A groundbreaking genetic study has revealed that Christopher Columbus, the famed explorer whose 1492 Atlantic voyage altered global history, was likely of Spanish and Jewish descent. Conducted by Spanish researchers, this study suggests Columbus may have been born in western Europe, possibly in Valencia, Spain, rather than the traditionally believed Genoa, Italy. To avoid the severe religious persecution of the time, Columbus is thought to have hidden his Jewish identity or converted to Catholicism. His journey, sponsored by Spain's Catholic Monarchs, sought a new route to Asia but instead introduced Europeans to the Americas. This event unleashed a wave of conquest and settlement that led to the decimation of indigenous populations. The research, spanning over two decades, involved exhuming and analyzing DNA from remains in Seville Cathedral, Colombia's son and brother, Raphael, and Diego. These findings, announced during a documentary airing on Spain's National Day, present an "almost absolutely reliable" overturn of a 25-theory race regarding Columbus's origin, adding new dimensions to the story of a man whose legacy is as complex as the history he set into motion.