Glossary
Akbar the Great
The third Mughal emperor, known for his successful military campaigns, administrative reforms, and policies of religious tolerance, including the abolition of the jizya.
Example:
Akbar the Great invited scholars and religious leaders of all faiths to his court for discussions, demonstrating his commitment to understanding diverse beliefs.
Anti-Semitism
Prejudice, discrimination, or hostility directed at Jews, which intensified in Western Europe during the 15th and 16th centuries.
Example:
Despite the intellectual advancements of the Enlightenment, persistent anti-Semitism meant that Jewish communities still faced discrimination and violence in many parts of Europe.
Ashkenazi Jews
Jews whose ancestors originated from Central and Eastern Europe, forming distinct cultural and linguistic traditions.
Example:
The Yiddish language is a cultural hallmark of Ashkenazi Jews, reflecting their historical presence in Germanic and Slavic-speaking lands.
Boyars
The highest-ranking members of the Russian aristocracy, who held significant political and economic power, often clashing with the Tsar.
Example:
Ivan the Terrible sought to curb the power of the Boyars, fearing their influence threatened his absolute rule.
Castas
A complex system of mixed-race social classes developed in Spanish and Portuguese colonies in the Americas, categorizing individuals based on their racial ancestry.
Example:
The Castas system created a detailed spectrum of racial classifications, each with specific social implications, reflecting the diverse mixing of European, Indigenous, and African peoples.
Caste system (India)
A traditional social stratification system in India, where a person's social status is determined by birth and is largely immutable.
Example:
Even as the Mughal Empire expanded, the deeply entrenched caste system continued to govern social interactions and occupations within Indian society.
Class structure (Europe)
A rigid social hierarchy prevalent in Europe during this period, typically divided into nobility, clergy, and commoners.
Example:
Despite the rise of new economic opportunities, a peasant born into the European class structure would find it incredibly difficult to ever become a noble.
Creoles
People of pure European descent born in the Americas, who held significant economic power but were typically excluded from the highest political offices.
Example:
Despite owning vast haciendas and mines, Creoles often resented the political dominance of the Peninsulares, a key factor leading to later independence movements.
Diaspora
The dispersion of a people from their original homeland, often due to forced migration or persecution, leading to communities living outside their ancestral territory.
Example:
The Jewish diaspora is a historical example of a people maintaining their cultural and religious identity despite being spread across numerous countries.
Enlightenment
An intellectual and philosophical movement in 18th-century Europe that emphasized reason, individualism, and skepticism toward traditional authority.
Example:
Thinkers of the Enlightenment challenged existing social norms and advocated for human rights, influencing revolutions and reforms across the globe.
Gunpowder Empires
A term referring to the Ottoman, Safavid, and Mughal Empires, characterized by their effective use of gunpowder weapons to establish and maintain vast territories.
Example:
The Gunpowder Empires demonstrated how advanced military technology could lead to the rapid expansion and consolidation of large, centralized states across Eurasia.
Janissaries
An elite infantry unit of the Ottoman army, primarily composed of Christian boys conscripted through the devshirme system and converted to Islam.
Example:
The highly disciplined Janissaries were a formidable fighting force, but their growing influence sometimes allowed them to challenge the authority of the Sultan.
Jizya
A per capita yearly tax historically levied by Islamic states on certain non-Muslim subjects, particularly 'People of the Book' (Christians and Jews), who were protected by the state.
Example:
Under some Islamic rulers, non-Muslim communities paid the jizya in exchange for religious freedom and protection, highlighting a form of religious tolerance.
Louis XIV
Known as the 'Sun King,' he was an absolute monarch who ruled France from 1643 to 1715, centralizing power and strengthening the monarchy.
Example:
Louis XIV famously declared 'L'état, c'est moi' ('I am the state'), embodying the concept of absolute monarchy and consolidating all power in his own hands.
Manchus
An ethnic minority group from Manchuria who conquered China and established the Qing Dynasty, imposing their cultural practices on the Han Chinese majority.
Example:
The Manchus enforced the queue hairstyle as a symbol of submission, a clear demonstration of their dominance over the Han Chinese.
Merchant class
A growing social group composed of traders and businesspeople whose increasing wealth began to challenge traditional aristocratic power structures.
