Celebrating Christopher Columbus Day, Much More Than Super Sales at the Mall

Many Americans know Columbus Day as the U.S. national holiday commemorating the Italian-born explorer’s arrival to the Americas on Oct. 12, 1492.

Most of us also learned this little study helped in school: "In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue," right? However, besides that and numerous retail bargains that typically go hand-in-hand with the day, here are five things you might not have known about the man or the holiday.

According to history.com:

1. Columbus Day has been a national holiday since 1937.

2. Over time, the holiday has also become a celebration of Italian-American heritage.

3. Some scholars say Columbus was born in Genoa to a Christian household; however, it has been claimed that he was a converted Jew or that he was born in Spain, Portugal, or elsewhere. His body has been moved so many times, historians are not sure where he is truly buried.

4. Columbus was the eldest son of Domenico Colombo, a Genoese wool worker and merchant, and Susanna Fontanarossa, his wife.

5. Christopher Columbus was a master navigator and admiral whose four transatlantic voyages (1492–93, 1493–96, 1498–1500 and 1502–04) opened the way for European exploration, exploitation and colonization of the Americas. He has long been called the “discoverer” of the New World, although Vikings such as Leif Eriksson had visited North America five centuries earlier.

Source: History.com