Chapter 1—Making a "New" World, to 1588
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. About 600 hundred years ago the Powhatan people increasingly collaborated with their
neighbors because
a. Long-lasting weather changes reduced corn crops and required more expansive hunting
practices.
b. Western tribes waged war against them for access to the Atlantic coast.
c. Europeans had begun to take over the Virginia Coast in large numbers.
d. They sought to increase their political influence in the region.
ANS: A REF: p. 3
2. How did the first people come to America?
a. Sailing in large ships
b. Sailing in canoe-like boats
c. By crossing Beringia
d. By using the South Pacific islands
ANS: C REF: p. 5
3. Some 7,000 years ago, Native American environmental engineering produced the staple
crop called
a. millet.
b. the potato.
c. maize.
d. soybeans.
ANS: C REF: p. 7
4. Crops that Indian cultures planted together to form the basis for an agricultural revolution
were
a. tobacco, maize, wheat, and squash.
b. tobacco, maize, squash, and chilies.
c. maize, beans, squash, and chilies.
d. wheat, squash, chilies, and beans.
ANS: C REF: p. 7
5. The mound builder societies were characterized by
a. hunting and gathering.
b. power struggles among rival groups.
c. small settlements.
d. large-scale trade and commerce.
ANS: D REF: p. 8
6. Which of the following prompted the Vikings beyond Scandinavia southward into the
mainland and westward into North America?
a. the spread of Islam.
b. the invasion of Huns from the east
c. climatic changes
d. new naval technologies
ANS: C REF: p. 4
7. What group of southwestern Indians built residential villages along high cliffs?
, a. Anasazi
b. Apaches
c. Hopewells
d. Aztecs
ANS: A REF: p. 11
8. The Native Americans of the woodlands east of the Mississippi River
a. lived in small, self-governing tribes.
b. were ruled through coercion.
c. had elaborate irrigation systems.
d. encouraged private land ownership.
ANS: A REF: p. 11
9. After arriving in the Valley of Mexico after 1200, which Indian group established a tributary
empire?
a. Incas
b. Apaches
c. Mayans
d. Aztecs
ANS: D REF: p. 12
10. The Bantu based their society on the idea of the
a. nuclear family.
b. fictive ancestor.
c. survival of the fittest.
d. elected monarch.
ANS: B REF: p. 14
11. One important catalyst for expanding sub-Saharan trade was the
a. defeat of Muslim armies.
b. creation of unified states.
c. carving of settlements out of jungles.
d. introduction of the camel as a draft animal.
ANS: D REF: p. 14
12. The Songhai Empire traded with Portugal because
a. Portuguese sailors offered easier access to foreign markets.
b. the Portuguese forced them through military action.
c. the Songhai hated the Spanish.
d. the Portuguese dominated the Saharan trade routes.
ANS: A REF: p. 15
13. Timbuktu was the political and economic center of the
a. Inca Empire.
b. Ashanti Kingdom.
c. Aztec Empire.
d. Songhai Empire.
ANS: D REF: p. 15
14. The Spanish and English were willing to take more risks in exploration because
a. they were fighting each other and needed every advantage.
b. the Portuguese already controlled the trade routes around Africa.
, c. their ships were technologically superior to Portuguese ships.
d. they had trouble attracting investors without promising dramatic returns.
ANS: B REF: p. 17
15. Which of the following was NOT one of the technologies that made Atlantic voyages less
risky?
a. Magnetic compass
b. Astrolabe
c. Improved steering mechanisms and hull design
d. The use of steel in ship construction
ANS: D REF: p. 17
16. What did Columbus think of the first people he encountered?
a. He thought they were greedy.
b. He thought they would submit and share their land readily.
c. He thought their religion was in many ways superior to his own.
d. He thought they were cannibals.
ANS: B REF: p. 19
17. Ferdinand and Isabella were willing to fund the voyage of Christopher Columbus because
a. they were fascinated with the prospects of scientific discovery
b. they sought to expand their dominance in the Atlantic trade along the African Coast.
c. they had received explicit papal authorization to invade the New World
d. they were eager to break into the overseas trading dominated by the Arabs and the
Portuguese.
ANS: D REF: p. 20
18. The first Europeans engaging in regular contact with Native Americans were
a. fishermen.
b. merchants.
c. missionaries.
d. soldiers.
