Columbus Day (Columbus Day): the history of the festival

On the second Monday of October the United States celebrate Columbus Day (Columbus Day). The ratio for this holiday had the ambiguous: as a symbol of the spread of Western civilization, the indigenous population of Colombia has become rather a harbinger of the destruction of their world. It is for this reason that Columbus Day on the streets of the United States are not only the parade, but the demonstration in which participants chanted slogans that Columbus was a murderer. Three US states of Hawaii, Alaska and South Dakota, do not recognize this holiday. In South Dakota, the second Monday in October — the Day of Native Americans (Native American Day).

Whatever it was, Columbus has become a legendary figure. Going in search of the shortest route to India, he opened the way for Western civilization to the New World and new trade routes, thereby changing the political map of the world. We bring you the video channel «History», in which you’ll find a brief information about the history of Columbus Day in the United States and the journey to India which ended with the opening of new land.

Italians have long celebrated Christopher Columbus in tribute to their shared heritage. In 1937 President Roosevelt proclaimed October, 12 as Columbus Day. And in 1971 President Nixon declared Columbus Day a national holiday to be observed on a second Monday of October. [Thank you]. And why? Because Columbus discovered America and proved that the Earth was round except that’s not quite really happened which is into saving or have planning the thankings. Let’s take a look at Christopher Columbus, the man behind the myth, behind the holiday.

We all know how it started. On August 3rd 1492 Columbus and his three ships, the Niña, the Pinta and the Santa Maria, set out from Spain and embarked on a historic journey. True, but let’s settle the «why» once in for all. Columbus was not trying to prove the Earth was round, he did not need to. Greek mathematician Pythagoras suspected we were living on a sphere as early as the 6th century BC and Aristotle backed him up two centuries later when he notices the Earth’s shadow could be seen during a lunary eclipse sliding past the Moon in miniature and it was round. So why did Columbus bothered getting off the couch at all? Money. In the 15th century spices were hot commodity. Traders shipping them between Asia and Europe could get rich quick. However with the fall of Constantinople to the Turks, Europe lost its most popular route to the treasures of the East. Columbus realised his opportunity become the first person to plot a western route to Asia and enjoy unprecedented glory and riches. Inconsistent maps made calculating routes difficult. Columbus finally charted the south-western course he believed was short enough to keep him and his men from dying of starvation and thirst. Spain’s queen Isabella eager to expand her empire agreed to roll the dice on Columbus’s route. So on that August morning in 1492 Columbus and his men sailed off in those famous ships laden with hopes of finding their way to Asia and making both Spain and themselves a heck a lot of money. After a pit stop in the Canary Islands the charted world was behind them. Columbus had been right not to trust existing maps, but he did not realised that his own plotted course to Asia was short by nearly 10,000 miles. Luckily, a seria of islands (the future West Indias) lay almost exactly where he believed India to be. And the relieved sailors made land fall. This is where things get tricky. We’re still not sure of the exact location where Columbus first landed, but he was convinced he’d made it to India and declared the route successfull. Mission accomplished. The Indians who greeted him were actually an indigenous people who had lived there for centuries. So the claim that Columbus discovered the Americas is only true from a European perspective. But as far as Columbus was concerned he was right where he’d expected to be — in an exotic land full of natives and spices. Columbus returned to the Spanish court a hero. All were convinced the route was a success and it surely was, but not as they had expected. Columbus inadvertently achieved the monumental task of joining the two hemispheres. In effect doubling the size of a habitable planet and establishing trade between the continents. So on Columbus Day raise a glass to fail of a navigator Christopher Columbus who missed the mark and did it just the thing.

Useful words and phrases:

• Tribute, n — a tribute.

The word holiday in this material has been used three verbs: to proclaim, to declare, to observe.

• Proclaim, v — to proclaim, declare.
• Declare, v — declare declare.
• Observe, v — to celebrate, to celebrate.
• Set out (from), v — embarking on a journey.
• Embark on, v — begin to take on.
• Settle, v — put an end to (differences).
• Back up, v — support (eg. The view).
• For all — even though, no matter what.
• Lunary eclipse — a lunar eclipse.
• Hot commodity — goods of high demand (goods in demand).
• Inconsistent, adj — inconsistent and contradictory.
• Chart (a course), v — to map (the route).
• Die of (starvation, thirst), v — die from (hunger, thirst).
• Plat the route, v — to plan, estimate, to conduct calculations; sketching out the scheme, the plan; make (map, and so estimate. n.).
• Roll the dice, v — roll the dice.
• It is laden with — be complete (sadness, hopes).
• Pit stop, n — stop, halt.
• Mission accomplished — the mission is complete.
• Indigenous, adj — aboriginal, indigenous, native.
• Inadvertently, adv — accidentally, unintentionally, inadvertently, unintentionally, inadvertently (of actions and deeds).
• Habitable, adj — habitable.
• Raise a glass to, v — a toast to …
• Miss the mark, v — hit wide of the goal, not to reach (its) purpose is not to achieve their own, fail; ≈ done at random.
• Just the thing — just what you need.

And now we offer you to perform a short test on erudition and understanding of this subject.

 

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