The question of who really discovered America first is complex and depends on the definition of "discovery." The first humans to inhabit the Americas were Indigenous peoples who migrated over the Bering Land Bridge from Asia tens of thousands of years ago, with archaeological evidence suggesting human presence in parts of North America at least 14,000 years ago, and possibly much earlier. Among Europeans, the Norse explorer Leif Erikson and his crew reached parts of North America, specifically the area known today as Newfoundland, around the year 1000 A.D., about 500 years before Christopher Columbus's voyage in 1492. Archaeological evidence of Norse settlements at L’Anse aux Meadows supports the sagas of Erikson's exploration. Christopher Columbus is often credited with "discovering" America in 1492, but he actually landed in the Caribbean islands, not on the mainland of North America, and was unaware he had found a continent previously unknown to Europeans. Columbus's voyages were significant for opening sustained contact between Europe and the Americas, eventually leading to widespread colonization. Thus, the "discovery" depends on perspective:
- Indigenous peoples were the original discoverers and inhabitants of America tens of thousands of years ago.
- Leif Erikson and the Vikings were the first known Europeans to set foot on North American soil around 1000 A.D.
- Columbus's 1492 voyage marked the beginning of permanent European engagement with America.
In summary, Indigenous peoples discovered and inhabited America first, Vikings like Leif Erikson were the first known Europeans to reach it, and Columbus was the European explorer whose voyages initiated lasting transatlantic contact and colonization.
