Heavy Hitters for NYS Regents Exam
ANC (African National Congress): A political party in South Africa formed to fight against apartheid and campaign for the rights of Black South Africans; famously led by Nelson Mandela.
Apartheid: The official system of legal racial segregation and discrimination enforced by the white-minority government in South Africa from 1948 to 1994.
Appeasement: A diplomatic policy of making political or material concessions to an aggressive power to avoid conflict; most famously used by Britain and France toward Adolf Hitler before WWII.
Arab Spring: A series of anti-government protests, uprisings, and armed rebellions that spread across much of the Arab world in the early 2010s, demanding democracy and economic reform.
Atrocities: Extremely cruel, wicked, or brutal acts, typically involving physical violence or injury (e.g., genocides or war crimes).
Ayatollah Khomeini: An Iranian religious and political leader who led the 1979 Iranian Revolution, overthrew the Shah, and established Iran as an Islamic theocracy.
Balkan Peninsula: A region in southeastern Europe known as the "powder keg of Europe" before WWI due to its intense nationalism and ethnic tensions that threatened to boil over into war.
Berlin Conference: A meeting (1884–1885) where European empires negotiated and formalized claims to African territory, leading to the "Scramble for Africa" without input from African leaders.
Blitzkrieg: "Lightning war"—a military tactic used by Germany in WWII characterized by fast, surprise attacks using tanks, infantry, and air support to quickly overwhelm the enemy.
Blood and Iron: The title of a speech by German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck, representing his policy of using military force and industry rather than diplomacy to unify Germany.
Bolshevik Revolution: The 1917 Marxist revolution in Russia led by Vladimir Lenin and the Bolsheviks, which overthrew the provisional government and established the world's first communist state.
Capitalism: An economic system based on private ownership of capital and goods, where production and prices are determined by competition in a free market.
Class Struggle: The conflict of interests between different social classes, specifically between the bourgeoisie (owners) and the proletariat (workers), which Karl Marx identified as the driving force of history.
Climate Change / Global Warming: The long-term shift in global temperatures and weather patterns, primarily driven by human activities like burning fossil fuels.
Cold War: A period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union (and their respective allies) after WWII, characterized by ideological conflict, proxy wars, and the nuclear arms race, but no direct military conflict between the superpowers.
Command Economy: An economic system in which the government controls and makes all decisions regarding the production, distribution, and pricing of goods and services (common in communist states).
Communism: A political and economic ideology advocating for a classless society in which all property and wealth are communally owned, and the state withers away.
Communist Manifesto: A political pamphlet written by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels in 1848, laying out the principles of communism and calling for a working-class revolution.
Congress of Vienna: A conference of European ambassadors held from 1814 to 1815 with the goal of restoring a balance of power and traditional monarchies in Europe after the defeat of Napoleon.
Containment: A United States foreign policy doctrine adopted during the Cold War aimed at preventing the global spread of communism.
Cultural Revolution: A sociopolitical movement in China from 1966 to 1976, launched by Mao Zedong, to purge capitalist and traditional elements from Chinese society and re-impose Maoist orthodoxy.
Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen: A fundamental document of the French Revolution (1789) that defined individual and collective rights as universal across all estates.
Estates / "Old Regime": The political and social system of the Kingdom of France before the French Revolution, which divided society into three rigid classes (Estates), leaving the heavily taxed Third Estate with little power.
European Union (EU): A political and economic union of European countries formed to promote economic cooperation, free trade, and peace across the continent.
Fascism: A far-right, authoritarian, ultranationalist political ideology characterized by dictatorial power, forcible suppression of opposition, and strong regimentation of society and the economy (e.g., Nazi Germany or Fascist Italy).
Five-Year Plan: A series of centralized economic development plans in the Soviet Union, initiated by Joseph Stalin, focusing on rapid industrialization and collective agriculture.
Free Market / Enterprise: An economic system where prices for goods and services are self-regulated by the open market and consumers, with minimal government intervention.
Glasnost: A Soviet policy of open discussion of political and social issues, introduced by Mikhail Gorbachev in the 1980s, which allowed more freedom of speech and press.
