AP African American Studies - Key Terms

Key Terms including people, date

African Kingdoms (Ghana, Mali, Songhai)

Powerful West African empires (approx. 300–1600 CE) known for their wealth (especially in gold), trade networks across the Sahara, and centers of learning such as Timbuktu. These kingdoms disproved early racist notions that Africa lacked complex civilizations.

Middle Passage

The horrific leg of the triangular trade route in which enslaved Africans were forcibly transported across the Atlantic Ocean to the Americas, often in inhumane and deadly conditions; estimated mortality rates ranged from 10–15%.

Triangular Trade

A transatlantic trade system among Europe, Africa, and the Americas involving the exchange of goods, enslaved Africans, and raw materials like sugar, tobacco, and cotton.

Chattel Slavery

A form of slavery where people are treated as personal property (chattel), bought and sold as commodities, and whose status as slaves is inherited across generations.

Maroon Communities

Settlements established by formerly enslaved Africans who escaped slavery and resisted colonial rule, often in remote or mountainous regions (e.g., Jamaica, Suriname, and Brazil).

Notable Figures

Queen Nzinga (1583–1663)

Ruler of the Ndongo and Matamba Kingdoms (present-day Angola), known for her military resistance against Portuguese colonial forces and efforts to preserve her people’s sovereignty through warfare and diplomacy.

Olaudah Equiano (1745–1797)

A formerly enslaved African who published a widely influential autobiography (The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano) that fueled anti-slavery sentiment in Britain.

1619

The year when the first documented enslaved Africans arrived in English North America (Jamestown, Virginia), marking a foundational moment in American slavery.

1662 Virginia Law

Established hereditary slavery through the legal doctrine of partus sequitur ventrem—the condition of the child followed that of the mother, ensuring slavery passed matrilineally.

Slave Codes

Legal statutes designed to regulate the behavior and status of enslaved people and codify white supremacy; denied enslaved people basic rights, allowed brutal punishment, and criminalized resistance.

Plantation Economy

Economic system in the American South and Caribbean reliant on large-scale agriculture (e.g., sugar, cotton, tobacco), fueled by enslaved labor; created vast wealth for white landowners.

Abolitionism

Social and political movement that sought the end of slavery and the emancipation of all enslaved people; included both Black and white activists and took many forms (moral, religious, political).

Frederick Douglass (1818–1895)

Escaped slave, orator, journalist, and one of the most prominent abolitionists; published The North Star newspaper and his famous autobiography.

Harriet Tubman (c.1822–1913)

Formerly enslaved woman who became a leading conductor of the Underground Railroad, personally rescuing over 70 enslaved people and later serving as a Union spy during the Civil War.

Nat Turner (1800–1831)

Enslaved preacher who led a violent rebellion in Virginia in 1831, killing about 60 white people; the rebellion led to harsher slave laws in the South.

1808 Slave Trade Ban

Congress abolished the transatlantic slave trade, though domestic slave trading continued; smuggling persisted despite the ban.

Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857)

Supreme Court decision stating that African Americans, enslaved or free, could not be U.S. citizens and had no standing to sue in federal court; further inflamed sectional tensions.

Underground Railroad

A clandestine network of safe houses and routes that helped enslaved people escape to free states and Canada, often guided by "conductors" like Harriet Tubman.

Emancipation Proclamation (1863)

Issued by President Abraham Lincoln, it declared that all enslaved people in Confederate-held territory were free, reframing the Civil War as a fight against slavery.

13th Amendment (1865)

Constitutional amendment that abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime.

Black Codes

Laws enacted in Southern states after the Civil War to restrict the freedoms of African Americans, limit labor mobility, and preserve white supremacy despite emancipation.

Sojourner Truth (1797–1883)

Formerly enslaved woman who became a powerful speaker on abolition and women's rights; known for her speech “Ain’t I a Woman?”

W.E.B. Du Bois (1868–1963)

Sociologist, historian, and co-founder of the NAACP; opposed Booker T. Washington's accommodationist approach and advocated for full civil rights and the “Talented Tenth.”

American Civil War (1861–1865)

War between the Union and Confederacy largely over slavery and states’ rights; resulted in the defeat of the Confederacy and abolition of slavery.

Juneteenth (June 19, 1865)

The date when enslaved people in Galveston, Texas were finally informed of their freedom—now commemorated as a holiday celebrating emancipation.

Civil Rights Movement (1950s–60s)

Broad-based effort to end racial segregation and discrimination through legal, political, and nonviolent protest (e.g., Montgomery Bus Boycott, March on Washington).

Black Power Movement

A more militant, self-determined wing of the Civil Rights Movement that emphasized racial pride, economic empowerment, and community control, often associated with figures like Malcolm X and Stokely Carmichael.

Black Panther Party (1966)

Revolutionary socialist organization founded by Huey Newton and Bobby Seale advocating for self-defense against police brutality and promoting community programs (e.g., free breakfast for children).

Black Arts Movement (1960s–70s)

Cultural arm of the Black Power Movement that promoted African American literature, theater, and visual arts centered on Black identity, pride, and resistance.

Afrocentricity

An intellectual movement asserting the centrality of African values and history in the study of African-descended peoples, challenging Eurocentric narratives.

Malcolm X (1925–1965)

Minister and activist who advocated for Black nationalism and self-determination; initially a Nation of Islam spokesperson, later evolved to embrace Pan-Africanism and human rights.

Stokely Carmichael (Kwame Ture)

Former leader of SNCC who popularized the term “Black Power” and later became a Pan-Africanist.

Angela Davis

Political activist, scholar, and author associated with the Black Panther Party and prison abolition movement.

Martin Luther King Jr. (1929–1968)

Baptist minister and civil rights leader who advocated nonviolent resistance; delivered the “I Have a Dream” speech and won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964.

Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955–56)

Sparked by Rosa Parks' arrest, it marked the emergence of MLK and became a model for nonviolent protest.

March on Washington (1963)

Massive rally advocating civil and economic rights; site of MLK’s “I Have a Dream” speech.

Watts Rebellion (1965)

A six-day uprising in Los Angeles prompted by police brutality and systemic racism.

Assassination of MLK (1968)

His death led to nationwide protests and marked a turning point in the Civil Rights Movement.

Civil Rights Act (1964)

Landmark legislation banning segregation and discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.

14th Amendment

Ratified in 1868 - It ensures that all persons born or naturalized in the United States are citizens, guarantees equal protection under the law, and prohibits states from depriving individuals of life, liberty, or property without due process!

15th Amendment

Ratified in 1870 - Guaranteed that the right to vote could not be denied based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude. But still not gender!