ANS: A REF: p. 18
19. Why did Indians in the Northeast seek to expand areas for obtaining food when coming into
contact with the French?
a. French presence led to a population explosion requiring additional food.
b. Environmental change to a colder climate reduced the amount of food available.
c. Indians had to feed themselves and also had to supply food to French cities.
d. French soldiers rapidly conquered the Indians' existing food-producing areas.
ANS: B REF: p. 18
20. American Indians probably adapted more easily to the encounter with Europeans than vice
versa because
a. they had seen new populations migrate into their regions many times before.
b. their religion commanded tolerance and patience with alien cultures.
c. of their belief that their world was animated by a spiritual force that was both universal
and intelligent.
, d. new European arrivals were generally pleasant and agreeable.
ANS: C REF: p. 20
21. When Europeans offered spiritually significant objects in exchange for land
a. Native Americans saw this as a missionary effort.
b. Indians often sensed deceit.
c. Indians received the offer as an effort to join an already existing relationship.
d. Indians understood the offer as a contract transferring ownership.
ANS: C REF: p. 19
22. Europeans often objected to Native American behavior because they
a. thought Indians were actually Muslims.
b. only met a small group of Indians.
c. evaluated Indian cultures by European standards.
d. never learned to communicate because of the language barriers.
ANS: C REF: p. 20
23. Native Americans readily accepted Europeans into trading networks because
a. European goods were clearly superior to those possessed by Native Americans.
b. Europeans threatened military force if they were not included.
c. difficult harvests had dramatically reduced the products available to Native Americans.
d. many introductory gifts offered by Europeans resembled the sacred gifts exchanged by
native cultures.
ANS: D REF: p. 19
24. The Indians thought land was
a. a living being.
b. the source of wealth.
c. so abundant that there was room for everyone.
d. useful because it could be exchanged.
ANS: A REF: p. 19
25. According to most scholars, about how many people lived north of Mexico in 1492?
a. Around 1 million
b. Between 3 and 10 million
c. Between 15 and 20 million
d. Over 25 million
ANS: B REF: p. 21
26. Africans were largely unaffected by which disease introduced to the New World as part of
the Columbian Exchange?
a. Smallpox
b. Syphilis
c. Measles
d. Malaria
ANS: D REF: p. 21
27. One feature of the Columbian Exchange is that
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. About 600 hundred years ago the Powhatan people increasingly collaborated with their
neighbors because
a. Long-lasting weather changes reduced corn crops and required more expansive hunting
practices.
b. Western tribes waged war against them for access to the Atlantic coast.
c. Europeans had begun to take over the Virginia Coast in large numbers.
d. They sought to increase their political influence in the region.
ANS: A REF: p. 3
2. How did the first people come to America?
a. Sailing in large ships
b. Sailing in canoe-like boats
c. By crossing Beringia
d. By using the South Pacific islands
ANS: C REF: p. 5
3. Some 7,000 years ago, Native American environmental engineering produced the staple
crop called
a. millet.
b. the potato.
c. maize.
d. soybeans.
ANS: C REF: p. 7
4. Crops that Indian cultures planted together to form the basis for an agricultural revolution
were
a. tobacco, maize, wheat, and squash.
b. tobacco, maize, squash, and chilies.
c. maize, beans, squash, and chilies.
d. wheat, squash, chilies, and beans.
ANS: C REF: p. 7
5. The mound builder societies were characterized by
a. hunting and gathering.
b. power struggles among rival groups.
c. small settlements.
d. large-scale trade and commerce.
ANS: D REF: p. 8
6. Which of the following prompted the Vikings beyond Scandinavia southward into the
mainland and westward into North America?
a. the spread of Islam.
b. the invasion of Huns from the east
c. climatic changes
d. new naval technologies
ANS: C REF: p. 4
7. What group of southwestern Indians built residential villages along high cliffs?
, a. Anasazi
b. Apaches
c. Hopewells
d. Aztecs
ANS: A REF: p. 11
8. The Native Americans of the woodlands east of the Mississippi River
a. lived in small, self-governing tribes.
b. were ruled through coercion.
c. had elaborate irrigation systems.
d. encouraged private land ownership.
ANS: A REF: p. 11
9. After arriving in the Valley of Mexico after 1200, which Indian group established a tributary
empire?
a. Incas
b. Apaches
c. Mayans
d. Aztecs
ANS: D REF: p. 12
10. The Bantu based their society on the idea of the
a. nuclear family.
b. fictive ancestor.
c. survival of the fittest.
d. elected monarch.
