4.3: Colombian Exchange

vocabulary

colombian exchange- the process by which plants, animals, diseases, people and ideas have been introduced to europe, asia, and africa to the americas 

smallpox- a disease caused in the americas through the contact of europeans

maize- a cereal grain domesticated indigenous people 

cacao- large beans first cultivated by the mayans 

engenhos- sugar cane mill 

conquistadors- spanish adventurers who conquered mexico, central america and peru

trans atlantic slave trade- a segment of the global slave trade, transported 10-12 million people enslaved 

african diaspora- communities throughout the world that descended from the historic moment of people from africa to the americas 

cash crops- crops in different places that are sold for more in other areas 

learning targets

explain the causes of the columbian exchange and its effects on the eastern and western hemisphere

definitions and causes

the columbian exchange refers to the transfer of new diseases, food, plants, and animals between the eastern and western hemisphere

the columbian exchange was the occasion for a massive change in world history

european states were sponsoring sea-based exploration to find water routes to the east indies so they could get their hands on all of those spices. and as soon as spain sent christopher columbus westward across the atlantic and he ended up running into two giant hitherto unknown continents, contact was made. and so it was because of the momentous contact because of the new world and the old war that the columbian exchange began to occur. and once it began, the effects were considerable 

effect: diseases 

the first effect of the columbian exchange is disease, the people in the new world got the disease quicker because the people in the old world were immune due to spreading germs around in the past. When europeans arrived in the americas, they brought disease vectors (rats and mosquitos) with them. and because the indigenous people of the americas have never been in contact with these kinds of diseases, they ended up devastating the population. 

first was malaria, which was carried by mosquitoes introduced to the americas by enslaved africans who were transported for plantation work, and this disease killed millions of indigenous americans. second was the measles which was highly contagious and spread rapidly in densely populated areas also killing millions. and third, smallpox. once introduced in 1518, it spread through mexico and central america and then down into south america where it killed something like half the population in those placed, and in some areas, up to 90% of the people died. 

effect: plants and food

european settlers brought wheat, grapes and olives with them, which were staple foods of european diets. but they also brought asian and african foods like bananas and sugar, and while indigenous americans mostly maintained their traditional diets, they slowly adopted some of these new foods which diverse their diet and therefore increased their lifespan

but then, going the other way, the new world crops were transferred to Europe including maize, potatoes and manioc. and those new foods had a similar effect in europe after 1700, which is to say, they diversified their diets and led to a healthier population, which then led to significant population growth because of longer timespans. additionally, some of these crops were also introduced to africa and asia 

now some of these new world foods were grown as cash crops on european controlled plantations in the americas. by definition, cash cropping is a method of agriculture in which food is grown primarily for export to other places. but european setting up colonies in the americas found out quickly that they were going to get rich through agriculture in the new world. and the way they did it was by planting, usually single crops on plantations that were worked by coerced laborers, which is to say they didnt have a choice in the matter. enslaved africans mainly did the intensive and exhausting labor and then the sugar was exported to markets in europe and the middle east. 

effect: animals

Europeans brought domesticated animals like pigs and sheep and cattle. and as it turns out, since those were entirely new animals to the side of the world, they had no natural predators and so they multiplied like mad and created the foundation for future ranching economies. but on the down side all these new animals also caused some dire environmental consequences that put significant straints on indigenous farmers

for example, sheep eat grass and you cannot stop a sheep from eating grass. and since they eat it so close to the ground, large patches of grass started resembling not so much a verdant, green pasture, but more like barren land, and that means erosion became a significant problem 

but there was no one domesticated animal europeans introduced to the americas that was really nice and that was the horse. this animal fundamentally changed the society of several indigenous people in North America by allowing them to more effectively hunt large herds of buffalo which was a staple food item for them

summary

definition

the trade of disease, foods and animals between the eastern and western hemispheres 

trade exchange

- diseases like smallpox, measles, plague, influenza went to new world

- animals like horses, oxen, pigs, cattle, sheep, goats, rats, chicken went to new world: the glorious turkey, llamas, alpacas, and guinea pigs went to the old world

- foods like sugar, wheat, barley, okra, rice, oranges, grapes, lettuce, coffee, went to the new world: potatoes, maize, tobacco, cacao, peanuts went to the old world 

the impact on

the old world (europe/the east)

- global economy: spain's use of silver from the americas created inflation in spain, leading to their decline

- animals: brought new textiles and more diverse diet

- crops: brought better nutrition and those grown in the americas as cash crops made them lots of money

- other: medicine like quinine for combatting malaria

the new world (americas/the west)

- disease: over 50% of the population of the indigenous in the americas died due to diseases broughy by conquistadors and their animals

-animals: created overgrazing and soil erosion, spread disease, and led to loss of buffalo due to the use of horses hunt them

-crops: deforestation to make room for crops, soil, depletion from growing the same crops over and over, ash crops grown to benefit europe, not americas, led to a system of forced labor and then to the transatlantic slave trade when most natives had perished 

- society: will soon be based on race and ethnicity 

other major impact

-due to the use of slaves when many natives died, african culture brought/created new diversity to the americas, including: languages like creole, music that will influence gospel, blues, jazz, rock and roll, hip hop, etc.