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Rodrigo de Triana (1469 inLepe, Huelva,Spain – 1535 inMaluku Islands) was a Spanish sailor, believed to be the first European from theAge of Exploration to have seenthe Americas. Born asJuan Rodríguez Bermejo, Triana was the son ofhidalgo andpotter Vicente Bermejo and Sereni Betancour. Triana was aMarrano.[1]
On October 12, 1492, while onChristopher Columbus' shipLa Pinta, he sighted a land that was calledGuanahani by the natives.[2]"Esta tierra vidó primero un marinero que se decía Rodrigo de Triana, puesto que el Almirante a las diez de la noche, estando en el castillo de popa, vidó lumbre aunque fue cosa tan cerrada que no quiso afirmar que fuese tierra." —The Diary of Christopher Columbus[2] After spotting the Bahamian island at approximately two o'clock in the morning, he is reported to have shouted "¡Tierra! ¡Tierra!" (Land! Land!). Columbus claims in his journal that hesaw a light "like a little wax candle rising and falling" four hours earlier, "but it was so indistinct that he did not dare to affirm it was land."[3] Rodrigo had spotted a small island in the Lucayas archipelago (known today as the Bahamas), in the Caribbean Sea. The island was named by Christopher Columbus as San Salvador, in honour of Jesus Christ and the salvation that finding land implied after that long journey.
Columbus found questionable witnesses to support his claim and reward for being the first to see America. Triana was disgusted by that dishonesty. After his return to Spain, Triana sailed to Africa.[4]
Triana was aCatholic.
NASA'sDeep Space Climate Observatory, a satellite originally intended to provide a near-continuous view of the entire Earth, was initially namedTriana, after Rodrigo de Triana.