Great Leap Forward: An economic and social campaign led by Mao Zedong from 1958 to 1962 aimed at rapidly transforming China from an agrarian economy into a modern industrial society, which ultimately resulted in a massive famine.
Green Revolution: A large-scale increase in crop production in developing nations during the mid-20th century, achieved through the use of high-yielding seeds, fertilizers, pesticides, and modern irrigation techniques.
Haitian Revolution: A successful anti-slavery and anti-colonial insurrection by self-liberated slaves against French colonial rule in Saint-Domingue, led by Toussaint L'Ouverture, establishing Haiti as a free republic.
Heliocentric: The astronomical model developed by Nicolaus Copernicus stating that the Earth and planets revolve around the Sun at the center of the universe.
Human Rights: Moral principles or norms for certain standards of human behavior, protected as natural and legal rights, belonging inherently to every individual.
Imperialism: A policy or ideology of extending a nation's rule over foreign countries, often by military force or by gaining political and economic control.
Industrialization: The process by which an economy is transformed from primarily agricultural to one based on the manufacturing of goods, utilizing factories and machinery.
Interdependence: The mutual reliance between two or more groups, countries, or regions for goods, resources, services, and economic stability.
Irish Famine: A period of mass starvation and disease in Ireland (1845–1852) caused by a potato blight, exacerbated by British government policies, leading to massive emigration.
Iron Curtain: A political, military, and ideological barrier erected by the Soviet Union after WWII to seal off itself and its eastern European allies from open contact with the West.
Islamic Fundamentalism: A movement among literalist Muslims that advocates for a return to the foundational principles of Islam and the strict application of Sharia (Islamic law) in government and society.
Israel and Palestine: An ongoing geopolitical conflict over land, self-determination, and borders in the Middle East between Jewish Israelis and Arab Palestinians.
Japanese Expansion: The period of military aggressive growth by the Empire of Japan in East Asia and the Pacific during the late 19th and early 20th centuries (leading up to and including WWII).
Laissez-faire: An economic philosophy advocating for minimal government intervention, regulations, or taxes on economic affairs; "let it be".
League of Nations: An international diplomatic organization created after WWI to resolve international disputes and prevent future wars, though it ultimately failed due to a lack of enforcement power.
Leopold II: King of the Belgians who privately owned and brutally exploited the Congo Free State, extracting rubber and ivory at the cost of millions of African lives.
Mandates: A system established by the League of Nations after WWI where territories belonging to defeated empires (like the Ottoman Empire) were placed under the temporary control of Western powers like Britain and France.
Meiji Restoration: A period of rapid modernization, industrialization, and westernization in Japan starting in 1868, which restored imperial rule and transformed Japan into a global power.
Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo: An association of Argentine mothers whose children "disappeared" during the military dictatorship's "Dirty War," who protested weekly to demand answers from the government.
N v. S Korea (North vs. South Korea): The ongoing division of the Korean Peninsula following the Korean War (1950–1953), splitting the communist North from the democratic/capitalist South.
NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement): An agreement signed by Canada, Mexico, and the United States, creating a trilateral trade bloc in North America to reduce trade barriers.
Nationalism: An intense identification with one's own nation and support for its interests, often coupled with the desire for self-governance or a belief in national superiority.
NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization): A military alliance formed in 1949 by Western nations, including the US and Canada, to provide collective defense against potential Soviet aggression.
Nuclear Proliferation: The spread of nuclear weapons, fissile material, and weapons-applicable nuclear technology to nations not already possessing them.
OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries): An intergovernmental organization of oil-producing nations that coordinates petroleum policies to manage global oil prices and supply.
Opium Wars: Two 19th-century conflicts between China (Qing Dynasty) and Western powers (primarily Britain) triggered by China's attempts to suppress the illegal British opium trade, resulting in unequal treaties favoring the West.
Parliamentary System: A system of democratic governance where the executive branch derives its legitimacy from, and is accountable to, the legislature (parliament); the head of government is typically a prime minister.
Partitions: The division of a geopolitical entity into separate political pieces (e.g., the Partition of India in 1947 or the Partitions of Poland).
Perestroika: A political movement for economic restructuring within the Communist Party of the Soviet Union during the 1980s, introduced by Mikhail Gorbachev.
