New DNA analysis of remains belonging to direct descendants of Christopher Columbus might have uncovered information about the explorer that could change the history books. For centuries, it has been believed that Columbus – the man who discovered America in 1492 – was Italian, with historians asserting he was born in Genoa. However, thanks to this scientific discovery, it is now being suggested that Columbus might not have been from Italy at all and was actually Spanish, hailing from Galicia in the northwest of the country.
Further analysis has also indicated that Columbus did not come from the humble beginnings previously suggested, but was instead of noble blood. The preprint study, conducted by experts at the Citogen laboratory and the Complutense University of Madrid, claims that Columbus, believed to have been born in 1451, may have descended from the Sotomayors, one of the most influential families in Galicia at the time.
Genetic Links to Spanish Nobility
After testing the DNA of 12 people buried in the Counts of Gelves family crypt in Spain, researchers have pointed to the explorer having ancestral links with Pedro Alvarez de Sotomayor, a powerful 15th-century feudal lord also known as Pedro Madruga. The possible connection between Columbus and Madruga emerged after two individuals exhumed from the crypt were found to share genetic material despite having no known historical link. These were Jorge Alberto de Portugal, the third Count of Gelves and a documented descendant of Columbus, and Maria de Castro Giron de Portugal, a Galician noblewoman with ties to the Spanish aristocracy.
Experts, who used more than 10,000 genetic markers and a computer model tracing 16 generations of family history, suggested that Pedro Madruga was the most likely shared ancestor. To further support their findings, they confirmed that the genetic link to Columbus disappeared when Madruga was removed from the deconstructed family tree.
Linguistic and Heraldic Clues
In addition to the genetic evidence, Columbus's writings contain syntax typical of Galician-Portuguese, and a linguistics expert from Georgetown University in Washington DC has suggested his primary language was Castilian, spoken in northern and central Spain, noting that he never wrote anything in the Genoese language of Ligurian. Others have pointed out that gold rings featured on his coat of arms hint at links to the Sotomayors. Proponents of the theory that Columbus was Galician also argue that the Spanish version of his surname, Colon, is documented in the region's Pontevedra estuary.
However, the researchers state that the study is not conclusive, as it has yet to be peer reviewed and did not include a comparison of the DNA samples with Columbus's own DNA. This is not the first time the historical figure's origins have been questioned. History books traditionally suggest Columbus came from humble beginnings as the son of a wool weaver in Genoa, later serving in the Portuguese merchant navy and marrying a Portuguese woman of aristocratic but modest means.
After being refused support by the Portuguese crown to fund a transatlantic voyage, he moved to Spain in 1485, eventually securing funding from monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella. While his will gives his place of birth as Genoa, contemporaries – especially many in Spain – never referred to him as Italian, and the will's authenticity was questioned during a legal dispute between his heirs.
Other theories have proposed that Columbus was Portuguese, arguing that he could not have married an aristocrat from that country if he were not. Some have claimed he was the son of a Scottish family living in Genoa, while others suggest he was the secret son of a Polish king, or Norwegian, Sardinian, Greek Byzantine, Corsican, or even Swedish. Whether or not the new study provides conclusive proof of his origins, it appears this debate will continue to fascinate history enthusiasts.
