Aztec Perspective
Why was chocolate important in Aztec culture before Europeans arrived?
It was used in rituals and ceremonies and seen as sacred.
These were the main motivations for Spanish exploration.
Gold, Glory, and God
What Incan drink was later used for European trade and profit?
Chicha (corn beer).
What was the Columbian Exchange?
The transfer of goods, people, animals, and diseases between continents.
Why were Caribbean islands ideal for sugar production?
Warm tropical climate.
How did Aztecs originally use items like cacao and tobacco?
For rituals, medicines, and spiritual purposes.
In addition to germs, these technologies gave Spain military advantages.
Guns, steel, and horses
How did the Spanish change the meaning of chicha?
They turned it from ritual use into a traded product.
What crop became one of the most important in the Atlantic economy?
Sugar.
Why was sugar hard to grow in Europe?
Harsher, colder climate.
What changed about cacao after Europeans arrived?
It became a traded commodity for profit.
What economic system guided Spanish colonial trade?
Mercantilism.
What happened to Incan cultural practices under mercantilism?
They were disrupted and commercialized.
What was one major socio-economic consequences of sugar production on the population of Africa?
Increased demand for enslaved African labour.
How did geography affect trade routes in the Columbian Exchange?
Oceans connected Europe, Africa, and the Americas through shipping routes.
How might Aztecs have viewed Europeans taking their goods for trade?
As a loss of spiritual meaning and cultural control.
What role did colonies play for Spain?
They provided raw materials and wealth.
Why did the Inca likely see European trade differently than Europeans did?
It was spiritual vs. profit-driven.
What disease had the most devastating impact on Indigenous populations in the Americas?
Smallpox.
Why did European powers compete for Caribbean islands?
To control profitable sugar production.
Why did commodification affect Aztec society deeply?
It turned sacred goods into products for profit and trade.
Why did Europeans label some Indigenous practices “savage”?
They misunderstood cultural and spiritual traditions.
What broader system changed Incan economies after contact with Europeans?
Mercantilism and colonial trade control.
What was one unintended two-way consequence of the Exchange?
Diseases and crops moved between continents, changing populations and environments.
How did geography help spread disease in the Columbian Exchange?
Ocean travel allowed rapid movement of people and microbes between continents.