Global history and Geography

• Age of Exploration and Encounter


  Period when Europeans began sea voyages of exploration
• Spain and Portugal


  First European countries to begin voyages of exploration
• Bartholomeu Dias


  First explorer to round the Cape of Good Hope
• Vasco da Gama


  First explorer to reach India by going around Cape of Good Hope
• Christopher Columbus


  First explorer to reach the Americas
• Ferdinand Magellan


  First explorer to circumnavigate the globe
• Encomienda System


  Forced labor system on Spanish farming plantations and mines
• Middle Passage


  Voyage of slaves from Africa to the Americas
• Mercantilism


  Idea that colonies exist to make the Mother Country wealthy
• Triangular Trade


  Trade route in the Atlantic Ocean involving Europe, Africa, and the Americas
• Columbian Exchange


  Exchange of people, plants, animals, ideas, and technology between Europe and the Americas
• Cultural Diffusion


  Spread of cultural elements from one society to another
• Commercial Revolution


  Introduction of new forms of business during the Age of Exploration
• Joint-stock companies


  Investors combining money for trading projects
• Capitalism


  Business form reinvesting profits for more money