Columbus Day History
Каждый год во второй понедельник октября в США
отмечают день открытия Колумбом Америки.
Origins of Columbus Day
A U.S. national
holiday since 1937, Columbus Day commemorates the arrival of Christopher
Columbus in the New World on October 12, 1492. The Italian-born explorer had
set sail two months earlier, backed by the Spanish monarchs King Ferdinand and
Queen Isabella. He intended to chart a western sea route to China, India and
the fabled gold and spice islands of Asia; instead, he landed in the Bahamas,
becoming the first European to explore the Americas since the Vikings set up
colonies in Greenland and Newfoundland during the 10th century.
