Unit 8 Civil War & Reconstruction Vocabulary

Federalism

• Political system in which power is shared between the national government and state governments

• A system where the national government holds all the power

• A political system that promotes a single centralized government

• A form of government where states operate independently without a central authority

Debt

• money owed

• a type of investment

• a financial asset

• a government grant

Individual Rights

• Personal liberties and freedoms

• Government regulations and restrictions

• Social responsibilities and duties

• Collective rights of communities

Popular Sovereignty

• Independent power given to the people

• Power held by a single ruler

• Authority derived from divine right

• Control exercised by a foreign government

Amendment

• A change or addition to a document.

• A legal document that outlines rights.

• A formal agreement between parties.

• A type of legislative proposal.

Sectionalism

• showing concern only for a region's needs & interest.

• a belief in the superiority of one region over another.

• the process of uniting different regions into one.

• a focus on national interests over regional ones.

Manifest Destiny

• A 20th-century political movement advocating for civil rights.

• The belief that the US was destined to expand across North America.

• A doctrine promoting isolationism in foreign policy.

• A philosophy that opposed westward expansion.

Emancipation

• the act of giving someone their freedom

• a legal document for property ownership

• a type of government regulation

• a method of social control

Reconstruction

• the act of rebuilding following the Civil War

• a period of economic growth in the North

• the process of granting civil rights to former slaves

• a military strategy used during the Civil War

Sharecropper

• A tenant farmer who receives a portion of the crop

• A farmer who owns the land and crops

• A laborer who works for wages on a farm

• A person who rents land for cash payments