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Spanish Explorer Amerigo Vespucci

Science / Explorer Dateline:  March 9

The continent of America was named after Amerigo Vespucci.


Amerigo Vespucci (1454-1512), born on March 9, 1454, In Florence, Italy, was the Spanish explorer after whom the continent of America was named. His name has been Latinized as "Americus."  He was a contractor in Seville from 1495 to 1498, and provisioned one or two of the expeditions of Christopher Columbus, the navigator, explorer and colonizer from Genoa, Italy.

He was not a navigator himself but promoted an expedition to the New World commanded by Alonso de Hojeda and sailed there in his own ship, in which he explored the coast of Venezuela. He was naturalized in Spain in 1508, he was appointed pilot-major of Spain.

Christopher Columbus may have received credit for the discovery of the Americas, but it was Amerigo Vespucci who corrected Columbus's mistaken belief that his discoveries were part of Asia. It was also Vespucci who stated that the Americas were a "New World."

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