Unit 1 APUSH Terms: Chapter 1

Pre-Columbian Great Plains Settlements (Pre-1492)

1) Lived in a variety of nomadic and sedentary communities.

2) Nomadic tribes lived in tepees and hunted animals such as buffalo on foot.

3) Sedentary tribes lived in earthen lodges and farmed corn, beans, and squash.

Pre-Columbian Mississippi River Settlements (Pre-1492)

1) Fertile soil and abundant rivers allowed natives to grow surpluses of corn, beans, and squash.

2) Cahokia was a great example of a highly populated, thriving trading center.

3) Natives built earthen pyramids or mounds for religious or burial purposes.

Pre-Columbian Southwest Settlements (Pre-1492)

1) The Pueblo people were one of the first tribes to grow corn in America.

2) The Pueblo people developed complex irrigation systems to maintain crops in the hot, dry climate.

3) The Pueblo people created stacked adobe houses in the cliffs.

Maize Cultivation (Pre-1492)

1) Refers to the growing of corn.

2) Native societies that adopted corn grew larger and more sophisticated over time such as the Aztec and Mayas.

3) Cultivation of corn began in central Mexico and slowly spread to other parts of North America.

Columbian Exchange (1492)

1) Transfer of goods, crops, and diseases between the New and Old Worlds following Columbus' voyage to America.

2) Diseases such as smallpox, influenza, and the measles were brought over to the New World by Europeans, greatly reducing the Native American population.

3) New crops such as corn, squash, beans, potatoes, and tomatoes were brought over to the Old World improving the diets of Europeans and Africans and leading to population growth.

Fur Trade (1500s)

1) Trade alliance that developed between Northeast Native American tribes and predominantly the French.

2) Native Americans would trade beaver skins for European goods (such as guns, metal cooking utensils, and cloth).

3) The French controlled much of this throughout the Great Lakes region.

Iroquois Confederation (1500s)

1) Loose alliance of 5 Native American tribes (the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, and Seneca)

2) The Native American tribes were united to defend themselves against Europeans.

3) These Native Americans lived in the Northeast in longhouses.

Encomienda System (1512-1542)

1) A labor system whereby the Spanish crown granted the conquerors the right to forcibly employ groups of Indians.

2) It was a disguised form of Native American slavery.

3) The Spanish justified their control of native peoples through religion.

Bartolome de Las Casas (1550)

1) He was a Catholic priest from Spain.

2) He saw firsthand the oppression of Native Americans.

3) He argued against Native American slavery and the encomienda system.

Pueblo Revolt (1680)

1) Native Americans were upset over the Spanish attempts to convert them to Catholicism.

2) Natives successfully expelled the Spanish for over 10 years from the region.

3) Eventually the Spanish regained control of the natives but began to take a more accommodating approach to Natives.

Mulatto & Mestizo (1500s)

1) The first term refers to the offspring of Europeans and Africans.

2) The second term refers to the offspring of Europeans (Spanish) and indigenous persons.

3) These offspring added to the re-population of the Western Hemisphere and also created a social hierarchy with Europeans having the most power.