christopher columbus

Once again, it's that tense time of year when Americans argue over whether venerating Columbus is an important part of Italian-American heritage, or whether it's the same thing as celebrating genocide and the spread of infectious disease. If the memes tell us one thing, it's that people on the internet think Columbus was a total idiot for 'discovering' the wrong continent. I mean, he didn't even reach North America—he mistook a few Caribbean Islands for the Indies. Epic fail, bro. Anyway, here are nineteen memes that mock Columbus for Columbusing America. 

It is often said that history is bound to repeat itself. We like to think that's an exaggeration, but it's definitely true where history memes are concerned. And not in a bad way. Memers have proved that it's possible to retell historical events using an inane variety of meme formats - some of which have nothing to do with history at all. We've rounded up a nice selection for you, but if you find yourself wanting more check out one of our other galleries or the r/HistoryMemes subreddit. You won't be disappointed. 

Happy Leif Erikson Day! It's a joyous day indeed celebrating the Norse explorer for supposedly being the first European to set foot in North America. The Spongebob episode about the holiday is probably what's given it the most publicity. 

Fun fact: October 9th has nothing to do with Leif Erickson himself, but rather marks the day that the ship the Restauration arrived in the New York from Norway, bringing with it an influx of Norwegian immigrants.