Age of Exploration: European Motivations, Technologies, and Mesoamerican Civilizations

Push Factors

Reasons that drive people away from a place, such as religious persecution.

Pull Factors

Attractions that draw people to a new place, such as more land and religious freedom.

Age of Exploration

The time period from 1450 to 1700 characterized by European explorations.

Decline of Mongol Empire

A factor that made goods from the east harder to obtain during the 1400s.

Three G's

The motivations for exploration: Gold, God, and Glory.

Gold

Wealth sought by explorers, not limited to literal gold.

Religious Persecution

A push factor that drove Europeans to seek new lands for safety.

Rise of the Ottoman Turks

A factor contributing to the challenges faced by Europeans in trade and safety.

Mercantilism

The idea that there is only so much wealth in the world, and that to make your kingdom strong you must have more gold and wealth than the other kingdoms.

Glory

Came out of the Renaissance ideal of Humanism, focusing on individual achievement and the desire for fame for one's actions.

God

The motivation to spread Christianity, seen as a good thing by Europeans, leading to colonization and conversion of native peoples.

Caravel

A new style of ship designed for long voyages, relying on sails, requiring less manpower, easier to control, and faster.

Astrolabe

A navigational tool using the stars to determine distance/location.

Prince Henry the Navigator

The first to encourage new ship explorations, known for starting an institute for seafaring and exploring.

Agricultural Revolution

The transition from hunting and gathering to growing food and domesticating animals.

Olmec

The oldest known civilization in Mexico, credited for building temples, pyramids, and large villages.

Maya

A mysterious civilization known for their advanced mathematics and engineering, with an accurate time system based on 60.

Domesticated Animals

Animals that have been tamed for human use, such as horses for transportation, cows for food and work, and chickens for food.

Scurvy

A disease caused by a lack of vitamin C, characterized by yellow skin.

Smallpox

A disease that was dropped off during explorations.

Syphilis

A disease that was brought back to Europe from the Americas.

Competition

The rivalry among kingdoms to accumulate wealth and glory.

Jesuits

Catholic missionaries who were among the most active in spreading Christianity globally.

Humanism

An intellectual movement during the Renaissance that emphasized individual achievement and the study of classical texts.

Printing Press

A technology that allowed for the mass production of written works, facilitating the spread of ideas.

Polytheistic

The belief in multiple gods, as practiced by the Olmec civilization.

Temples

Structures built for worship, credited to the Olmec civilization.

Pyramids

Large monumental structures built by the Olmec civilization.

Mysterious Mayans

A civilization known for their advanced knowledge, whose fate remains unknown.

Starvation

A condition resulting from insufficient food intake.

Enslavement

Being overtaken by other civilizations, namely the Aztecs.

Aggressive Aztecs

A warrior culture known for violence, where the best warrior is the king.

Aztec Tribute

Three forms of tribute that must be provided: slaves, gold, and land.

Tenochtitlan

The capital of the Aztecs, which is the same as modern-day Mexico City.

Spanish conquistadors

Spanish explorers and soldiers, such as Hernan Cortes, who conquered parts of the Americas.

Hernan Cortes

The Spanish conquistador who led the expedition that caused the fall of the Aztec Empire.

Montezuma

The last Aztec emperor, who was stoned to death.

Innovative Incas

Civilization in South America known for their advancements in various fields.

Pioneers in Medicine

Innovators in anesthesiology, specifically in numbing pain.

Structural Engineering

The field in which the Incas excelled, including the construction of bridges and buildings.

Human migration into North America

Primarily came from Northeastern Asia and South America via a land bridge.

Real Native Americans

Physical familial traits that last a long time.

Hohokam

Native American group based in the southwest known for significant developments in irrigation.

Anasazi

A Native American culture located in Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona.

Pueblo village

A type of village that fits more people and is made from clay, mud bricks, and wood.

Mississippian

A large group of Native Americans known for thriving in lush green wetlands.

Cherokee

One of the largest groups of Mississippian Native Americans.

Seminoles

Another example of a Native American group from the Mississippian culture.

Mississippi River

The main body of water significant to the Mississippian culture.

Great Plains

Region known for major advancements in the introduction of horses and knowledge from Spain.

Teepee

A portable tent used by some Native American tribes, easy to set up and transport.

Northeastern peoples

Dozens of Native American groups subject to colonization and European exploration.

APUSH UNIT 1

Covers European exploration, Mesoamerican civilization, and defining factors from 1491 to 1607.

Push/Pull factors

Reasons for migration or exploration, influencing the movement of people.

Jamestown

The first permanent English settlement in America, established in 1607.