How did America get its
name?
Christopher
Columbus
Today America,
popularly called U.S.A.,
is regarded as a superpower and one of the most affluent countries in the
world. Its development is mainly confined to the last two hundred years.
The world famous Italian traveler,
Christopher Columbus set out on a sea Voyage in search of India in 1492. He
landed on an island on the morning of October 12, 1492, and named it after the
name of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain
as ‘San Salvador’.
This island was a part of America,
now called Watling Island, He thought it was India, and started calling its
inhabitants Indians.
Even today, their descendants are
often called Indians (though calling them ‘native Americans’ is more
politically correct). Columbus wanted to go to Japan, but instead he reached Cuba and Hispaniola.
Disappointed with his failure to locate India,
Columbus returned to Spain on March 13, 1493.
Amerigo
Vespucci
On his second voyage, which
started on September 24, 1493, Columbus
discovered several Virgin Islands like Puerto Rico and Jamaica, but again failed to locate India. On his
third journey in 1498, he discovered Trinidad and touched South
America. During this period, a Florentine sailor named first
person to have landed at the mainland of South America
on June 16, 1497. In 1499, Alonso de Ojeda, accompanied by Amerigo Vespucci
sailed up to the Orinoco straits and discovered Venezuela. During 1501-1502, Amerigo
Vespucci himself directed a sea voyage under the Portuguese banner and
discovered Brazil.
It became clear to Amerigo Vespucci that what Columbus
considered to be a part of Asia, was in fact a
continent of the new world. In the beginning of 1500, Amerigo Vespucci’s
writings were widely circulated and he got the credit of becoming the first
European to have discovered South America.
A German geographer, Wald see miller, named the territory of Brazil as America in honor of Amerigo Vespucci. This name caught people’s fancy and the entire world started called the continents America, in his honor. To day, the tow continent-North and South America- is collectively referred to as the America. In New York, there is even a famous street called the avenue of the Americas.
A German geographer, Wald see miller, named the territory of Brazil as America in honor of Amerigo Vespucci. This name caught people’s fancy and the entire world started called the continents America, in his honor. To day, the tow continent-North and South America- is collectively referred to as the America. In New York, there is even a famous street called the avenue of the Americas.
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