Example:
The burgeoning global trade routes allowed the merchant class in port cities like Amsterdam to accumulate vast fortunes, sometimes rivaling the old landed nobility.
Mestizos
Individuals of mixed European and Indigenous ancestry, forming a significant social group within the casta system in Spanish and Portuguese colonies.
Example:
Many Mestizos worked as artisans, small farmers, or laborers, occupying a middle position in the colonial social hierarchy.
Mughal Empire
An Islamic empire that ruled over most of the Indian subcontinent from the early 16th to the mid-19th century, known for its cultural achievements and religious tolerance under some rulers.
Example:
The Taj Mahal, a masterpiece of architecture, stands as a testament to the artistic and economic prosperity of the Mughal Empire.
Mulattoes
Individuals of mixed European and African ancestry, forming another distinct social group within the casta system in Spanish and Portuguese colonies.
Example:
In some Caribbean colonies, Mulattoes sometimes gained more social mobility than enslaved Africans, though they still faced significant discrimination.
Ottoman Empire
A powerful Islamic empire that originated in Anatolia and expanded across Southeast Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East, lasting from the 14th to the early 20th century.
Example:
The Ottoman Empire controlled vital trade routes between East and West, making its capital, Istanbul, a bustling center of commerce and culture.
Parliament
A legislative body, often found in European monarchies, that represented various estates or regions, though its power often varied greatly relative to the monarch.
Example:
While the English Parliament gained significant power over time, many continental European parliaments remained largely advisory bodies to absolute monarchs.
Peninsulares
Individuals born in Spain or Portugal who migrated to the Americas, occupying the highest positions in the colonial social and political hierarchy.
Example:
Only Peninsulares were eligible for the most prestigious government and church offices in the Spanish colonies, reinforcing their elite status.
Qing Dynasty
The last imperial dynasty of China, ruled by the Manchu ethnic minority, which lasted from 1644 to 1912.
Example:
The Qing Dynasty expanded China's borders to their greatest extent and maintained a vast bureaucratic system.
Queue hairstyle
A specific hairstyle, a long braid, that the Manchu rulers of the Qing Dynasty mandated for all Han Chinese men as a symbol of their submission to Manchu rule.
Example:
Refusal to adopt the queue hairstyle could result in severe punishment, illustrating the Qing's use of cultural symbols for political control.
Racial hierarchy (Americas)
A social system established by European colonizers in the Americas, where status and power were determined primarily by one's racial background, with Europeans at the top.
Example:
The Spanish colonial system enforced a strict racial hierarchy where a person's ancestry dictated their rights, opportunities, and social standing.
Safavid Empire
A major Shi'ite Muslim empire that ruled Persia (modern-day Iran) from the early 16th to the mid-18th century, establishing Shi'a Islam as the state religion.
Example:
The Safavid Empire became a formidable rival to the Ottomans, often clashing over territory and religious differences along their shared borders.
Scientific Revolution
A period of rapid advancements in scientific thought and discovery that began in Europe during the 16th century, fundamentally changing views on nature and the universe.
Example:
The Scientific Revolution saw figures like Isaac Newton develop laws of physics that transformed humanity's understanding of the natural world.
Sephardic Jews
Jews whose ancestors lived in the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal) before their expulsion in the late 15th century, leading to their migration across North Africa and the Middle East.
Example:
Following the Spanish Inquisition, many Sephardic Jews found refuge and new communities in the more tolerant Ottoman Empire.
Serfdom
A system of forced labor in which peasants were legally bound to the land they worked and were subject to the will of the landowner.
Example:
While Western Europe saw the decline of serfdom, it persisted in Russia for centuries, tying millions of peasants to the land and limiting their social mobility.
Sikhism
A monotheistic religion that originated in the Punjab region of India during the 15th century, blending elements of Hinduism and Islam.
Example:
The teachings of Guru Nanak, emphasizing equality and devotion to one God, formed the foundation of Sikhism.
Zambos
Individuals of mixed African and Indigenous ancestry, typically occupying one of the lowest rungs of the casta system in Spanish and Portuguese colonies.
Example:
The Zambos often faced severe discrimination and were frequently subjected to forced labor, highlighting the harsh realities of the colonial racial hierarchy.