Glossary
Capitalism
An economic system characterized by private or corporate ownership of capital goods, by investments that are determined by private decision, and by prices, production, and the distribution of goods that are determined mainly by competition in a free market.
Example:
The emergence of joint-stock companies like the British East India Company signaled a shift towards early forms of capitalism, as private investors pooled resources for profit.
Chattel Slavery
A system of forced labor where individuals are treated as personal property, can be bought, sold, and inherited, and have no legal rights.
Example:
The transatlantic slave trade brought millions of Africans to the Americas under chattel slavery, where their descendants were also considered property.
Coerced Labor Systems
Systems of labor where individuals are forced to work against their will, often under threat of violence or legal compulsion.
Example:
The Spanish encomienda system in the Americas was a form of coerced labor, compelling Indigenous peoples to work for Spanish encomenderos.
Colonization
The process by which a central system of power dominates the surrounding land and its components, often involving the settlement of the territory and exploitation of its resources and people.
Example:
Spanish colonization of the Americas led to the establishment of vast viceroyalties and the imposition of European political and religious systems.
Columbian Exchange
The widespread transfer of plants, animals, culture, human populations, technology, diseases, and ideas between the Americas (the New World) and the Old World (Afro-Eurasia) in the 15th and 16th centuries.
Example:
The introduction of potatoes from the Americas to Europe via the Columbian Exchange significantly boosted population growth due to their high caloric yield.
Creoles
People of Spanish descent born in the Americas, who were typically wealthy landowners but ranked below Peninsulares in the *Sociedad de Castas*.
Example:
Despite their wealth and education, Creoles were often resentful of the Peninsulares' monopoly on high political offices, a tension that later fueled independence movements.
Dutch East India Company
A powerful and wealthy joint-stock company established in 1602, which dominated trade in Asia, particularly in spices, and held quasi-governmental powers.
Example:
The Dutch East India Company established a monopoly on the spice trade in the East Indies, building a vast commercial empire with its own army and navy.
Encomienda system
A labor system established by the Spanish in the Americas, granting Spanish encomenderos the right to demand labor or tribute from Indigenous populations in a given area.
Example:
Under the encomienda system, Indigenous laborers were forced to work in mines or on plantations, often enduring brutal conditions.
Global Economy
An interconnected worldwide system of economic activity, trade, and financial transactions.
Example:
The transatlantic slave trade, linking Africa, the Americas, and Europe, was a brutal but integral part of the emerging global economy in the early modern period.
Indentured Servitude
A labor system where individuals agree to work for a set period (typically 4-7 years) in exchange for passage to the Americas, food, shelter, and freedom dues.
Example:
Many early European migrants to the North American colonies arrived as indentured servants, working off their travel debt before gaining their freedom.
Indigenous Peoples
The original inhabitants of a land or region, often subjected to colonization and exploitation by invading powers.
Example:
The Indigenous Peoples of the Americas, such as the Aztec and Inca, suffered catastrophic population declines due to European diseases and forced labor.
Inflation
A general increase in prices and fall in the purchasing value of money, often caused by an increase in the money supply.
Example:
The influx of silver from American mines into Europe contributed to widespread inflation, known as the Price Revolution, impacting various social classes.
Joint-Stock Companies
Businesses owned by investors who buy shares of stock, allowing them to pool capital for large-scale ventures like overseas trade and colonization with reduced individual risk.
Example:
The Dutch East India Company was a powerful joint-stock company that funded voyages and established trading posts, becoming a major player in global commerce.
Maritime Empires
Empires that primarily expanded and maintained power through control of sea lanes, naval strength, and overseas colonies.
Example:
The Portuguese Empire established a vast network of trading posts and colonies along the coasts of Africa and Asia, demonstrating its power as a maritime empire.
Mercantilism
An economic policy prevalent from the 16th to the 18th centuries, where nations sought to maximize their exports and accumulate wealth (especially gold and silver) by controlling trade and establishing colonies.
Example:
Under mercantilism, Britain viewed its American colonies as sources of raw materials like timber and tobacco, which would then be shipped back to the mother country for manufacturing.
Mestizos/Mulattoes
Mixed-race individuals in the Spanish colonial hierarchy; Mestizos were of European and Indigenous American descent, while Mulattoes were of European and African descent.
Example:
A Mestizo might work as an artisan or small farmer, occupying a middle position in the colonial social structure, often facing discrimination but having more opportunities than Indigenous peoples or enslaved Africans.
Metacom's War
A major conflict (1675-1678) between Native American inhabitants of New England and New England colonists and their Native American allies, also known as King Philip's War.
Example:
Metacom's War devastated both Native American and colonial populations and significantly reduced Native American power in New England.
Mit'a system
A pre-Incan labor system adopted and intensified by the Spanish in colonial Peru, requiring Indigenous communities to provide a certain number of laborers for public works, especially silver mines.
Example:
The Spanish exploited the traditional mit'a system to force thousands of Indigenous men to work in the dangerous silver mines of Potosí, leading to high mortality rates.
Peninsulares
Individuals born in Spain who migrated to the Spanish colonies in the Americas, holding the highest social and political positions in the *Sociedad de Castas*.
Example:
Only Peninsulares could hold the most powerful administrative and ecclesiastical offices in colonial Latin America, such as viceroy.
Peter the Great
A Russian Tsar (reigned 1682-1725) who implemented extensive reforms to modernize Russia along Western European lines, including military, administrative, and cultural changes.
Example:
Peter the Great founded St. Petersburg as a 'window to the West' and mandated that Russian nobles shave their beards and adopt European dress.
Pueblo Revolt
A 1680 uprising of the Pueblo people against Spanish colonizers in present-day New Mexico, successfully expelling the Spanish for over a decade.
Example:
The Pueblo Revolt demonstrated effective Indigenous resistance, temporarily reversing Spanish colonial control and preserving Pueblo cultural practices.
Queen Nzinga
A 17th-century ruler of the Ndongo and Matamba kingdoms in Angola, known for her strategic resistance against Portuguese colonization and the slave trade.
Example:
Queen Nzinga famously allied with the Dutch and employed clever diplomatic and military tactics to protect her people from Portuguese encroachment.
Regional Trade Networks
Systems of commerce and exchange that operated within specific geographic areas before the establishment of global connections.
Example:
Before 1450, the Silk Roads connected East Asia with the Middle East and Europe, facilitating the exchange of luxury goods and ideas.
Smallpox
A highly contagious and often fatal viral disease, brought by Europeans to the Americas, which decimated Indigenous populations due to their lack of immunity.
Example:
The spread of smallpox was a primary reason for the catastrophic decline of the Aztec population after the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors.
Sociedad de Castas
A hierarchical social classification system used in Spanish America based on racial mixing and ancestry, determining one's social status and rights.
Example:
Within the Sociedad de Castas, a person's position, from Peninsulares at the top to enslaved Africans at the bottom, dictated their opportunities and legal standing.
Stono Rebellion
A 1739 slave revolt in the colony of South Carolina, where enslaved Africans attempted to march to Spanish Florida for freedom.
Example:
The Stono Rebellion was one of the largest slave uprisings in the British mainland colonies, leading to stricter slave codes in the aftermath.