Monday, October 9th is Columbus Day, which is one of the 11 federal holidays. Columbus Day is a holiday celebrating the landing of Christopher Columbus in the New World on October 12, 1492.
Columbus was an Italian explorer who led a Spanish expedition to cross the Atlantic Ocean for an alternate route to the far east. Columbus’s first voyage with the ships the Niña, Santa Marìa, and La Pinta took somewhere around three months. When Columbus landed in Guanahani, a small island in the Bahamas, colonization of the Americas by Spain began.
The name varies in some countries. Of course it is celebrated as Columbus Day in the United States. Some states recognize Indigenous Peoples Day as well as Columbus Day. The two holidays are related. Indigenous Peoples Day recognizes the Native American people who were on the continent much before Columbus had discovered it. In some Latin American countries it is called La dia de la Raza or “Day of the Race.” This was the case for Mexico until it was renamed to “Day of the Pluricultural Nation.” Some countries, such as Spain, refer to the day as the day of Hispanicity or Dia de la Hispanidad.
Many people have a day off from school or work on this day. Senior Reese Patton commented, “I was affected by the day off because I was able to do my homework with no stress. I enjoy having a day off because I am able to reset without having to do everything on Sunday. I still had practice on Monday, but I was able to go home and relax after which I don’t usually get to do.”
Jack Weidner, Staff Writer
weija24@sages.us
The Sage Informer 
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