Definitions for Christopher Columbus
christo·pher colum·bus

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:3.4 / 5 votes

1. Columbus, Christopher Columbus, Cristoforo Colombo, Cristobal Colonnoun

   Italian navigator who discovered the New World in the service of Spain while looking for a route to China (1451-1506)

WikipediaRate this definition:2.0 / 1 vote

1. Christopher Columbus

   Christopher Columbus (; before 31 October 1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italian explorer and colonizer who completed four voyages across the Atlantic Ocean that opened the New World for conquest and permanent European colonization of the Americas. Columbus had embarked with intent to find and develop a westward route to the Far East, but instead discovered a route to the Americas, which were then unknown to the Old World. Columbus's voyages were the first European expeditions to the Caribbean, Central America, and South America. His Spanish-based expeditions and governance of the colonies he founded were sponsored by Queen Isabella I of Castile and King Ferdinand II of Aragon, the Catholic Monarchs of the budding Spanish Empire. Columbus never clearly renounced his belief that he had reached the Far East. Columbus's early life is somewhat obscure, but scholars generally agree that he was born in the Republic of Genoa and spoke a dialect of Ligurian as his first language. He went to sea at a young age and travelled widely, as far north as the British Isles (and possibly Iceland) and as far south as what is now Ghana. He married Portuguese noblewoman Filipa Moniz Perestrelo and was based in Lisbon for several years, but later took a Castilian mistress; he had one son with each woman. Though largely self-educated, Columbus was widely read in geography, astronomy, and history. He formulated a plan to seek a western sea passage to the East Indies, hoping to profit from the lucrative spice trade. After Columbus lobbied them for years, Ferdinand and Isabella agreed to sponsor a journey west, in the name of the Crown of Castile. Columbus left Castile in August 1492 with three ships, and after a stopover in the Canary Islands made landfall in the Americas on 12 October (later celebrated as Columbus Day). His landing place was an island in the Bahamas, known by its native inhabitants as Guanahani; its exact location is uncertain. Columbus subsequently visited the islands now known as Cuba and Hispaniola, establishing a colony in what is now Haiti—the first European settlement in the Americas since the Norse colonies nearly 500 years earlier. He arrived back in Castile in early 1493, bringing a number of captive natives with him. Word of his discoveries soon spread throughout Europe. Columbus made three further voyages to the New World, exploring the Lesser Antilles in 1493, Trinidad and the northern coast of South America in 1498, and the eastern coast of Central America in 1502. Many of the names he gave to geographical features—particularly islands—are still in use. He continued to seek a passage to the East Indies, and the extent to which he was aware that the Americas were a wholly separate landmass is uncertain; he gave the name indios ("Indians") to the indigenous peoples he encountered. Columbus's strained relationship with the Spanish crown and its appointed colonial administrators in America led to his arrest and removal from Hispaniola in 1500, and later to protracted litigation over the benefits that he and his heirs claimed were owed to them by the crown. Columbus's expeditions inaugurated a period of exploration, conquest, and colonization that lasted for centuries, helping create the modern Western world. The transfers between the Old World and New World that followed his first voyage are known as the Columbian exchange, and the period of human habitation in the Americas prior to his arrival is referred to as the Pre-Columbian era. Columbus's legacy continues to be debated. He was widely venerated in the centuries after his death, but public perceptions have changed as recent scholars have given greater attention to negative aspects of his life, such as his enslavement of the indigenous population in his quest for gold and his brutal subjugation of the Taíno people, leading to their near-extinction, as well as allegations of tyranny towards Spanish colonists. Many landmarks and institutions in the Western Hemisphere bear his name, including the country of Colombia and the name Columbia, which is used as a personification for the United States, and appears in many place names there.

ChatGPTRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Christopher Columbus

   Christopher Columbus was an Italian explorer who is credited with discovering the New World in 1492. He ventured across the Atlantic Ocean in search of a new trade route to Asia but ended up landing in the Caribbean islands, which he mistakenly believed to be part of Asia. His discovery eventually led to European colonization and the establishment of long-lasting connections between Europe and the Americas. However, Columbus' arrival also had significant negative consequences for indigenous populations, as it led to colonization, exploitation, and the destruction of many native cultures.