ANS: B REF: p. 14
11. One important catalyst for expanding sub-Saharan trade was the
a. defeat of Muslim armies.
b. creation of unified states.
c. carving of settlements out of jungles.
d. introduction of the camel as a draft animal.
ANS: D REF: p. 14
12. The Songhai Empire traded with Portugal because
a. Portuguese sailors offered easier access to foreign markets.
b. the Portuguese forced them through military action.
c. the Songhai hated the Spanish.
d. the Portuguese dominated the Saharan trade routes.
ANS: A REF: p. 15
13. Timbuktu was the political and economic center of the
a. Inca Empire.
b. Ashanti Kingdom.
c. Aztec Empire.
d. Songhai Empire.
ANS: D REF: p. 15
14. The Spanish and English were willing to take more risks in exploration because
a. they were fighting each other and needed every advantage.
b. the Portuguese already controlled the trade routes around Africa.
, c. their ships were technologically superior to Portuguese ships.
d. they had trouble attracting investors without promising dramatic returns.
ANS: B REF: p. 17
15. Which of the following was NOT one of the technologies that made Atlantic voyages less
risky?
a. Magnetic compass
b. Astrolabe
c. Improved steering mechanisms and hull design
d. The use of steel in ship construction
ANS: D REF: p. 17
16. What did Columbus think of the first people he encountered?
a. He thought they were greedy.
b. He thought they would submit and share their land readily.
c. He thought their religion was in many ways superior to his own.
d. He thought they were cannibals.
ANS: B REF: p. 19
17. Ferdinand and Isabella were willing to fund the voyage of Christopher Columbus because
a. they were fascinated with the prospects of scientific discovery
b. they sought to expand their dominance in the Atlantic trade along the African Coast.
c. they had received explicit papal authorization to invade the New World
d. they were eager to break into the overseas trading dominated by the Arabs and the
Portuguese.
ANS: D REF: p. 20
18. The first Europeans engaging in regular contact with Native Americans were
a. fishermen.
b. merchants.
c. missionaries.
d. soldiers.
ANS: A REF: p. 18
19. Why did Indians in the Northeast seek to expand areas for obtaining food when coming into
contact with the French?
a. French presence led to a population explosion requiring additional food.
b. Environmental change to a colder climate reduced the amount of food available.
c. Indians had to feed themselves and also had to supply food to French cities.
d. French soldiers rapidly conquered the Indians' existing food-producing areas.
ANS: B REF: p. 18
20. American Indians probably adapted more easily to the encounter with Europeans than vice
versa because
a. they had seen new populations migrate into their regions many times before.
b. their religion commanded tolerance and patience with alien cultures.
c. of their belief that their world was animated by a spiritual force that was both universal
and intelligent.
, d. new European arrivals were generally pleasant and agreeable.
ANS: C REF: p. 20
21. When Europeans offered spiritually significant objects in exchange for land
a. Native Americans saw this as a missionary effort.
b. Indians often sensed deceit.
c. Indians received the offer as an effort to join an already existing relationship.
d. Indians understood the offer as a contract transferring ownership.
ANS: C REF: p. 19
22. Europeans often objected to Native American behavior because they
a. thought Indians were actually Muslims.
b. only met a small group of Indians.
c. evaluated Indian cultures by European standards.
d. never learned to communicate because of the language barriers.
ANS: C REF: p. 20
23. Native Americans readily accepted Europeans into trading networks because
a. European goods were clearly superior to those possessed by Native Americans.
b. Europeans threatened military force if they were not included.
c. difficult harvests had dramatically reduced the products available to Native Americans.
d. many introductory gifts offered by Europeans resembled the sacred gifts exchanged by
native cultures.
ANS: D REF: p. 19
24. The Indians thought land was
a. a living being.
b. the source of wealth.
c. so abundant that there was room for everyone.
d. useful because it could be exchanged.
ANS: A REF: p. 19
25. According to most scholars, about how many people lived north of Mexico in 1492?
a. Around 1 million
b. Between 3 and 10 million
c. Between 15 and 20 million
d. Over 25 million
ANS: B REF: p. 21
26. Africans were largely unaffected by which disease introduced to the New World as part of
the Columbian Exchange?
a. Smallpox
b. Syphilis
c. Measles
d. Malaria
ANS: D REF: p. 21
27. One feature of the Columbian Exchange is that
