Naming of the Americas
Origin of the name of the continents, most likely named after Amerigo Vespucci
Naming of the Americas
The naming of the Americas occurred shortly after Christopher Columbus's death in 1506. The earliest known use of the name America dates to April 25, 1507, when it was applied to what is now known as South America by German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller for his world map now known as Waldseemüller map. It is generally accepted that he derived the "America" nomenclature from the name of Amerigo Vespucci, an Italian explorer, who explored the two continents on behalf of Spain and Portugal. Vespucci was at the time a popular author about his explorations of what he called the "New World". However, some have suggested other explanations, including being named after the Amerrisque mountain range in Nicaragua, or after Richard Amerike, a merchant from Bristol, England.
Read on Wikipedia · Image Martin Waldseemüller, Public domain
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