Studies|Christopher Columbus was not necessarily an Italian from Genoa.
Researchers have discovered new information explorer Christopher Columbus backgrounds, BBC news.
Based on the genetic research done by Spanish researchers, it is likely that Columbus was Spanish and Jewish. Researchers also believe that the man was born in Western Europe, possibly in Valencia, Spain.
Columbus is also believed to have hidden his Judaism or converted to Catholicism to escape religious persecution.
A new two-decade-long study contradicts the previous theory that Columbus was Italian and came from the city of Genoa.
The research started in 2003, when the professor of forensic medicine José Antonio Lorente and historian Marcial Castro excavated the remains believed to belong to Columbus from the Cathedral of Seville. The DNA of the remains was compared with, among other things, the DNA found in the bones of Columbus’s son and brother.
Columbus led an expedition supported by the Spanish rulers. The goal was to find a new route to Asia, but an expedition in 1492 took the man to the Caribbean as the first European.
Columbus’s “discovery” led to the beginning of contact between Europe and the Americas. Europeans conquered and settled Native American lands, which also led to the deaths of millions of Native Americans due to diseases and wars brought by Europeans.
Over the years, several countries have disputed the origin of Columbus and claimed that Columbus was their citizen.