WikidataRate this definition:4.0 / 6 votes

1. Christopher Columbus

   Christopher Columbus was an Italian explorer, navigator, and colonizer, born in the Republic of Genoa, in what is today northwestern Italy. Under the auspices of the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, he completed four voyages across the Atlantic Ocean that led to general European awareness of the American continents. Those voyages, and his efforts to establish permanent settlements on the island of Hispaniola, initiated the Spanish colonization of the New World. In the context of emerging western imperialism and economic competition between European kingdoms seeking wealth through the establishment of trade routes and colonies, Columbus's speculative proposal, to reach the East Indies by sailing westward, eventually received the support of the Spanish crown, which saw in it a promise, however remote, of gaining the upper hand over rival powers in the contest for the lucrative spice trade with Asia. During his first voyage in 1492, instead of reaching Japan as he had intended, Columbus landed in the Bahamas archipelago, at a locale he named San Salvador. Over the course of three more voyages, Columbus visited the Greater and Lesser Antilles, as well as the Caribbean coast of Venezuela and Central America, claiming them for the Spanish Empire.

Suggested ResourcesRate this definition:1.0 / 2 votes

1. christopher columbus

   Quotes by christopher columbus -- Explore a large variety of famous quotes made by christopher columbus on the Quotes.net website.

Who Was Who?Rate this definition:1.0 / 1 vote

1. Christopher Columbus

   Map enlarger, skipper. Said to have been born in Genoa. Something made him believe the world was round. He endeavored to secure money to prove his theory, but nobody cared whether he was correct or not. Realizing there was no capital or prophet in his own country, he took passage to Spain. There he inveigled Isabella into equipping an expedition for him to discover America. She did and he did. Ambition: To keep New York City in the family. Recreation: Deck shuffle-boards, dreaming. Address: San Salvatore. Clubs: Palos Yacht.

Matched Categories

1. • Navigator

How to pronounce Christopher Columbus?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

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   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

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   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

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   Neerja

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   Zira

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   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

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   Fred

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   Tessa

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How to say Christopher Columbus in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of Christopher Columbus in Chaldean Numerology is: 7

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of Christopher Columbus in Pythagorean Numerology is: 2

Examples of Christopher Columbus in a Sentence

1. James Clyburn:

   Both of them are wrong. Native Americans have been here forever, christopher Columbus did n’t discover America.

2. William Walker:

   Culturally significant artifacts are assigned a monetary value in the world's marketplaces in which they are traded, but the cultural and symbolic worth of these objects far surpasses any given dollar value to the nations to whom they rightfully belong. HSI is pleased that today's court action is a positive step toward returning this five-century old Christopher Columbus letter to the people of Italy.

3. John Fitzgerald Kennedy:

   To exclude from positions of trust and command all those below the age of 44 would have kept Jefferson from writing the Declaration of Independence, Washington from commanding the Continental Army, Madison from fathering the Constitution, Hamilton from serving as secretary of the treasury, Clay from being elected speaker of the House and Christopher Columbus from discovering America.

4. Tyler Woodbridge:

   That kind of optimism and charitable work embodies more of what Columbus, Ohio, is about rather than the tarnished legacy of Christopher Columbus.

5. Prof Hawking:

   If aliens ever visit us, I think the outcome would be much as when Christopher Columbus first landed in America, which didn’t turn out very well for the Native Americans.

References

1. ^ Princeton's WordNet
   http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=Christopher Columbus
2. ^ Wikipedia
   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Columbus
3. ^ ChatGPT
   https://chat.openai.com
4. ^ Wikidata
   https://www.wikidata.org/w/index.php?search=Christopher Columbus
5. ^ Who Was Who?
   https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/984/pg984-images.html#:~:text=Christopher Columbus