Why do people claim Columbus discovered America when he never set foot in neither North or South America?

[smahala1991]

Why do we give him any credit for anything? It's like giving Thomas Edison credit for inventing anything.

[USLegionary]

The bahamas are Islands that are part of the North American continent.

If you want to get technical considering the Norse still had colonies in greenland which is part of north America up until very recent to Columbus's voyage in 1492 and that he visited Iceland years before and would have spoken to the norse there and would have known about Greenland and further on with the norse having explored much of today's Canadian and US Eastern coast possibly as far as far as florida.

One could argue that America was already discovered by Europeans and all Columbus did was confirm the existence of a vast continent to the direct west that columbus was sure was eastern asia with the Portuguese and spainish both looking to reach asia and that a 15th century ship could voyage that far.

Siberian peoples along the bering strait area certainly knew of the existence of American continent and I believe the Chinese and Mongolians did too.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_America#/media/File%3ALocation_North_America.svg

[abc3643]

Because "The Americas" includes North America, South America, Central America, and the Caribbean islands. Over Columbus's 4 voyages between 1492 and 1504, he DID set foot on those islands and Central America and South America. In 1497, John Cabot also likely reached North America.

Columbus didn't so much discover America as he "re-discovered" it or confirmed it's existence since there was evidence of continents on the other side of the ocean anyway. With Columbus's first successful voyage, Spain invested heavily in exploration which ushered in the "Age of Discovery". This is why most of the Americas have Spanish as the official language; Spain and Portugal were in on the exploration for decades before the other powers in Europe got involved.

[CourtneyJane2]

The Vikings were the first non-Natives to see North America, not the Spaniards.

[OlderAndWiser]

Thomas Edison didn't invent anything?

[NathanDavis]

is this a serious question... lol

let me clear two things for you... "America" is first a continent, and not just a reference to the USA

second... the Bahamas and many coasts around these islands, they are not part of the African continent, they are not part of the Eurasian mass land, and they are not part of Oceania nor the any of the poles...

the area that Columbus reached and explored are indeed part of the American CONTINENT... this part of history has little or nothing to do with "America the USA" lol

[AviatorTom]

Hey, go easy on Thomas Edison... he has 1093 patented inventions.

At the time, Columbus was the first European to discover the Americas, even though he only made it to several islands. It wasn't until later that we found out that native Americans were living the the Americas for thousands of years, and that Leif Ericson actually set foot on North America 400 years before Columbus.

President FDR declared Columbus day a national holiday in 1934, as a means of helping Italian-Americans durign the Great Depression.

[josephinelcajon]

He actually did but many years later. This is however the ONLY cancel culture that I agree with! What was taught in school when I went was so far from the truth it should make us all very mad! And a little off topic but how we treated the indigenous people around the world during our "exploration era" should be held against all the European nations that took part in it! We live in a very sad world dying because it was all created from lies. The human race has had many civilizations, and all have failed!

[HippieVeganJewslim]

Didn’t Cristoforo Colombo land on the Bahamas or somewhere? Ain’t that part of America? I myself don’t give him any credit, by the way. Erik the Red discovered Greenland, an American island, ~500 years before. His son, Leif Eriksson discovered Vinland (which now is Newfoundland).

I know Edison was more of a businessman, but didn’t he also invent the phonograph? I doubt he invented the incandescent bulb, also.

[WindAtMyBack]

He DID discover America. Just because others were in the Americas before that doesn't mean he didn't discover it.

And Edison DID invent a lot of stuff. He was inventing stuff from a very young age.

[NamerOfStars]

Um, because he DID set foot on North America; what continent did you think Cuba was a part of? His second trip (I think) hit South America and the fourth reached Mexico. He just never reached (what would become) the US, or Canada.

[HaveNoName]

America is full of itself. All the history they are taught is garbage made up of self glorifying bull crap.
That is why I recommend all to watch the show or read the book "The Untold History of the United States of America".

[Andres77]

I think because he had the courage to sail into the west when no one else thought it was possible. I’m guessing that his courage made further exploration possible and that’s why he gets the credit.

[exitseven]

Columbus was an explorer. He was looking for North America but ended up in the Caribbean. Still, he was brave and he proved that thewoorld was not flat and he did not fall off the end.

[RolandCuthbert]

I was corrected on this.

He never stepped foot in North America. But he did land in South America for a few days.

[Sargentcaptain]

He did set foot on South America on subsequent expeditions and he did discover America. Would you be here without him?

[ronaldo75]

Yes, yes I would. Considering there was European immigration to the Americans over 500 years before Columbus was born.

[Sargentcaptain]

lol, lmao, sure, you keep telling yourself that

[ronaldo75]

You're a high school dropout?

[Sargentcaptain]

You get these comebacks from middle school locker rooms?

[ronaldo75]

Explain to me how I'm incorrect in saying Europeans were on the American landmass before Columbus. I'm waiting.

[Sargentcaptain]

You're incorrect in saying that you'd be here if it wasn't for Columbus. Any cretin can understand thinking that is just delusional. The ancient Greeks understood the power of steam, that doesn't mean that we had the industrial evolution because of them and their discoveries.

[ronaldo75]

That's not what I told you to explain. Try again. You're a male right? So stop deflecting.

[Sargentcaptain]

You're ascribing to me positions I don't hold. You're a 'man', be a rational one.

[ronaldo75]

Right, so again, you got nothing.

[Sargentcaptain]

Sure buddy, whatever you say.

[slatyb]

Of course he didn't discover America, and he wasn't the first European to reach America.

[Pudsmucker]

Columbus was the first of the Spanish expeditions. We all know that Vikings establish settlements on the North American continent.

[msc545]

Probably because the alternative would be to acknowledge that he was a genocidal criminal.

[Msputiton]

History books told them he did.

[WhitneySnow]

He discovered the Bahamas

[Agape93]

No idea. He was a piece of shit

[GoodGuyBreakingBad]

Yes, I agree with you

[LimitedBenefits101]

And how would you know that?