How many Indigenous people lived in the Americas before 1492?
Approximately 90 to 110 million.
How many Indigenous people lived in the area now called the United States before 1492?
Between 2 and 10 million.
Did Indigenous peoples of the Americas form one homogeneous population?
No, they formed numerous nations with different languages and cultures.
What distinguished many North American Indigenous peoples from the Aztec and Inca?
Many were semi-nomadic combining farming, hunting, and gathering, unlike the sedentary Aztec and Inca.
What types of Indigenous housing reflected regional environments?
Iroquois longhouse, Plains tipi, and Algonquin wigwam.
What type of society was the Aztec civilization?
A powerful, sedentary, agricultural, and highly organized society.
Where was the Inca civilization located?
In South America, building an empire in the Andes.
How were Aztec and Inca societies socially structured?
They had complex social structures divided into peasants, merchants, nobles, and priests.
What does Machu Picchu illustrate about the Inca civilization?
Their architectural and organizational abilities.
Why did European monarchs seek to expand their territories?
To increase wealth and consolidate political power.
Why did European traders seek new routes to Asia?
To obtain valuable goods and avoid Mediterranean piracy.
How did Europeans justify their expansion regarding Indigenous peoples?
By converting Indigenous peoples considered "heathens" to Christianity.
Who were the Catholic Monarchs supporting Columbus's 1492 expedition?
Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile.
In which year did Columbus cross the Atlantic under the Spanish crown?
1492
What did Spanish expansion lead to after conquering Indigenous territories?
Colonization, forced conversion, exploitation, forced labor, and enslavement.
Who surrendered to Francisco Pizarro in 1532?
The Inca leader Atahuallpa.
What marked an important stage in the conquest of the Inca Empire in 1532?
Atahuallpa's surrender to Francisco Pizarro.
Why were Africans increasingly transported across the Atlantic during European colonization?
Because Indigenous populations declined and European colonization expanded.
What was the Columbian Exchange?
A massive exchange of plants, animals, people, diseases, and cultures between Old and New Worlds.
Which American products became popular in Europe after contact?
Potatoes, tomatoes, maize, chocolate or cacao, and tobacco.
What did Europeans introduce to the Americas?
Horses, firearms, new agricultural products, livestock, and alcohol.
What caused enormous mortality among Indigenous peoples in the Americas?
European diseases such as smallpox.
Why did Indigenous populations in the Americas decline by 1650?
Disease played a major role in causing high mortality rates.
By 1650, what proportion of the Indigenous population in the Americas had died?
Approximately half to three-quarters.
What did 16th-century European explorers in North America generally seek?
Gold, resources, trade routes, and a sea route to the Pacific Ocean and Asia.
In which year did Juan Ponce de León explore Florida?
1513
What was Juan Ponce de León primarily seeking in Florida?
Gold
Who repelled Juan Ponce de León during his Florida exploration?
The Indigenous population
Which area did Giovanni Verrazzano explore in 1523?
The New York area
Who sent Giovanni Verrazzano to explore North America?
France
What was Jacques Cartier searching for during his explorations in 1534 and 1541?
Gold and a sea route to the Pacific Ocean
What economic activity did Jacques Cartier's explorations contribute to?
The fur trade with Indigenous populations
Test your knowledge with 15 questions on The Age of Encounter.
1. Regarding Indigenous populations in the Americas before European contact, which statement is accurate?
2. Indigenous peoples of the Americas were characterized by which proposition?
Review the complete course in the study sheet for The Age of Encounter.
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