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posthumous portrait of Christopher Columbus c. 1519, by Sebastiano del Piombo, oil on canvas, 00.18.2, Metropolitan Museum of Art, online collection (The Met object ID 437645)
Birth Name: Cristoforo Colombo
Date of Birth: 25 August-31 October, 1451
Place of Birth: Genoa, Republic of Genoa (now Italy)
Date of Death: 20 May, 1506
Place of Death: Valladolid, Crown of Castile (now Spain)
Ethnicity: Italian
Christopher Columbus was an Italian explorer, navigator, and colonizer. While attempting to reach India from Europe via the Atlantic Ocean, under the auspices of the Spanish monarchs, he discovered America; although he was not the first European to reach the continent. This led to the colonization of the Americas by western European countries. He was Governor of the Indies, from 1492 to 1499.
Christopher was the son of Susanna (Fontanarossa) and Domenico Colombo. His father was born in Genoa, Italy. His mother was born in Bisagno, Italy. He was married to Portuguese noblewoman Filipa Moniz Perestrelo, until her death. He had a son, navigator and explorer Diego Columbus, with Filipa; and a son, bibliographer and cosmographer Ferdinand Columbus, with his partner Beatriz Enríquez de Arana. Diego was Admiral of the Indies, from 1506 to 1526, Governor of the Indies, from 1509 to 1518, Duke of Veragua, 1st Marquess of Jamaica, from 1509 to 1526; and Viceroy of the Indies, from 1511 to 1526.
Cristopher’s paternal grandfather was named Giovanni Colombo (the son of Lucas Colombo). Giovanni was born in Chiavari, Italy. Lucas was the son of Antonio Colombo.
Christopher’s paternal grandmother was born in Quinto, Italy.
Christopher’s maternal grandfather was named Giacomo Fontanarrosa. Giacomo was born in Bisagno, Italy.
Christopher’s religion was Roman Catholic.
Christopher is sometimes speculated to have been of Jewish origin. It is not clear if this is accurate. His ancestry has also sometimes been speculated to have been Greek, Portuguese, Polish, and/or Catalan, among others.
A DNA study appears to have found that Christopher had Galician roots, and was a descendant of Galician nobleman Pedro Álvarez de Sotomayor/Pedro Madruga.
Sources: https://www.euronews.com
Genealogy of Christopher Columbus – http://www.geni.com