Where was Christopher Columbus born? New study

Many historians have questioned the traditional theory that Columbus came from Genoa, Italy. Others assumed he was a Spanish Jew or Greek, Basque, Portuguese or British. To solve the mystery, investigators conducted an investigation led by forensic expert Miguel Lorente.

The research began in 2003. They tested tiny samples of remains buried in the Seville cathedral, long considered by local authorities to be the final resting place of Columbus.

The results were compared with those of known relatives and descendants, and their findings were announced Saturday in the documentary “Columbus DNA: The True Origin” broadcast on Spain's TVE. Miguel Lorente admitted on air that he compared Columbus's results with the materials of his son Hernando Colon, stating that Colon's DNA “contains features consistent with Jewish origin.”

– Both Hernando's Y chromosome (male) and mitochondrial DNA (passed on from his mother) contain features consistent with Jewish origins – said the researcher. After analyzing 25 possible places, Lorente concluded that Columbus could only have been born in Western Europe. He thinks he probably lived in Valencia and was Jewish. According to Lorente, he hid his origins to avoid persecution. DNA research contradicts the traditional theory, disputed by many historians, that the discoverer was an Italian from Genoa.

About 300,000 practicing Jews lived in Spain before, in 1492, the same year that Columbus reached the Americas, they were ordered, like Muslims, to either convert to Catholicism or leave the country. The explorer died in Valladolid, Spain in 1506, but wanted to be buried on the island of Hispaniola, which is now home to the Dominican Republic and Haiti. His remains were transported there in 1542, then moved to Cuba in 1795, and from there – as was long believed in Spain – to Seville in 1898.