The first people to discover America were the Indigenous peoples who migrated from ancient Siberia and East Asia via the Bering Land Bridge, arriving possibly more than 20,000 years ago. As for Europeans, the Norse explorer Leif Erikson is widely believed to have reached the North American mainland around 1000 AD, about 500 years before Christopher Columbus's voyage in 1492. Columbus is credited with opening the way for widespread European exploration and colonization, but he was neither the first human nor the first European to set foot in the Americas.
Indigenous Peoples
The original inhabitants of America arrived tens of thousands of years ago, likely crossing the Bering Land Bridge from Siberia. Evidence such as fossilized footprints in New Mexico and other archaeological findings suggest human presence in the Americas dating back at least 21,000 years, with some controversial studies suggesting even earlier dates.
Norse Exploration
Leif Erikson and the Norse settlers established a short-lived settlement around 1000 AD in what is now Newfoundland, Canada. Archaeological evidence at L'Anse aux Meadows supports the claim that Vikings from Greenland and Iceland were the first known Europeans to reach North America.
Christopher Columbus
Columbus, an Italian explorer sailing under the Spanish flag, landed in the Caribbean in 1492. His voyages marked the beginning of sustained European contact with the Americas and the eventual colonization process. Despite being popularly called the "discoverer of America," he did not reach the mainland and was not the first to arrive there.
In summary, the Americas were first discovered by the Indigenous peoples thousands of years ago, followed by Norse explorers around 1000 AD, and only later by Columbus in 1492 who initiated European exploration and colonization.