Origin theories of Christopher Columbus

The exact ethnic or national origin of Christopher Columbus (1451-1506) has been a source of speculation since the 19th century. It is generally agreed upon by historians that Columbus' family was from the coastal region of Liguria, that he spent his boyhood and early youth in the Republic of Genoa, in Genoa, in Vico Diritto, and that he subsequently lived in Savona, where his father Domenico moved in 1470. Much of this evidence derives from data concerning Columbus' immediate family connections in Genoa and opinions voiced by contemporaries concerning his Genoese origins, which few dispute.

In a 1498 deed of primogeniture, Columbus writes:

Siendo yo nacido en Genova... de ella salí y en ella naci...

Many historians, including a distinguished Spanish scholar, Altolaguirre, affirm the document's authenticity; others believe it apocryphal. Some believe that the fact that it was produced in court, during a lawsuit among the heirs of Columbus, in 1578, does not strengthen the case for it being genuine.

A letter from Columbus, dated 2 April 1502, to the Bank of Saint George, the oldest and most reputable of Genoa's financial institutions, begins with the words:

Bien que el coerpo ande aca el coracon esta ali de continuo...

Although a few people consider this letter suspect, the vast majority of scholars believe it genuine. The most scrupulous examination by graphologists testifies in favour of authenticity. The letter is one of a group of documents entrusted by Columbus to a Genoese friend, after the bitter experiences of his third voyage, before setting out on his fourth.

In the spring of 1502, the Admiral collected notarized copies of all the writings concerned with his rights to the discovery of new lands. He sent these documents to Nicolò Oderico, ambassador of the Republic of Genoa. To this same Oderico he handed over the letter to the Bank of Saint George, in which he announced that he was leaving the bank one-tenth of his income, with a recommendation for his son Diego. Oderico returned to Genoa and delivered the letter to the bank, which replied, on 8 December 1502 lauding the gesture of their "renowned fellow-citizen" towards his "native land". The reply, unfortunately, never reached its destination; the Admiral, back in Castile after his fourth voyage, complained about this in another letter to Ambassador Oderico, dated 27 December 1504, and promptly annulled the bequest.

So we have four documents: the first preserved in the archives of the Bank of Saint George until, when it was taken over by the municipality of Genoa, the other three in the Oderico family archives until 1670, then donated to the Republic of Genoa. After the fall of the Republic, they passed to the library of one of its last senators, Michele Cambiaso, and were finally acquired by the city of Genoa. There are also public and notarial acts (more than a hundred) — copies of which are conserved in the archives of Genoa and Savona — regarding Columbus's father, Columbus himself, his grandfather, and his relatives.

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