9.1: The Renaissance: Origins and Characteristics

Which qualities characterized the political climate of Italy during the late Middle Ages?

• unity and peace

• weakness and uncertainty

• decentralization and conflict

• upheaval and transformation

Renaissance humanism emphasized which concept?

• the scientific method

• the importance of family

• philosophical uncertainty

• practical problem solving

Which group most contributed to bringing ideas from Asia into Renaissance Italy?

• Venetian traders

• Catholic missionaries

• Portuguese explorers

• Indian mathematicians

Which invention had the most direct influence on Renaissance thinking?

• Chinese calendar

• Egyptian architecture

• Indian decimal system

• African iron-working techniques

Which statement best explains how foreign trade contributed to the start of the Renaissance?

• It inspired the explorations that brought fresh ideas back to Europe.

• It brought wealth to the families who supported Italian artists and thinkers.

• It introduced technologies from Asia that inspired the rebirth of science and medicine.

• It gave Europeans access to the natural resources they needed to begin industrial production.

Which change was an outcome of the Renaissance?

• the political and religious unification of Europe

• advancements in European art and science

• the outbreak of civil wars throughout Europe

• industrialization of the European economy

The primary members of the governments of city-states in pre-Renaissance Italy were

• military leaders

• Catholic bishops

• wealthy merchants

• Enlightenment philosophers

Which activity was the main source of the wealth for Italian city-states during the Renaissance?

• technological innovation

• the production of luxury goods

• the sale of valuable paintings and sculptures

• control over imports and exports

Which factor contributed most to the spread of Renaissance ideas throughout Europe?

• Islamic conquests

• Catholic teaching and missionary work

• the migration of nomadic peoples

• the travels of merchants and diplomats

A Renaissance thinker would have been most likely to study which written work?

• an essay on surgical practices written in Latin

• a scroll of Jesus's teachings written in Hebrew

• a book about porcelain making written in Chinese

• a pamphlet on the Catholic Church written in German