The First Movement of Immigrants (Formative Wave) 1607-1830

Vocabulary flashcards covering key terms, historical periods, social classes, and concepts related to the Formative Wave of immigration to North America.

Formative Wave

The first major movement of immigrants to North America (1607–1830) that established the foundational population, culture, and governing frameworks of the United States.

Formative

Serving to form something, especially having a profound and lasting influence on a person's or place's development.

Jamestown

A settlement in Virginia founded in 1607 that was considered a failure during the Formative Wave.

Plymouth Bay Colony

A Massachusetts colony founded in 1620 that became the site of the first large-scale English immigration during the Formative Wave.

Chattel Slavery

A system of forced labor arising between 1619 and 1680 that treated West Africans as property and animals rather than human beings with rights.

Primogeniture

An English legal tradition where only the eldest son inherits all family land and wealth.

The Spare

A term for the second and third sons of the English upper class who did not inherit wealth under primogeniture and had to choose between the military, the church, or migrating to America.

Yeomanry

The English middle class whose main pull factor to America was the opportunity to own land and elevate their class status.

Indentured Servitude

A contract system where poor laborers bound themselves to work for a master—typically for 5 to 7 years—in exchange for passage to America, food, clothing, and shelter.

Church of England

The official state religion of England, headed by the King, which discriminated against non-conforming Protestant sects.

Formative Protestants

Protestant groups, such as the Pilgrims and Puritans, who migrated to North America to escape religious discrimination from the Church of England.

Citizenship

Politically belonging to a country by declaring allegiance and becoming a recognized member of that society.

Naturalization

The process of becoming a citizen in a new country, which in colonial America was administered by local colonial authorities rather than a single federal authority.