Editing Christopher Columbus (section)

== Early life ==
{{further|Origin theories of Christopher Columbus}}

[[File:Casa di Colombo Genova foto 2.jpg|thumb|left|[[Christopher Columbus House]] in [[Genoa]], Italy, an 18th-century reconstruction of the house in which Columbus grew up. The original was likely destroyed during the 1684 [[bombardment of Genoa]].<ref>{{cite book |title=Una Giornata nella Città |trans-title=A Day in the City |first1=Corinna |last1=Praga |first2=Laura |last2=Monac |publisher=Sagep Editrice |location=Genoa |year=1992 |page=14 |language=it}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=http://www.ortidicarignano.it/files/seiitinerariinportoria.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://www.ortidicarignano.it/files/seiitinerariinportoria.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |url-status=live |chapter=Casa di Colombo |first1=Alfredo |last1=Preste |author2=Alessandro Torti |author3=Remo Viazzi |title=Sei itinerari in Portoria |publisher=Grafiche Frassicomo |trans-title=Six itineraries in Portoria |location=Genova |year=1997 |language=it}}</ref>]]

Columbus's early life is obscure, but scholars believe he was born in the [[Republic of Genoa]] between 25 August and 31 October 1451.<ref name="Edwards2014">{{cite book |last1=Edwards |first1=J. |title=Ferdinand and Isabella |date=2014 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-317-89345-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pnHJAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA118 |page=118}}</ref> His father was [[Domenico Colombo]], a wool weaver who worked in Genoa and [[Savona]], and owned a cheese stand at which young Christopher worked. His mother was [[Susanna Fontanarossa]].{{sfn|Phillips|Phillips|1992|p=91}} He had three brothers—[[Bartholomew Columbus|Bartholomew]], Giovanni Pellegrino, and Giacomo (also called Diego)<ref>{{Cite NIE |title=Columbus, Diego (brother) |display=Columbus, Diego. The youngest brother of Christopher Columbus}}{{snd}}the names ''[[Giacomo]]'' and ''[[Diego]]'' are [[cognates]], along with ''[[James (name)|James]]'', all sharing a common origin. See ''Behind the Name'', Mike Campbell, pages [http://www.behindthename.com/name/Giacomo Giacomo], [http://www.behindthename.com/name/diego Diego], and [http://www.behindthename.com/name/james James]. All retrieved 3 February 2017.</ref>—as well as a sister, Bianchinetta.{{sfn|Bergreen|2011|ref=none|p=56}} Bartholomew ran a [[cartography]] workshop in [[Lisbon]] for at least part of his adulthood.<ref name="King2021">{{cite book |last1=King |first1=Ross |title=The Bookseller of Florence: The Story of the Manuscripts That Illuminated the Renaissance |year=2021 |publisher=Atlantic Monthly Press |isbn=978-0-8021-5853-6 |page=264 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FoskEAAAQBAJ&pg=PT264}}</ref>

His native language is presumed to have been a [[Genoese dialect]] ([[Ligurian language|Ligurian]]) as his first language, though Columbus probably never wrote in it.{{sfn|Phillips|Phillips|1992|p=96}} His name in 15th-century Genoese was ''Cristoffa Corombo'',<ref name="Galante2022">{{cite book |last1=Galante |first1=John Starosta |title=On the Other Shore: The Atlantic Worlds of Italians in South America During the Great War |year=2022 |publisher=Univ of Nebraska Press |isbn=978-1-4962-2958-8 |page=13 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fapJEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA13}} {{IPA|lij|kriˈʃtɔffa kuˈɹuŋbu}} {{cite book |author=Consulta Ligure |title=Vocabolario delle parlate liguri |trans-title=Vocabulary of Ligurian Speech: Specialized Vocabulary |publisher=Sage |year=1982 |isbn=978-8-8705-8044-0 |language=it}}</ref> in Italian, {{lang|it|Cristoforo Colombo}}, and in Spanish {{lang|es|Cristóbal Colón}}.<ref name="SánchezGuruléBroughton1990">{{cite book |last1=Sánchez |first1=Joseph P. |last2=Gurulé |first2=Jerry L. |last3=Broughton |first3=William H. |title=Bibliografia Colombina, 1492–1990: Books, Articles and Other Publications on the Life and Times of Christopher Columbus |year=1990 |publisher=National Park Service, Spanish Colonial Research Center |page=ix |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vw60dj9PV10C&pg=PR9}}</ref><ref name="Bedini2016">{{cite book |last1=Bedini |first1=Silvio A. |editor1-last=Bedini |editor1-first=Silvio A. |title=The Christopher Columbus Encyclopedia |year=2016 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-1-349-12573-9 |page=viii |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gmmMCwAAQBAJ&pg=PR8}}</ref>

