Renaissance
This belief, focused on human potential and achievements, became very important during the Renaissance.
What is humanism?
This Spanish conquistador led the defeat of the Aztec Empire in 1521.
Who is Hernan Cortes?
This title was held by the military ruler who had the real power in Edo Japan.
What is the shogun?
During the Meiji restoration, Japan copied many ideas from this part of the world to build factories, railways, and a strong army.
What are America, Europe, or Western nations?
This idea shaped how the Aztecs, Japanese, and Europeans in the Middle Ages organized their societies, with rulers and classes at the top and bottom.
What is hierarchy?
This invention by Gutenberg made books cheaper and spread new ideas quickly.
What is the printing press?
The Aztecs built these "floating gardens" to grow crops on Lake Texcoco.
What are chinampas?
This group of warriors lost their traditional role during the long peace of the Edo period.
Who are samurai?
The new government ended this social structure, letting people choose their jobs, move to cities, and pursue individual success.
What is the class system or hierarchy?
Examples of this element, which helps shape worldview, include Spain's physical closeness to North Africa, Tenochtitlan's location on a lake, and Japan's island location.
What is geography?
This describes the shift as people moved from rural areas to cities and tried new jobs, changing the way communities were organized.
What is urbanization?
The Spanish and their allies surrounded the city and cut off food and water, using this military strategy.
What is a siege?
This policy kept Japan closed off from most of the world, helping preserve its culture but limiting new ideas.
What is isolation or the National Seclusion Policy?
This political leader was chosen because he provided a symbolic link between Japan's modern future and their ancient past.
Who is Emperor Meiji?
The Aztecs were forced to convert to this religion, central to European worldview, after the conquest. It was also seen as a threat by the Japanese shogunate.
What is Christianity?
This movement began when people started to challenge the authority and practices of the Catholic Church, leading to new Christian groups.
What is the Protestant Reformation?
Many Indigenous groups in Mexico allied with the Spanish to defeat the Aztecs because the Aztecs forced them to pay this.
What is tribute?
This term refers to art and popular culture in the Edo period, since it existed "above" the every-day hierarchy.
What is the floating world?
Japan created a modern, national version of this, replacing the samurai, forcing all men to serve, and using new technology and training from the West.
What is the military?
This drive to gain more land, power, and resources led to European exploration, the Spanish conquest, and Japan’s military actions after modernization.
What is imperialism?
Renaissance artists and writers took inspiration from the works of these earlier civilizations, also known as "Classics".
What are Greek and Roman civilizations?
The Spanish were shocked by this Aztec religious practice, viewing it as proof that their own beliefs were superior and using it to justify converting the Aztecs to Christianity and destroying their temples.
What is human sacrifice?
In Edo Japan, this class had a low ranking despite often being wealthier than samurai or farmers, because making money off of other people's work was not seen as respectable.
What are merchants?
This term describes the shift from a society where most people farmed the land to one where many people worked in factories and manufacturing.
What is industrialization?
This idea explains how societies change when they meet new challenges, like the Renaissance with new ideas, the Aztecs after conquest, or Japan during the Meiji Restoration.
What is adaptation?