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Explain the Columbian Exchange
Explain the Columbian Exchange
What was the Columbian Exchange and its effects
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The Columbian Exchange is used to describe the transfer of peoples, animals, plants, and diseases between the New World and the Old World. There were many social, economic, political, environmental, and cultural changes that ensued; however, the Columbian Exchange evoked more of an economic change than anything else in both the New and Old Worlds. The diseases brought to the New World, slavery, Triangular Trade, and widespread use of sugar were major game changers that indicate the economic change was greatest. When Europeans came to the New World they unwittingly brought with them several deadly diseases that the native people had to immunity to, smallpox being the major killer. These affected the native people so greatly that some wrote, “Great was the stench of death…. The dogs and vultures the bodies. The mortality was terrible… with them died the son of the king and his brothers and kinsmen…. We were born to die!” (Doc. 1). This chronicle written by the Cakchiquel Mayas gives us insight on how great a toll these diseases had on the people. Albeit this was not the only thing killing their people. Hernan Cortes was one of the many conquistadors that invaded the native people’s lands, killing them if they offered any resistance (Doc. 2). With so many of these people sick and dying there were …show more content…
With all the sugar plantations in the New World there was now a plethora of sugar to go around. Sugar, usually a commodity only for the rich, was now “...so cheap that the common people could afford it” (Doc. 4). Humans are predisposed to crave sweetness, unlike salty, sour, and mixed tastes, which one must learn to like (Doc. 4). That is why from the 1600s to the 1800s sugar drove the economy, and consequently the Industrial Age (Doc. 4). This change in the abundance or sugar, and thereby its price affects us even today. Food would have an entirely different taste if sugar was an expensive luxury eaten
In Alfred J. Crosby’s book, The Columbian Exchange, the author examines the impact of the New World on the Old World, but also the impact the Old World had on the New World. One key distinction Crosby notes is how the discovery of the New World by Christopher Columbus challenged the intellectual systems of Christianity and Aristotelianism. Most notably, the discovery of a world that was, in fact, “new” was so contradictory to scholarly work of the past, such as Aristotle or found in the Bible, that assumptions were made on where to fit the New World into a Christian and Aristotelian world. For example, previous findings under Aristotle, which were still utilized into the 15th Century, had “quite logically supposed the equatorial zone of
Columbian Exchange: The Columbian Exchange was an exchange of peoples, animals, diseases, and foods between hemispheres. Foods and diseases from the New World, such as maize, potatoes, and syphilis, were carried to Europe. Food, livestock, and diseases, such as wheat, barley, cattle, horses, smallpox, measles, and influenza, traveled across the Atlantic to the New World. This term is
Columbian Exchange DBQ As we all know from the memorable song, in 1492 Columbus sailed to find the New World, commonly known as the Americas. Many idolize Columbus for his accomplishments in colonizing the Americas and starting the Columbian Exchange. The Columbian Exchange is the sharing of plants, animals, diseases, human populations, technology, and ideas between the Western and Eastern Hemispheres as a direct result of Columbus’ arrival to the Americas. However, we often oversee the downfalls of the Columbian Exchange.
Beginning in the fifteenth century with the arrival of Columbus, natives of the Americas were infected with European diseases that proved to be deadly to the Indians. The population in northern Mexico suffered an immense decimation of 2,500,000 peoples to less than 320,000 by the end of the sixteenth century (Vargas, 30). The Spaniards’ cruel treatment of the natives aided this vast reduction in the Aztec and Mexican population, enabling the Spaniards to conquer the lands of the Aztecs and other native tribes. By the end of the sixteenth century, the Spaniards had expanded their conquests into the southwest region of what is now known as the United States of America.
The Columbian exchange was one of the largest transfer of goods, human population, and etc between the New and Old world. These goods and other things changed the course of both world as we know it. In the Old World, new crops such as corn and potatoes were brought. These crops are able to stand harsh environment and able to grow in short amount of time. To the New World goods such as wheat, onions, and rice were brought. Also, ideas and technology were introduced to New World. However, The things coming from the Old World were contaminated with diseases that nearly wiped out the natives of New World. The people in from the Old World took advantage of the defenseless natives and enslaved them. The natives were forced into cheap and unfair labor.
