Question

What country was named after Amerigo Vespucci, after Venice, because of the stilt houses on Lake Maracaibo?

Answer 1

The country named after Amerigo Vespucci, resembling Venice because of the stilt houses on Lake Maracaibo, is Venezuela. The name means "Little Venice" and was inspired by the similarity to Venetian architecture. Amerigo Vespucci's exploration led to the term "America" being used for the New World.

Step-by-step explanation:

The country that was named after Amerigo Vespucci, due to its resemblance to Venice because of the stilt houses on Lake Maracaibo, is Venezuela. The name Venezuela is derived from the Italian word Venice (Venezia in Italian), meaning "Little Venice". This reference was made because the European explorers found the indigenous stilt houses built over the water reminiscent of Venice.

Exploration of the New World was a period marked by intense interest among Europeans following Christopher Columbus's voyages. The Italian explorer Amerigo Vespucci made significant contributions by exploring the South American coastline and recognizing that the Americas were not part of Asia. His reports, published extensively, caught the attention of people across Europe, including the German mapmaker Martin Waldseemuller who used Vespucci's first name to label the new continent on his map in 1507, coining the term "America" which eventually became the accepted designation for the New World.

Answer 2

The stilt houses in the area of Lake Maracaibo reminded the Italian navigator, Amerigo Vespucci, of the city of Venice, Italy, so he named the region Veneziola, or "Little Venice". The Spanish version of Veneziola is Venezuela