The first European countries to begin colonizing the Americas were Spain and Portugal. Spain claimed and settled Mexico, most of Central and South America, several islands in the Caribbean, and what are now Florida, California, and the Southwest region of the United States. Portugal gained control of Brazil.

Motivations for Colonization Britain, France, Spain, and the Netherlands established colonies in North America.

Competition to acquire new lands in America, the New World was strongly fought by the following powerful European countries:

• England (which became Great Britain)
• Spain – Spanish in America.
• France – Refer to the French in America.
• Netherlands.

It has been a national holiday in the United States since 1937. It is commonly said that “Columbus discovered America.” It would be more accurate, perhaps, to say that he introduced the Americas to Western Europe during his four voyages to the region between 1492 and 1502.

The Viking invaders may have also had a relatively high percentage of B gene, since many of the towns of Britain and western Europe that are linked to the coast by internal lines of communication such as large rivers, have a disproportional amount of blood group B when compared to the surrounding territory.

The faces of men and women in the Viking Age were more alike than they are today. The women’s faces were more masculine than women’s today, with prominent brow ridges. On the other hand, the Viking man’s appearance was more feminine than that of men today, with a less prominent jaw and brow ridges.

And experts say surnames can give you an indication of a possible Viking heritage in your family, with anything ending in ‘son’ or ‘sen’ likely to be a sign. Other surnames which could signal a Viking family history include ‘Roger/s’ and ‘Rogerson’ and ‘Rendall’.