Columbian_Exchange
Columbian_Exchange
1330L
Columbian Exchange
Date: 2023
From: Gale World History Online Collection
Publisher: Gale, part of Cengage Group
Document Type: Event overview
Length: 1,395 words
Content Level: (Level 5)
Lexile Measure: 1330L
Full Text:
The Columbian Exchange refers to the transfer of people, animals, plants, and diseases among the continents of the Americas,
Europe, and Africa. Commodities and ideas also became part of the exchange as travel became more regular across the divides. The
term "Columbian Exchange" was coined in the 1970s by historian Alfred Crosby, who recognized Christopher Columbus as a pivotal
figure in starting the more regular interchanges between Europe and the Americas.
During the Columbian Exchange, Native Americans had no resistance to diseases brought to the continents by explorers and settlers,
so many Indigenous people succumbed to viruses after first coming into contact with Europeans. People, animals, and plants—some
of which flourished in the new climates of the Americas—also had significant impacts on what was called the New World by
newspapers at the time.
Main Ideas
The interactions of the so-called Old and the New Worlds, which became known as the Columbian Exchange, was a major
turning point for the entire world. This involved interactions between people, the spread of fatal diseases to Indigenous
populations, and exchanges of crops, animals, and goods. Alfred Crosby, a historian, first used the phrase "Columbian
Exchange" in 1972.
People, animals, and plants—brought both purposely and inadvertently—across the Atlantic and later on to other parts of the
world were a part of this exchange.
While the Columbian Exchange did introduce new flora and fauna to different regions of the world, it had devastating effects
as well. Diseases from Europe decimated Native American peoples, who had no natural immunity to the viruses. Increased
crop productivity on plantations contributed to the exploitation of forced labor, primarily through the approach of enslaving
and transporting people from Africa to work under brutal conditions for no compensation in the fields.
Europeans eventually settled and built colonies in the New World, and they developed new economic strategies to ensure prosperity
as they made inroads into the new and vast lands of the major American continents. From the sixteenth through the late eighteenth
centuries, Europeans' perceptions of wealth were influenced by mercantilism—that there was a finite quantity of wealth in the world,
as measured by presumed reserves of commodities like gold and silver. Colonists were tasked with devising ways to extract these
priceless raw minerals to increase the wealth of their sponsoring nations.
Under colonial mercantilism, enslaved peoples or Native laborers extracted raw materials that the colonies shipped to Europe for
manufacturing. Then, in return, the colonies received finished items including tools, manufactured goods, textiles, and apparel.
Colonists were prohibited from trading independently without their "home" country's involvement.
During the sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries, the New World likewise experienced commoditization—the process of making
things like products, services, or concepts into commodities or trade goods. Native Americans used silver, tobacco, and other items
for ritual purposes; these products later became European commodities that could be bought and sold. Thus, commodization
reshaped Indigenous economies and accelerated the emergence of early commercial capitalism. For European colonial powers, the
rich natural resources of the New World carried the promise of financial gain.
European diseases eventually made their way to the New World. The Native Taino population of Hispaniola (currently Cuba,
Jamaica, Haiti, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands) who had no prior exposure to European diseases perished
because of the swine flu from pigs transported on Columbus's ships in 1493 (second voyage). There was so much disease, death,
and misery that huge numbers of people died—one-third of the population of Hispaniola in 1506. Smallpox arrived in Hispaniola in
1510s, and it soon spread to the rest of Central America and beyond. Chickenpox, measles, influenza, typhus, bubonic plague,
scarlet fever, pneumonia, and malaria were tragic diseases for Native Americans who lacked immunity. Although it is impossible to
know the exact effects of Old-World diseases on the Indigenous inhabitants of the Americas, historians have estimated that between
80 percent and 95 percent of them were wiped out during the first 100–150 years following 1492.
European settlers also became involved in the trafficking of enslaved people as farm laborers in the Americas for such crops as
tobacco, sugarcane, and cotton, leading to the forced migration of over 12.5 million Africans between the sixteenth and nineteenth
centuries.
Animal and Plant Migration Between the Old World and the New World
Sugar ended up being a lucrative commodity in the Atlantic region. Competitors from Europe waged wars and competed to establish
sugar plantations in the New World. In 1493, Columbus transported sugar to Hispaniola, where the new crop flourished. The
Caribbean islands and most other tropical regions developed into centers of sugar production throughout the following century of
colonialism, which in turn increased the exploitation of enslaved people from Africa.
For Europeans, tobacco had considerable value as a cash crop—one that was grown for the market rather than personal use. Before
the arrival of the Europeans, Native Americans had been cultivating tobacco for generations as a medicine and to be used in rituals.
European colonists brought the habit of tobacco use overseas, believing that it had therapeutic benefits and could treat skin rashes
and headaches. Beginning in the 1590s, it became a global commodity. Additionally, Native people introduced chocolate, which is
made from cacao seeds, to Europe.
Food transported between the Old and New Worlds during the Columbian Exchange had a significant impact on world
history—sparking innovations and infrastructure that could convey commodities around the world. The Columbian Exchange
introduced plant species that had never existed in the Old World before. Many of these species, which include potatoes, sweet
potatoes, corn, and cassava, produced foods that were more calorie- and nutrient-dense than the traditional staples at the time. While
not very high in calories on their own, other crops like tomatoes, cocoa, and chili peppers enhanced the flavor and nutrient content of
existing dishes.
Europeans brought animals from the Old World to the Americas, which had an impact on the New World as well. Columbus brought
horses, cows, pigs, and chickens to the Caribbean islands on his second expedition. Horses were often used by Native Americans to
make hunting more dynamic and efficient.
Improved Food Production from the Old World in the New World
Following Columbus's explorations of the Americas, it soon became clear that some Old-World crops adapted perfectly to the
conditions of the New World. In many cases, the soils and climates of the New World allowed Old-World crops to be cultivated more
productively than they could be at home. Sugarcane is the best example of an Old-World crop that thrived in the New World. One
result of the massive sugar production in the Americas was that, for the first time in human history, there was enough sugar so that it
could be enjoyed by everyone. It was no longer a luxury item that could only be consumed by the wealthy. Potatoes, a wide variety of
chili peppers, and tomatoes were introduced around the world into a range of diets and into recipes that became distinct cultural
dishes.
The successful adaptation of crops helps explain why in the twenty-first century, about 57 percent of coffee production—which began
in the Old World—is now generated in the New World and why 98 percent of natural rubber—which is from rubber trees imported
from the New World—is produced in the Old World. There are plenty of such instances of transplanted crops. For instance, 84
percent of soybeans, 65 percent of oranges, and 35 percent of bananas in the world are currently produced in the Americas.
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