Amerigo Vespucci

High school (ages 12+)
History & Culture

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Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/amerigo-vespucci

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. When was Amerigo Vespucci born?March 9, 1454
2. When did Amerigo Vespucci die?February 22, 1512 (age 57)
3. Where was Amerigo Vespucci born?Florence, Republic of Florence (now Italy)
4. What is the career?Merchant, navigator, explorer, author, Master Navigator (piloto mayor) for Spain
5. What is the date of 'new world' recognition?Circa 1501-1502
6. What did Vespucci discover about the new lands?He realized that the lands he saw were a new continent, not part of Asia. He called this new area the "Mundus Novus," or New World.

Age of Discovery: A historical period (roughly 15th-17th centuries) characterized by extensive overseas exploration and the establishment of global trade routes by European powers.
Cartography: The science or practice of drawing maps.
Mundus Novus: Latin for 'New World,' a term Amerigo Vespucci used to describe the continents discovered in the Americas.
Casa de Contratación: An institution in Seville, Spain, established to regulate trade and travel with the Spanish colonies in the Americas.