“As European adventurers traversed the world in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries they initiated the “Columbian Exchange” of plants, animals, and diseases.”(P. 26). The Columbian Exchange refers to a period of exchanges between the New and Old Worlds. The exchange of plants, animals, diseases and more modernized technology, beginning after Columbus landing in the Americas in 1492. It lasted through the fifteenth and sixteenth century. Domesticated animals such as cattle, horses, sheep and pigs were introduced to the Americas. The Americas introduced to Europe many new crops such as potatoes, beans, squash, and maize. In time Native people learned to raise European livestock and European and Africans planted American crops. This was the positive effect of the encounter and it was largely responsible for the doubling of the world’s population in the next three hundred years. There were also many negative effects to the “Columbian Exchange” A major consequence was the spread of disease in the New World. Diseases carried by Europeans and Africans devastated the population of the Americas. As Europeans traveled through the Americas epidemics came with them. Typhus, diphtheria, malaria, influenza, cholera, and smallpox killed many of the native people. One example was
About 200 million years ago there was one big continent called Pangaea. They believed that, this landmass began to separate. They believed that the Atlantic Ocean formed, dividing Africa and Eurasia from the Americas. Over the next several million years plants and animals changed and made to separate biological worlds. It wasn’t until Christopher Columbus and his crew sailed to the Americas in October 1492, they started interacting with each other.
The Colombian Exchange was an extensive exchange between the eastern and western hemispheres as knows as the Old World and New World. The Colombian exchange greatly affects almost every society. It prompted both voluntary and forced migration of millions of human beings. There are both positive and negative effects that you can see from the Colombian Exchange. The Colombian Exchange explorers created contact between Europe and the Americas. The interaction with Native Americans began the exchange of animals, plants, disease, and weapons. The most significant effects that the Colombian Exchange had on the Old World and New World were its changes in agriculture, disease, culture, and its effects on ecology.
The Columbian Exchange is the exchange of plants, animals, food, and diseases between Europe and the Americas. In 1492, when Christopher Columbus came to America, he saw plants and animals he had never seen before so he took them back with him to Europe. Columbus began the trade routes which had never been established between Europe and the Americas so his voyages initiated the interchange of plants between the Eastern and Western Hemispheres, which doubled the food crop resources available to people on both sides of the Atlantic.
The Columbian Exchange had a huge impact in major parts of the world. Three continents that were involved in the Colombian Exchange was: Europe, Asia, and Africa. What is the Columbian Exchange? Colombian Exchange was basically a book created by Albert Crosby in which he describes the number of the story of the European voyage to the Americas. In the books, he describes the Interaction between the Europeans and the Americans (Native Americans), and Africa and Asia. Mostly on how the European introduce many animals and plants to the Americans, and where they also introduce diseases which result in the death of millions of Native Americans. Africa is included in this whole journey because after the Europeans would settle in the America and create colonies; they desired people to work for cheap
The Columbian Exchange was a trade system between Europe and the New World which produced negative and positive effects towards the nations. Furthermore, the Columbian Exchange provided positive effects such as livestock, crops, and metals from one nation to the other. However, it also issued negative effects like disease, slavery, and violence.
The Columbian exchange affected the European and native societies both socially and culturally. Some of the effects include increased mortality rates and education. It expanded communication across the world and expanded the trade of plants and animals. It also produced advancements in agriculture and technology. For European societies these effects were mainly positive and for native societies these effects were mainly negative. A very drastic effect on the native societies was the increased mortality rates, with the native population declining 90% after the arrival of the Europeans. These extremely high mortality rates were due to Europeans diseases and violence (p. 1-3). This of course greatly devastated societies Native of the Americas
The Columbian exchange was the exchange of goods and products that occurred when the Europeans came to America. Some of the items exchanged included potatoes and tomatoes, which originated in America, and wheat and rice, which originated in Europe. Because of this exchange, certain dishes are possible to be made. For example, tomatoes are a popular ingredient in Italian dishes, but they originated in America. Because of the Columbian exchange, Italians were able to adapt tomatoes to be included in their dishes. Similarly, there are many dishes which also cannot be possible without the exchange. This will go in-depth into a few dishes and see if they could be made without the Columbian exchange.
The outnumbered Spanish conquistadors were able to so easily defeat the natives of South and Central America for many reasons. These reasons include the spread of disease, the fear the Spanish spread, civil war, and the thought that Cortez was a God. The Natives were not immune to the European disease such as smallpox, influenza measles, typhus, plague, malaria, and yellow fever. This wiped out 85-90% of the Native population in 50 years. This was the largest demographic catastrophe in human history. (Document 4: The American Holocaust)
During the time frame of 1450-1750, the Columbian Exchange was at its height of power and influence. Many products were introduced from foreign lands, like animals such as cattle, chickens, and horse, and agriculture such as potatoes, bananas, and avocados. Diseases also became widespread and persisted to distant lands where it wreaked devastation upon the non-immunized people. One such influential product during this time period was the cacao, or more commonly known as chocolate. First discovered and used in the Americas, cacao beans quickly traveled to and became a popular treat in European lands. It was valuable in the New World and even used as a currency by the Aztecs. Only the rich and privileged were allowed to purchase the valuable item in the beginning. Cacao was even used in religious ceremonies by the native people. When it moved to Europe and other lands, it also created a lot of stir. The cacao plant had quite a large impact upon the Columbian Exchange.