AP World History Vocabulary Study Guide

AP World History Vocabulary Study Guide

Empiricism

  • Definition: The idea that knowledge comes from observation, experience, and evidence rather than tradition or religion.

Natural Rights

  • Definition: Rights that individuals are born with and cannot be taken away, including life, liberty, and property.

Social Contract Theory

  • Definition: The theory proposing that individuals consent to surrender some freedoms to a government in exchange for protection and order.

Key Enlightenment Thinkers

  • John Locke

    • Role: An Enlightenment thinker who asserted that the government exists to protect natural rights.

  • Jean-Jacques Rousseau

    • Role: An Enlightenment thinker who posited that government should reflect the general will of the people.

Enlightenment

  • Definition: An intellectual movement that emphasized reason, science, and individual rights, challenging traditional authority.

Mary Wollstonecraft

  • Contribution: A writer advocating for women's rights and equal education.

Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen

  • Content: A foundational document from the French Revolution stating that all men have natural rights and are equal in rights.

Nationalism

  • Definition: A strong sense of pride and loyalty toward one’s nation or people, often influencing historical movements and events.

Reign of Terror

  • Definition: A violent period during the French Revolution characterized by mass executions of perceived enemies of the revolution.

Simón Bolívar

  • Role: A historical leader who played a crucial role in the liberation of several Latin American countries from Spanish colonial rule.

Toussaint L’Ouverture

  • Role: The leader of the Haitian Revolution who was instrumental in ending slavery and establishing Haiti as a free nation.

Factory System

  • Definition: A system of production where goods are produced in large factories utilizing machinery to enhance efficiency.

Specialization of Labor

  • Definition: A production method where workers focus on a specific task or process, increasing overall efficiency in production.

Second Industrial Revolution

  • Definition: A phase of industrial growth characterized by the use of electricity, steel, and chemical processes, expanding manufacturing capabilities.

Meiji Era

  • Definition: A significant period in Japan's history marked by modernization and industrialization, transforming Japan into a competitive world power.

Adam Smith

  • Role: An economist known for advocating free markets and capitalism, arguing that economic freedom is essential for prosperity.

Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC)

  • Function: A bank that emerged as a pivotal facilitator of trade and finance during the period of imperial expansion in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Capitalism

  • Definition: An economic system where individuals or corporations own and operate businesses with the primary goal of making a profit.

Labor Unions

  • Definition: Organizations formed by workers to advocate for better wages, working conditions, and labor rights.

Karl Marx

  • Role: A philosopher and economist known for critiquing capitalism and advocating for communism, emphasizing class struggle.

Socialism

  • Definition: An economic and political system where the government owns major industries and resources with the aim of promoting economic equality.

Communism

  • Definition: A political and economic ideology where property is collectively owned, and the concept of social classes is eliminated.

Self-Strengthening Movement

  • Definition: An initiative in China aimed at modernizing the country while maintaining traditional Confucian values.

Tanzimat Reforms

  • Definition: A series of reforms in the Ottoman Empire aimed at modernization and the restructuring of the government and society.

Proletariat

  • Definition: The working class that sells its labor for wages, often in contrast to the bourgeoisie.

Bourgeoisie

  • Definition: The middle class who owns the means of production and capital, often at odds with the proletariat in class struggles.

Consumer Goods

  • Definition: Products manufactured for consumers to purchase and use, reflects the economy and demand patterns in society.