In one of his writings, Columbus says he went to sea at 14.{{sfn|Phillips|Phillips|1992|p=96}} In 1470, the family moved to [[Savona]], where Domenico took over a tavern. Some modern authors have argued that he was not from Genoa, but from the [[Aragon]] region of Spain<ref name="Wilgus1973">{{cite book |last1=Wilgus |first1=Alva Curtis |title=Latin America, 1492–1942: A Guide to Historical and Cultural Development Before World War II |year=1973 |publisher=Scarecrow |isbn=978-0-8108-0595-8 |page=71 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PZoWAAAAYAAJ&q=%22New%20theories%22}}</ref> or from Portugal.<ref>{{in lang|pt}} "Armas e Troféus." Revista de História, Heráldica, Genealogia e Arte. 1994, VI serie – Tomo VI, pp. 5–52. Retrieved 21 November 2011.{{verify source|date=June 2020}}</ref> These competing hypotheses have been discounted by most scholars.{{sfn|Davidson|1997|p=3}}{{sfn|Phillips|Phillips|1992|p=85}}

[[File:Castello d'Albertis-DSCF5494.JPG|thumb|upright=0.8|''{{lang|it|Colombo giovinetto}}'', sculpture of young Columbus by [[Giulio Monteverde]], Genoa]]
In 1473, Columbus began his apprenticeship as business agent for the wealthy [[Spinola family|Spinola]], Centurione, and Di Negro families of Genoa.<ref name="Lyon1992">{{cite book |last1=Lyon |first1=Eugene |editor1-last=McGovern |editor1-first=James R. |title=The World of Columbus |year=1992 |publisher=Mercer University Press |isbn=978-0-86554-414-7 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3mOh34X6UY8C&pg=PA90 |pages=90–91 |chapter=Navigation and Ships in the Age of Columbus}}</ref> Later, he made a trip to the Greek island [[Chios]] in the [[Aegean Sea]], then ruled by Genoa.{{sfn|Phillips|Phillips|1992|p=93}} In May 1476, he took part in an armed convoy sent by Genoa to carry valuable cargo to northern Europe. He probably visited [[Bristol]], England,<ref name="Vigneras2016">{{cite book |last1=Vigneras |first1=L. A. |editor1-last=Bedini |editor1-first=Silvio A. |title=The Christopher Columbus Encyclopedia |date=2016 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-1-349-12573-9 |page=175 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gmmMCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA175 |chapter=Columbus in Portugal |quote=It is most probable that Columbus visited Bristol, where he was introduced to English commerce with Iceland.}}</ref> and [[Galway]], Ireland,<ref name="UrelandClarkson2011">{{cite book |last1=Ureland |first1=P. Sture |editor1-last=Ureland |editor1-first=P. Sture |editor2-last=Clarkson |editor2-first=Iain |title=Language Contact across the North Atlantic: Proceedings of the Working Groups held at the University College, Galway (Ireland), 1992 and the University of Göteborg (Sweden), 1993 |year=2011 |publisher=Walter de Gruyter |isbn=978-3-11-092965-2 |page=14 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=O46ZKTUg2ogC&pg=PA14 |chapter=Introduction}}</ref> where he may have visited [[St. Nicholas' Collegiate Church]].<ref name="Graves1949">{{cite book |last1=Graves |first1=Charles |title=Ireland Revisited |year=1949 |publisher=Hutchinson |page=151 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DedQAQAAMAAJ&q=%22Christopher%20Columbus%22%20%22St.%20Nicholas%22%20%22Galway%22}}</ref> It has been speculated he went to [[Iceland]] in 1477, though many scholars doubt this.<ref name="Enterline2003">{{cite book |last1=Enterline |first1=James Robert |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=blJZYInNFkkC&pg=PT247 |title=Erikson, Eskimos & Columbus: Medieval European Knowledge of America |year=2003 |publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press |isbn=978-0-8018-7547-2 |page=247 |quote=Some writers have suggested that it was during this visit to Iceland that Columbus heard of land in the west. Keeping the source of his information secret, they say, he concocted a plan to sail westward. Certainly the knowledge was generally available without attending any saga-telling parties. That this knowledge reached Columbus seems unlikely, however, for later, when trying to get backing for his project, he went to great lengths to unearth even the slightest scraps of information that would add to the plausibility of his scheme. Knowledge of the Norse explorations could have helped.}}</ref><ref name="PaolucciPaolucci1992">{{cite book |last1=Paolucci |first1=Anne |last2=Paolucci |first2=Henry |author1-link=Anne Paolucci |title=Columbus, America, and the World |date=1992 |publisher=Council on National Literatures |isbn=978-0-918680-33-4 |page=140 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AhwWAQAAIAAJ&q=%221477%22 |quote=Many Columbists ... have doubted that Columbus could ever have gone to Iceland.}}</ref><ref name="Kolodny2012" /><ref name=":7">{{cite journal |last=Quinn |first=David B. |year=1992 |title=Columbus and the North: England, Iceland, and Ireland |journal=The William and Mary Quarterly |volume=49 |issue=2 |pages=278–297 |jstor=2947273 |issn=0043-5597}}</ref> It is known that in the autumn of 1477, he sailed on a Portuguese ship from Galway to Lisbon, where he found his brother Bartholomew, and they continued trading for the Centurione family. Columbus based himself in Lisbon from 1477 to 1485. In 1478, the Centuriones sent Columbus on a sugar-buying trip to Madeira.<ref name="Fernández-Armesto1991">{{cite book |last1=Fernández-Armesto |first1=Felipe |title=Columbus |year=1991 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-215898-7 |page=xvii |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NTwLAAAAYAAJ&q=%221478%20Sugar-buying%20trip%22}}</ref> He married [[Filipa Moniz Perestrelo|Felipa Perestrello e Moniz]], daughter of [[Bartolomeu Perestrello]], a Portuguese nobleman of [[Lombardy|Lombard]] origin,<ref name="FreitasManey1893">{{cite book |last1=Freitas |first1=Antonio Maria de |last2=Maney |first2=Regina |title=The Wife of Columbus: With Genealogical Tree of the Perestrello and Moniz Families |publisher=Stettinger, Lambert & Co |location=New York |year=1893 |url=https://archive.org/details/wifeofcolumbus00frei/page/32/mode/1up |page=32}}</ref> who had been the [[donatary captain]] of [[Porto Santo]].<ref name="Alessandrini2012">{{cite web |last1=Alessandrini |first1=Nunziatella |title=Os Perestrello: uma família de Piacenza no Império Português (século XVI) |trans-title=The Perestrellos: A Piacenza family in the Portuguese Empire (16th century) |url=https://www.academia.edu/6148469 |publisher=Universidade NOVA de Lisboa |location=Lisbon |page=90 |date=1 January 2012 |language=pt |trans-quote=Finally, the most famous son of Filippone, Bartolomeu Perestrello (I), who participated in the rediscovery of the island of Madeira in 1418, and was [[Captaincy|captain]] and {{lang|pt|feitor}} [administrator] of Porto Santo until, by a letter of 1 November 1446 from Infante Henrique, he became the first donatary captain of the island, a privilege that continued until the 19th century, with the last donatary captain Manuel da Câmara Bettencourt Perestrello in 1814.}}</ref>

