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Waldseemüller map

Martin Waldseemüller · 1507

The 1507 printed world map that first used the name 'America,' honoring Amerigo Vespucci rather than Columbus.

This map named the continent after Vespucci rather than Columbus, showing how naming credit for the discoveries bypassed him.

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Twelve-panel woodcut world map arranged in a grid of four columns and three rows, with decorative borders, cartouches, and Latin inscriptions. The top row shows globe-like sphere illustrations, with figures in the upper panels; the lower panels show landmasses including a large Americas-shaped coastline and Africa.
Martin Waldseemüller, Universalis Cosmographia, 1507. Library of Congress.

About this source

What it is

Printed in 1507 by German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller, this twelve-sheet wall map was the first to use the name 'America,' placed on South America in honor of Amerigo Vespucci, and the first to show the Americas as a separate landmass from Asia. The only surviving copy is held at the Library of Congress.

Why it matters

The map's full title credits both Ptolemy's traditional geography and the discoveries of Vespucci and 'others' — a category that included Columbus. By naming the new continent after Vespucci rather than Columbus, the map shows how credit for discovery was contested and how Columbus, despite making the voyages, did not get the naming honor.

Look closer

  • Why might Waldseemüller have chosen to credit Vespucci with the naming rather than Columbus?
  • What does the map's mix of old Ptolemaic geography and new discoveries tell you about how slowly geographic knowledge changed?
  • What might this map suggest about who gets remembered as a 'discoverer' and why?

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