What if?

If Columbus hadn't made his historical voyages, what would have been the name of our continent?

The western hemisphere was bound to be discovered eventually. Portuguese sailors, looking for a route to Asia by rounding Africa, reported glimpses of what might have been land, right around where it turned out Brazil was.

Related, what is the latest the discovery of the western hemisphere might have taken place?

Also related. Columbus didn't set out to prove the Earth is round (everyone who mattered knew it was), but to prove the Earth to be small. He was wrong.

The name "America" seems unlikely as it is. Who didnt want to call it "Columbia" ???

Columbus could have beat "somebody else" by as much as 2 decades, for an uneducated guess.

btw, I don't think much of the revisionist idea that somebody else should be credited, although back in my day they could have been more honest and said C. discovered America for the Western World of the time [ just putting it as " he discovered America" is how it was done back then]. But true revisionism has to go back to whatever group came over the land bridge from Asia [Russia] which gets a little silly.

Cape Verde was discovered in 1456 and colonized in 1462. Pedro Álvares Cabral first visited Brazil in 1500. As the distance over open water is just over 1400 nautical miles to the closest point of land. In theory a ship that knew where it was going could make 100 nautical miles per day in that century. Two weeks at sea was pretty standard.

I suppose it was because of the currents, but logically you would think that Brazil would have been the first discovery. Columbus's voyage was almost twice as long.

Turtle Island.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turtle_Island_(North_America)

It's not exactly grand, but hey, not my culture either. However Ben Franklin suggested the turkey as the national bird.

Quote: odiousgambit

The name "America" seems unlikely as it is. Who didnt want to call it "Columbia" ???

Largely because Columbus died believing that he was travelling to Asia. Amerigo Vespucci was the first to call it a "new world" so he ended up getting the credit.
BTW it is not an absolute certainty the America is based on Amerigo, it is just the most likely explanation.

To be politically correct you say Columbus discovered the route to the Americas. That way you give proper credit to the Vikings and Leif Eriksson. Also you don't devalue the culture of the 40-50 million people (some say it was much more) who were descendants of the people who crossed the Bering Land by bridge by implying that they didn't exist before they were "discovered". At the time Europe had just over 80 million people.

The big change in world history was the 2nd voyage of Columbus, which meant that people could do it again and again. He came with 17 ships with 1,200 men and the supplies to establish permanent colonies in the New World.

If John Cabot had not drowned on his second voyage, there may have been an English colony that rivaled the Spanish empire in size by the 18th century. As it happened, the English were 116 years later than the Spaniards in establishing a lasting colony.

The distance from Ireland to Newfoundland is only 1600-1700 nm, but it is at latitudes from 47-53 degrees.

Quote: Nareed

If Columbus hadn't made his historical voyages, what would have been the name of our continent?

The western hemisphere was bound to be discovered eventually. Portuguese sailors, looking for a route to Asia by rounding Africa, reported glimpses of what might have been land, right around where it turned out Brazil was.

Related, what is the latest the discovery of the western hemisphere might have taken place?

Also related. Columbus didn't set out to prove the Earth is round (everyone who mattered knew it was), but to prove the Earth to be small. He was wrong.

America.

The continent was name after Amerigo Vespucci, who made one or more voyages in the 1497-1510 time frame. Columbus may have been first, but plenty of folks were looking around already.

I don't think the discovery of the New World was going to be held of for long is Columbus hadn't done his thing.

The Vikings clearly landed on the shores of Eastern Canada.
Its possible the Ancient Greeks described the Bay of Fundy.

No claims were made or settlements established... I don't know about names for the areas discovered. What's Plunderland in Icelandic?

Catholics did not want English settlements ... and there is some evidence that wine was poisoned at Jamestown.

So New World or New Amsterdam ... it makes little difference.