Population Density: A measurement of the number of people living per unit of an area (e.g., per square mile).
Primary Source: An immediate, first-hand account of a topic, from people who had a direct connection with it (e.g., diaries, speeches, official documents, artifacts).
Reign of Terror: A period of the French Revolution (1793–1794) following the creation of the First Republic, characterized by a series of massacres and numerous public executions by guillotine led by Maximilien Robespierre.
Russo-Japanese War: A 1904–1905 conflict between Russia and Japan over imperial ambitions in Manchuria and Korea, resulting in a shocking Japanese victory that proved its status as a modern power.
Rwanda / Hutu / Tutsi: Refers to the 1994 Rwandan Genocide, where the Hutu-led government and extremist militias systematically slaughtered around 800,000 minority Tutsis and moderate Hutus in a span of 100 days.
SALT (Strategic Arms Limitation Talks): Conferences and bilateral treaties between the US and the USSR during the Cold War aimed at limiting the manufacture of strategic nuclear weapons.
Satellite States: Countries that are formally independent but under heavy political, economic, and military control from another larger country (specifically used for Eastern European nations controlled by the USSR during the Cold War).
Scarcity: The basic economic problem of having seemingly unlimited human desires in a world with limited resources.
Schlieffen Plan: Germany's military strategy at the start of WWI to avoid a two-front war by quickly defeating France via a march through Belgium before turning to face Russia.
Self-Determination: The process or right of a group of people with a common national identity to form their own independent government and state.
Sepoy Mutiny (or Sepoy Rebellion): A major rebellion in India (1857–1858) against the rule of the British East India Company, triggered by cultural insensitivity regarding greased rifle cartridges; its failure led to direct British crown rule over India.
Socialism: An economic and political system where the means of production, distribution, and exchange are owned or regulated by the community as a whole.
Supply and Demand: The fundamental economic model that determines the price of a good or service based on its availability (supply) and how much consumers want it (demand).
The Enlightenment: An intellectual and philosophical movement in 18th-century Europe that emphasized reason, individualism, science, and natural rights over tradition and religious authority.
Theocracy: A system of government in which priests or religious leaders rule in the name of God or a higher religious authority.
Tiananmen Square: The site of student-led pro-democracy protests in Beijing, China, in 1989, which ended in a violent military crackdown by the government.
Tokugawa Shogun: The military rulers of Japan during the Tokugawa Shogunate (1603–1867), characterized by strict social hierarchy and a policy of relative isolation from the outside world.
Total War: A conflict in which nations mobilize all available resources—including civilian populations, factories, and infrastructure—to support the war effort, making civilians targets.
Totalitarianism: A political system where the state recognizes no limits to its authority and strives to regulate and control every aspect of public and private life.
Treaty of Nanjing: The 1842 "unequal treaty" that ended the First Opium War, forcing China to cede Hong Kong to Britain, open ports to foreign trade, and pay reparations.
Treaty of Versailles: The peace treaty signed in 1919 that officially ended WWI, which heavily punished Germany with war guilt, massive reparations, and territorial losses, contributing to the rise of WWII.
U to Z
Universal Declaration of Human Rights: A milestone document adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948 that outlines the basic rights and fundamental freedoms to which all human beings are entitled.
Urbanization: The process by which large numbers of people permanently concentrate in relatively small areas, forming cities, usually driven by industrialization.
War Technology: The advancement of machinery and weapons used in warfare (e.g., machine guns, poison gas, tanks, and nuclear weapons).
Wartime Economies: The restructuring of a nation’s economy during wartime to prioritize the manufacturing of weapons and supplies while rationing consumer goods.
Westernization: The adoption of Western culture, technology, ideas, laws, and clothing styles by non-Western societies.
World Bank: An international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries to pursue capital projects.
World War I: A global war originating in Europe that lasted from 1914 to 1918, fought between the Allied Powers and Central Powers.
World War II: A global conflict from 1939 to 1945 between the Allied Powers and the Axis Powers, marked by massive civilian casualties and the Holocaust.
Zionism: A nationalist movement that emerged in the late 19th century supporting the establishment of a homeland for the Jewish people in Palestine/Israel.