The 15th century explorer Christopher Columbus was a Sephardic Jew from Western Europe, according to an announcement made by Spanish scientists on Saturday (12), after using DNA analysis to solve the centuries-old mystery.
Several countries have already debated the origins and final burial place of the controversial figure who led expeditions financed by Spain from the 1490s onwards, paving the way for the European conquest of the Americas.
Several historians have already questioned the traditional theory that Columbus came from Genoa, Italy. Other theories have even suggested that he could be a Spanish, Greek, Basque, Portuguese or British Jew.
To solve the mystery, researchers conducted a 22-year investigation, led by forensic expert Miguel Lorente, testing small samples of remains buried in Seville Cathedral, long defined by authorities as the last resting place of Columbusalthough there have been claims to the contrary.
They compared these samples with those of known relatives and descendants and the results were released in the documentary titled “DNA from Columbus: The true origin “, broadcast by the Spanish national broadcaster TVE on Saturday (12).
About 300,000 Jews lived in Spain before the “Catholic Monarchs,” the Catholic monarchs Elizabeth and Ferdinand, ordered Jews and Muslims to convert to the Catholic faith or leave the country. Many have settled around the world. The word Sephardic comes from Sefarad, or Spain in Hebrew.
After analyzing 25 possible locations, Lorente said that it was only possible to say that Columbus Born in Western Europe.
On Thursday (10), Lorente said they had confirmed previous theories that the remains in Seville Cathedral belonged to Columbus.
Research into the nationality of Columbus was complicated by a number of factors, including the large amount of data. But “the result is almost absolutely reliable,” said Lorente.
Columbus he died in Valladolid, Spain, in 1506, but wished to be buried on the island of Hispaniola, which is now shared by the Dominican Republic and Haiti. His remains were taken there in 1542, then transferred to Cuba in 1795 and then, as had long been thought in Spain, to Seville in 1898.
*Reporting by Graham Keeley
This content was originally published in Scientists discover origin of Christopher Columbus after DNA analysis on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
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