A political and economic theory of social organization based on collective ownership.

Suffrage

The right to vote in political elections.

Fascism

A political system headed by a dictator, forcible suppression of opposition and strong regimentation of society and the economy.

Trench Warfare

A type of land warfare using occupied fighting lines consisting largely of trenches.

League of Nations

An international organization established after World War I to promote peace.

New Deal

A severe economic downturn in the 1930s.

Totalitarianism

A system in which the state controls all economic and social life.

Blitzkrieg

A military tactic based on overwhelming the enemy with rapid air and land attacks.

Cold War

A period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union.

Containment Theory

A foreign policy to prevent the spread of communism.

Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD)

A military strategy of full-scale use of nuclear weapons by two or more opposing sides.

Marshall Plan

A plan by the US to provide economic assistance to Europe after World War II.

Proxy War

A war instigated by a major power that does not itself become involved.

North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)

A military alliance of European and North American states against the Soviet Union.

Warsaw Pact

A military alliance of communist nations in Eastern Europe.

Theocracy

A form of government in which God or a deity is recognized as the supreme civil ruler.

Self Determination

The principle that the authority of a state and its government is created and sustained by the consent of its people.

Detente

A policy of reducing Cold War tensions.

Perestroika

The restructuring of the Soviet political and economic system.

Glasnost

A policy of openness in Soviet society.

Korean War

A war between North and South Korea.

Vietnam War

A war between North and South Vietnam.

Domino Theory

The theory that if one country falls to communism, neighboring countries will also fall.

Economic Liberalization

An economic system in which prices are determined by supply and demand.

Green Revolution

Increasing crop production using fertilizer and irrigation

Non-Governmental Organization (NGO)

Any organization that is not part of a government

Climate Change

The increase in the earth's temperature due to greenhouse gasses.

Anthropocene

The current geological age, viewed as the period during which human activity has been the dominant influence on climate and the environment.

Deforestation

The clearing of forests.