Voyages of Columbus

Christopher Columbus (Italian: Cristoforo Colombo; Spanish: Cristóbal Colón) made four voyages from Spain to the Caribbean from 1492 to 1503. Though he neither discovered the Americas (as they were already inhabited by indigenous peoples) nor made the first crossing of the Atlantic (the Vikings reached North America 500 years earlier), his voyages had an enormous impact on world history, and started the so-called "Age of Discovery" and European colonialism. He also started the Transatlantic slave trade.

In any case, different forms of the name Columbus (such as his Spanish name Colón) are used for several places in the Americas, including the nation of Colombia. The currency of Costa Rica (and of El Salvador from 1892 to 2001) is the "colón".

Columbus and his men also committed genocides of the indigenous peoples, and forced many indigenous women into sexual slavery. Long overlooked in mainstream Western historical chronicles, the dark side of his legacy is beginning to come to light again and be further explored since the early 2010s.