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Crazy discovery throws accepted Christopher Columbus origin theory into question
A documentary shown this Saturday on Spanish TV proposed a new theory on the origins of the admiral who arrived in America: he was a Jew.
Despite numerous theories, it has long been accepted that Christopher Columbus hailed from the Italian city of Genoa. However, this belief about the navigator’s origins may now be disproven, thanks to research conducted by the University of Granada.
José Antonio Lorente, a forensic scientist and professor of Legal Medicine, began an investigation 22 years ago to uncover Columbus’s mysterious origin. Along with his team, Lorente confirmed that the remains interred in Seville Cathedral belong to the “Admiral of the Ocean Sea.” Based on this, they were able to delve into his past and trace his roots to the Mediterranean coast, then under the rule of the Crown of Aragon.
Where was Christopher Columbus from? Was he from Genoa?
The research suggests that Columbus was of Sephardic Jewish and Aragonese descent. After years of analysing DNA samples, Lorente’s team supported one of many theories about Columbus’s origin, concluding that he was Jewish and from the western Mediterranean, specifically the coasts of Valencia, Catalonia, or the Balearic Islands—contradicting the widespread belief that he was born in Genoa.
This theory, which claims Columbus was born in Aragonese territory, was previously defended by Francesc Albardaner, who argued that Columbus was Jewish and therefore could not have been Genoese, as there was no Jewish community in Genoa at that time.
Columbus likely concealed his Jewish heritage, fearing it would hinder his plans. In 15th-century Castile, anti-Jewish sentiment was rising, and Jews were viewed with increasing suspicion, especially by the lower classes. This distrust culminated in the expulsion of the Jews on March 31, 1492, just months before Columbus set sail for the Indies.
Further evidence against Columbus’s Italian origins is his lack of use of the Italian language. In all his letters, even those addressed to Italians, he consistently wrote in Spanish, not Italian, which would have been his mother tongue if he were Genoese.
Professor Lorente has confirmed that the findings are conclusive, and that the remains used to compare DNA profiles are definitively those of the man who arrived in America on October 12, 1492. The mystery has taken another turn.