was america discovered before colombus?

Answer 1

When we say 'discovered', we usually have a very special meaning in mind.We mean that people from one civilization came to a region where no one from their place had been before. As you know,an explorer often finds people and a civilaztion already living in the place he discovers . Why not say these people discovered it before him?
From our western civilzation point of view, we say that Colombus discovered America. This is because after his discovery the New World he found began to be visited
and finally populated from the Old World. But 500 years before Colombus was born, the Norsemen did a bit of discovering too. They sailed west to discover Iceland, then Greenland, and later the American mainland.
Did you know that the Chinese tell of an even earlier voyage by Chinese sailors to discover what has become california? And people of the South Sea Islands still sing of the great men of their distant past who sailed to South america long before the white man reached either South america or the South Sea Islands.
For all we know, there may have been many ages of exploration thousands of years ago. There were certainly ages of exploration before the time of Colombus. Perhaps we might say that neither Colombus , nor the Norsemen before him, discovered America. Weren't the indians already living here for many centuries before the white man arrived.
And who can say that they didn't set out on a voyage of discovery? It is believed that they came from asia, though we don't know when or how they made the trip. Probably they reached over a period of centuries and by diff routes. They also probably sent their scouts ahead to seek out routes by land or sea. These scouts were their explorers, and perhaps it was really they who discoverd america!!

Answer 2

Certainly.

The emperor Zhu Di, ordered his sailing fleet to sea and it appears that they found North America in 1421, some 70 years before Columbus. However, once it was discovered, China went through a change, retreated from exploration and even went so far as to destroy their fleet. The result was that no colonization or further exploration from China seems to have occured.

Before the Chinese were the Vikings. Leif Erikson, son of Eirik Thorvaldsson (Eirik the Red), found North America and started a colony. It apparently lasted a few years with them sailing to/from Greenland and Iceland. This is someone that the discoverer can be attributed to.. http://www.mnc.net/norway/ericson.htm. Since they reported their discovery, returned, and formed a colony, this seems to be a "true" discovery. Finding something and not reporting or using that knowledge seems pointless and not much of a discovery.

However, at the time of Leif Erikson's "discovery", there were native people living throughout the continent. These "native americans" would certainly be the "original" discoverers. Since the native americans had no written language, there is no recorded event concerning the discovery or giving anyone credit. This may have occured as much as 10,000 years ago. The archeological record seems to be uncertain and new finds keep pushing back the dates.

One interesting concept, is "when does history" begin. History through Europe differs from country to country. One factor is that as the Romans conquered, they brought with them writing, and thus starts recorded "history." The Chinese have a recorded history dating back some 5,000 years.

So, was America discovered before Columbus? Certainly. Can a person or people be named/credited with the first discovery? Not at this time. The earliest record, providing a name was Leif Erikson, but he certainly was not the first.

Answer 3

Let me add a detail no one has mentioned.

There is a curious stone village in N. Salem, NH, the origins of which no archeologists have been able to identify. Native Americans and Vikings have both been ruled out. It appears to be Mediterranean... but it is so old that there is no corroberating evidence of any kind. One sample was carbon-dated at more than 1500 years b.p. So yes, clearly someone was here long before the Vikings...but who were they?

Here's a link:
http://www.unmuseum.org/mysthill.htm

Answer 4

yes they found viking settlements in newfoundland dating to before colombus by 100 years

Answer 5

Certainly, thousands of years before by people who proceded to populate the continents of North and South America. We call them native Americans.

Answer 6

Probably by Vikings coming across a land bridge where the ocean now exists.

Answer 7

from what i understand, the Chinese admiral CHENG HO (or Zhenghe in some history books) passed by the American shores on his way to Calicut in India 70 years before Christopher Columbus discovered America.

Answer 8

No, columbus had been discovered some months before his birth, by his mother.

Answer 9

cap'n has it right. the vikings were here long before colombus.

Answer 10

Yes... By Moronai.