Key Social Studies Terms & Definitions
Key Social Studies Terms and Definitions
Assimilation: A process by which a culture or individuality is absorbed into a more dominant culture because of its overwhelming influence.
Barter: The exchange of goods for other goods rather than for money.
Colonization: The process of claiming and controlling new land for one’s homeland.
Communal Lifestyle: A means of living whereby a group has no private property and shares both possessions and responsibilities.
Consensus: An agreement reached by a group as a whole.
Culture: A way of life shared by a group of people, including their knowledge, experiences, and values that shape the way they see the world.
Debate: To discuss something in detail; argument.
Democracy: A system of government in which the people of a nation are involved in decision-making.
Diverse Economy: An economy with many different types of industries.
Economy: The way in which people meet their basic needs, such as food, clothing, and shelter.
Ethnocentric: A viewpoint that judges other global cultures and ideas according to personal values and standards, believing one’s own ethnic group is superior.
Federalism: A system of government in which a central government has power over matters affecting the whole country and provincial governments have power over local and regional matters.
Historical Perspective: A viewpoint that uses history to understand why things are the way they are.
Immigrant: A person who moves to a new country.
Imperialism: A country extending its control over other countries, often using economic or military means.
Mercantilism: An economic system that allowed an imperial country to become rich by exploiting resources taken from its colonies.
Migration: Movement of people within a country.
Monopoly: When only one company or group is allowed to sell or trade in a certain area.
Multiculturalism: Government policy designed to promote understanding and harmony in a society made up of people from a variety of cultures, racial, and ethnic backgrounds.
Oral Culture: A way of life in which teachings and traditional stories are memorized and passed down orally from one generation to the next.
Pemmican: Dried shredded buffalo meat mixed with fat and berries.
Petroglyph: A drawing on a rock recording events or information.
Pluralistic Society: A society made up of many different groups of people, each with its own unique identity, resulting in a society with a sense of perspective for all cultures.
Policy: A formal plan of action to achieve a specific goal.
Protective Tariff: A tax placed on a product crossing a border to protect domestic industries from foreign competition.
Referendum: A public vote on an issue.
Refugee: A person who flees to a country because they can no longer live safely in their own country due to war, torture, famine, or persecution.
Reserve: A parcel of land that the government agreed to set aside for the First Nations.
Sovereign: Self-governing and independent of external powers.
Sovereignty: Supreme governing authority.
Stereotype: An overgeneralized portrayal of people from one’s group, often reflecting prejudice.
Suffrage: The right to vote.
Technology: Tools and methods used to carry out tasks.
Traditional Teaching: Unique beliefs of the First Nations passed down orally from generation to generation that explain creation and other aspects.
Traitor: One who betrays their country, cause, or trust.
Treaty: A formal agreement between nations.
Underground Railroad: A secret network that transported enslaved African Americans to freedom in the British North American colonies and later Canada.
Urbanization: The process of people moving from rural areas to towns and cities, causing those areas to become more urban.
Worldview: A way of looking at the world that reflects one’s core values.