Unit 3 Vocab Flashcards
Steep-sided depressions that form when roof of caves collapse
Sinkholes
Narrow strip of land with water on either side connecting 2 large lands
Isthmus
Spanish conquerors of foreign lands during the colonial era
Conquistadors
Large Spanish colonial estates usually owned by wealthy families but worked by many peasants
Haciendas
Open space in towns in Mexico and other Spanish-speaking countries, often in front of a church
Plaza
People of mixed European and American Indian ancestry
Mestizos
A leader who rules with almost absolute authorities
Dictator
Crops grown for sale in market
Cash crops
Special factories in Mexico owned mainly by American companies
Maquiladoras
Native to an area
Indigenous
People with both African and European ancestry
Mulattoes
Type of tree from which we get cocoa beans
Cacao
A chain of high plateaus in the Guiana highlands
Tepuís
The line of elevation above which trees do not grow
Tree line
Rock or sand layers that contain oil
Tar sands
Large estates in South America
Latifundia
Small country between 2 larger, more powerful countries
Buffer state
Change of government caused by a group taking control by force
Coup
Tropical plant with starchy roots
Manioc
Small South American farms created when large colonial estates were broken up
Minifundia
Large slums around Brazilian cities
Favelas
Having no coast on the ocean
Landlocked
The use of fear and violence as a political force
Terrorism
