Observance Daily What day is today, and why are we celebrating it?
Columbus Sights Dominica on November 3, 1493, during his second voyage to the Americas. Sailing through the Lesser Antilles, Christopher Columbus named several islands for the saints and feast days of the Catholic calendar – and when the island now known as Dominica appeared, he named it for Sunday, the day he sighted it. It was a naming from the deck of a ship: Columbus did not land on Dominica during this voyage.
His second voyage, which lasted from 1493 to 1496, was a far larger undertaking than the first. Where the 1492 voyage had been a small expedition of three ships, this one sailed with 17 ships and over a thousand settlers, soldiers and priests, with the aim of establishing a permanent Spanish presence in the New World. Naming newly sighted islands was part of the ritual of claiming: each name staked a symbolic claim for Spain and for Christendom.
Why Columbus Sights Dominica matters: a name that endured
The name given from Columbus’s deck that November Sunday endured. Dominica – from the Latin for Sunday, dies Dominica – kept the name long after the Spanish had moved on, through centuries in which the island was contested first by France and Britain, then made a British colony, and finally became independent as the Commonwealth of Dominica on November 3, 1978.
What makes the Dominica story unusual is what happened after the sighting. The island’s indigenous Kalinago people resisted European colonisation fiercely, and Dominica remained largely unconquered for over a century – a remarkable record of resistance in a Caribbean where so many other islands were swiftly taken. The sighting in 1493 was the beginning of European knowledge of the island, not of European control of it.
How to mark the anniversary of Columbus Sights Dominica
This is a day for reading history carefully rather than celebrating unreservedly. Here are a few ideas:
- Learn the Kalinago story. Read about the indigenous Kalinago people and their fierce resistance to colonisation – the part of Dominica’s story the naming ceremony left out.
- Explore the Nature Island. Dominica’s rainforests, rivers, waterfalls and volcanic hot springs are why it is called the Nature Island; explore them virtually or plan a visit.
- Connect the two Novembers. Note that Dominica’s Independence Day falls on November 3 too – the same date, 485 years later, that the island finally became the Commonwealth of Dominica.
- Read about the second voyage. Compare the small 1492 expedition with the 1493-1496 fleet of 17 ships and over a thousand people – the moment exploration became colonisation.
Why Columbus Sights Dominica matters
This November 3 anniversary matters because it marks the exact moment a European name was pinned to an island that would refuse to be pinned down. The sighting was brief and from a distance; the name lasted centuries; and the people who actually lived there held their ground for over a hundred years. It is a reminder that the Age of Exploration looked very different from the deck of a ship than from the shore.
Columbus Sights Dominica FAQ
When did Columbus sight Dominica?
November 3, 1493, on his second voyage.
Why is it called Dominica?
Columbus named it for Sunday – dies Dominica in Latin – the day he sighted it.
Did Columbus land on Dominica?
No. He named the island while sailing through the Lesser Antilles and did not land there on this voyage.
How big was Columbus’s second voyage?
17 ships and over a thousand settlers, soldiers and priests, sailing from 1493 to 1496 to establish a permanent Spanish presence.
What happened to Dominica after the sighting?
The indigenous Kalinago people resisted European colonisation fiercely, and the island remained largely unconquered for over a century. It eventually became independent as the Commonwealth of Dominica on November 3, 1978.
Read more about November 3 on November 3 Holidays, Observances and History.