A fresh genetic study has cast a new light on the origins of the famed explorer, Christopher Columbus, suggesting that he was not Italian or Catholic as traditionally believed, but a Sephardic Jew likely from Spain.
This revelation comes after a prolonged investigation into Columbus's background, led by Spanish scientists, aimed at resolving the long-standing debate about the birthplace of the 15th-century adventurer.
According to the New York Post, conventional theories have always maintained that Columbus, who sparked European interest in the Americas with his 1492 voyage across the Atlantic under the Spanish flag, was born in 1451 in Genoa, a sovereign republic on Italy's northwest coast. However, this belief has been challenged by many historians, and recent DNA evidence extracted from Columbus's remains in Spain's Seville Cathedral appears to corroborate their skepticism.
"We have DNA from Christopher Columbus, very partial but sufficient," declared Miguel Lorente, a forensic expert and the leader of the investigation, in a documentary titled "Columbus DNA: The true origin," which aired in Spain. "We have DNA from Hernando Coln, his son. And both in the Y [male] chromosome and in the mitochondrial DNA [from the mother] of Hernando there are traits compatible with Jewish origin," Lorente added.
While the researchers could not definitively pinpoint Columbus's birthplace, they surmise it was likely in Western Europe, possibly the Spanish city of Valencia. They further speculate that Columbus either concealed his Jewish identity or converted to Catholicism to evade religious persecution.
This groundbreaking discovery is the culmination of nearly 22 years of research that commenced in 2003 when Lorente, a professor of forensic medicine at Granada University, and historian Marcial Castro exhumed Columbus's partial remains from the cathedral. For centuries, nations have disputed his origin, with myriad theories proposing that he was born in Poland, Great Britain, Greece, Portugal, Hungary, or even Scandinavia. However, these conjectures, including the novel idea of a Viking Columbus, seem to have been debunked.
"The DNA-driven results are 'almost absolutely reliable,'" Lorente affirmed. The findings align with historical records from that period, which indicate that approximately 300,000 Jews resided in Spain before Catholic monarchs Isabella and Ferdinand decreed that Jews and Muslims must either convert to Catholicism or leave. Many chose to relocate across the globe rather than renounce their faith. The term Sephardic originates from Sefarad, the Hebrew word for Spain.
Columbus's renown is rooted in his four voyages to the Americas, expeditions sponsored by Spanish monarchs in search of a new route to Asia. However, he inadvertently landed on the Caribbean islands, triggering a new epoch of exploration that led to the settlement and conquest of the New World. This era was also marked by the tragic demise of millions of indigenous people due to European diseases and conflicts with European invaders.
Columbus passed away in Valladolid, Spain, in 1506, expressing a desire to be interred on the island of Hispaniola, which is presently divided between the Dominican Republic and Haiti. His remains were transported there in 1542, then partially moved to Cuba in 1795 and finally to Seville in 1898.
Columbus's legacy is not without controversy, primarily due to his brutal treatment of the indigenous populations in the Americas. Reports suggest that his men mutilated natives in Haiti and the Dominican Republic who failed to produce gold every three months. His crew also reportedly amputated the legs of native children who attempted to escape and participated in the sex trafficking of young girls. These revelations have significantly altered perceptions of the explorer, with many advocating for the renaming of his holiday, celebrated on the second Monday of October, to "Indigenous People's Day."
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