“Columbus Day” is a very beloved holiday in America, but especially in the United States. It is celebrated every year on October 12th, to pay homage to Christopher Columbus, the man who discovered America on October 12th, 1492.
Both North and South America (and some cities in Spain and Italy) on this occasion celebrate their courageous explorer, whose travels opened the Western Hemisphere to millions of Europeans.
Although he did not get great fame in his lifetime, nowadays Columbus is an international hero. Children love to play or act out the story of his famous voyage, and he is admired for his courage, self-confidence and perseverance.
THE STORY BEHIND “COLUMBUS DAY”
Cristopher Columbus discovered America in 1492, arriving on the island of San Salvador. Columbus was an Italian sailor, serving Spain.
The continent was populated by people that he called “Indians“, because he believed he had reached the Indies, rather than an unknown land.
Indian tribes such as the Sioux and Apaches inhabited the area, which is now part of the United States. Fierce warriors, these tribes were often at war with each other.
Spain soon occupied and colonized South and Central America, with the exception of Brazil which became part of the Portuguese Empire.
At the beginning of the sixteenth century, the Italian Giovanni and Sebastiano Caboto, sailing under the English flag, explored the coast of North America, and claimed it for England.
HOW WELL DO YOU KNOW AMERICA?
America is, as we know, a great and big country: there are many things to say about this vast, important, fascinating continent! It is already complex to describe the characteristics of the United States (which is certainly the most famous and prosperous state in America), let alone how long and difficult it would be to describe the history, geography, political situation, aspects of daily life, social problems and culture of all the other countries!
However, in honor of Columbus Day, we offer you this fun little game: a video from our YouTube channel dedicated to questions about America!!! The questions will focus on all topics: explorers, food products, inventors, animals (terrestrial and aquatic) of North and South America, films and actors, Indian tribes, dances and music, the protagonists of American history…
The video gets its material from the sticker album “La mia America dalla A alla Z“, to purchase free with the children’s periodical “Il giornalino“in 1991. Not all the pages of the album were used for the video , but only those that are most suitable for creating our little “test”. Have fun!
