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- Da Gama, Vasco : (1469?-1524) Portuguese explorer who, in 1498, established an all water route to India
- Da Vinci, Leonardo : (1452-1519) An Italian painter, sculptor, engineer, and inventor. Famous works include paintings Mona Lisa and The Last Supper. Also left a variety of sketches showing flying machines and underwater boats centuries before the invention of planes and submarines.
- daimyo : Land owning feudal lords in Japan.
- Dalai Lama : The spiritual leader of the Tibetan sect of Buddhism, and is considered to be the reincarnation of the bodhisattva, or "buddha-to-be."
- dam : A structure built to hold water in place.
- Darius I : (558?BCE – 486BCE) King of Persia who expanded his empire to extend from the Mediterranean to the Indus River.
- de San Martín, José : (1778-1850) Latin American revolutionary. He is one of the main leaders of the Latin American independence movement.
- de Santa Anna, Antonio López : (1794-1876) Mexican general and dictator who controlled Mexico for more than 25 years. Lost war against the United States which cost Mexico present day California, Nevada, and New Mexico.
- Declaration of the Rights of Man : Revolutionary document of the French Revolution. Written in 1789, it spelled out certain rights believed to be universal to all mankind. Patterned on the American Declaration of Independence.
- deforestation : The widespread destruction of the world's forests. One of the largest areas of destruction are the tropical rainforests. These forest are cut down for the hardwood lumber, to clear space for farming, for building settlements, and for grazing animals. land bridge
- democracy : A system of government in which the citizens hold the legislative, judicial, and executive power, based on majority rule.
- democratic republic : A political system in which a country is ruled by law, has representative government, and is democratic in nature.
- Deng Xiaoping : (1904-1997) Chinese Communist leader. Ruled from 1978 until 1997.
- Descartes, Rene : (1596-1650) French intellectual who challenged traditional ideas. He said that human reason was capable of discovering and explaining the laws of nature and man. The idea of human reason being superior to tradition led to the beginning of the Enlightenment, a time of political awakening that became revolution.
- desertification : The process in which land slowly dries out until little or no vegetation exists becoming a desert.
- détente : A policy during the Cold War which was aimed at relaxing tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union. The policy calls for increase diplomatic and commercial activity.
- developing nations : Nations that are economically and technologically less developed than industrialized nations.
- dharma : The act of fulfilling one's duty in life. Associated with Hinduism and Buddhism.
- Dias, Bartholomeu : (1450?-1500) Portuguese explorer who, in 1488, was the first person to round the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa.
- diaspora : The enforced spreading out of a group of people. In history, there has been both a Jewish Diaspora and an African Diaspora.
- dictatorship : A system of government in which a country is ruled by a single person with absolute power.
- Diocletian : (245-313) Emperor of Rome who was responsible for dividing Rome into different provinces and districts. Eventually, the eastern portions of the Empire became known as the Byzantine Empire.
- discrimination : To treat unfairly due to a persons ethnic background, gender, religion, or age
- divine : Godlike, or coming from, or having to do with a god.
- divine right : The justification of monarchy through the word of God.
- divorce : The legal act of ending a marriage.
- domesticate : To tame an animal to live with, or close to humans.
- domino theory : The idea that countries bordering communist countries were in more danger of falling to communism unless the United States and other western nations worked to prevent it.
- Duma : Name of the Russia Parliament.
- Dutch East Indies : A group of islands in South East Asia claimed by the Dutch during Imperialism.
- dyke : A drainage ditch used to help control flooding.
