Chapter 2The Age of Exploration

MerchantPeople who buy and sell goods

navigationThe process sailors use to plan their course and find their location far from land

astrolabeA navigation tool that measures the height of the sun or a star above the horizon

technologyThe use of scientific knowledge and new ideas to create practical tools that help improve lives

caravela ship Portuguese shipbuilders invented to sail

trading postsForts that were set up with stores and small settlements where goods could be bought and sold

slave tradeWhen people were bought and sold as property

patronA person who gives financial support to another person or cause

conquistadorsA group of Spanish soldiers

expeditionAn organized journey

empireA group of nations or people ruled by a single group or leader

circumnavigateTo sail completely around the world

ColonyA settlement or area far from the country that rules/owns it

Columbian ExchangeThe movement

of people/slaves, animals, plants, cultures, and even disease between the Eastern and Western hemispheres

epidemicAn outbreak of disease that spreads quickly and affects many people

devastationGreat harm