[[File:Christopher Columbus.jpg|thumb|Portrait of Columbus by [[Aliprando Caprioli]]]]

In 1479 or 1480, Columbus's son [[Diego Columbus|Diego]] was born. Between 1482 and 1485, Columbus traded along the coasts of [[West Africa]], reaching the Portuguese trading post of [[Elmina]] at the [[Guinea coast]] in present-day [[Ghana]].<ref name="Suranyi2015">{{cite book |last1=Suranyi |first1=Anna |title=The Atlantic Connection: A History of the Atlantic World, 1450–1900 |year=2015 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-317-50066-7 |page=17 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=J6FhCQAAQBAJ&pg=PA17}}</ref> Before 1484, Columbus returned to Porto Santo to find that his wife had died.{{Sfn|Dyson|1991|p=63}} He returned to Portugal to settle her estate and take Diego with him.<ref name="Taviani2016">{{cite book |last1=Taviani |first1=Paolo Emilio |editor1-last=Bedini |editor1-first=Silvio A. |title=The Christopher Columbus Encyclopedia |year=2016 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-1-349-12573-9 |page=24 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gmmMCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA24 |chapter=Beatriz Arana}}</ref> He left Portugal for [[Castile (historical region)|Castile]] in 1485, where he took a mistress in 1487, a 20-year-old orphan named [[Beatriz Enríquez de Arana]].{{sfn|Phillips|Phillips|1992|p=126}} It is likely that Beatriz met Columbus when he was in [[Córdoba, Spain|Córdoba]], a gathering place for Genoese merchants and where the court of the [[Catholic Monarchs]] was located at intervals. Beatriz, unmarried at the time, gave birth to Columbus's second son, [[Fernando Columbus]], in July 1488, named for the monarch of Aragon. Columbus recognized the boy as his offspring. Columbus entrusted his older, legitimate son Diego to take care of Beatriz and pay the pension set aside for her following his death, but Diego was negligent in his duties.<ref>Taviani, "Beatriz Arana" in ''The Christopher Columbus Encyclopedia'', vol. 1, pp. 24–25.</ref>

[[File:ColombusNotesToMarcoPolo.jpg|thumb|Columbus's copy of ''[[The Travels of Marco Polo]]'', with his handwritten notes in Latin in the margins]]

Columbus learned Latin, Portuguese, and Castilian. He read widely about astronomy, geography, and history, including the works of [[Ptolemy]], [[Pierre d'Ailly]]'s ''{{lang|la|Imago Mundi}}'', the travels of [[Marco Polo]] and [[Sir John Mandeville]], [[Pliny the Elder|Pliny]]'s ''[[Natural History (Pliny)|Natural History]]'', and [[Pope Pius II]]'s ''{{lang|la|[[Historia rerum ubique gestarum]]}}''. According to historian [[Edmund Morgan (historian)|Edmund Morgan]],
<blockquote>Columbus was not a scholarly man. Yet he studied these books, made hundreds of marginal notations in them and came out with ideas about the world that were characteristically simple and strong and sometimes wrong&nbsp;...<ref name="ESMorgan">{{cite news |last1=Morgan |first1=Edmund S. |author-link=Edmund Morgan (historian) |title=Columbus' Confusion About the New World |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/columbus-confusion-about-the-new-world-140132422/ |magazine=[[Smithsonian Magazine]] |date=October 2009}}</ref></blockquote>