| Term | Definition |
|---|
| Columbus | landed in the Caribbean in 1492; credited with beginning the Columbian Exchange |
| Leif Erikson | Viking who was the first European in the Americas |
| Vespucci | "America" was named after him |
| Cortes | conquered the Aztec Empire |
| Pizarro | conquered the Inca Empire |
| Balboa | first European to see the Pacific Ocean |
| Leon | discovered Florida |
| Coronado | explored the Southwestern United States |
| de Soto | explored the Southeastern United States |
| Magellan | crew was first to circumnavigate the earth |
| Champlain | gave the French influence in the region of Quebec |
| Marquette and Joliet | took the Mississippi River downstream |
| La Salle | claimed the Mississippi Valley for France |
| Cabot | helped convince Europe that the new land was not Asia |
| Hudson | a bay and a river are named after him |
| circumnavigate | to travel around |
| conquistadors | soldier-adventurers from Spain |
| mercantilism | the idea that colonies exist only to make the home country wealthy and powerful |
| Columbian Exchange | a transfer of people, products, and ideas between the Eastern and Western hemispheres |
Combine with other sets
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