Christopher Columbus Was Not His Real Name

Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus, oil painting, said to be the most accurate likeness of the explorer, attributed to Ridolfo del Ghirlandaio, c. 1525.
The Granger Collection, New York
Although Columbus remains a prominent historical figure around the world and has been researched and written about for centuries, there are many details of his life that are still a mystery. Many scholars agree that he was born in Genoa, which is now part of Italy, although there are theories that he may have originated in Spain or even in Poland or Greece. In Italian he is known as Cristoforo Colombo, which was long thought to be his birth name, and in Span