When Columbus made landfall he thought he had landed?

When Columbus made landfall in 1492, he believed he had reached the outskirts of Asia, specifically the islands off the coast of India. His goal was to find a westward route to Asia for trade, particularly for spices and gold. Instead, he had actually arrived in the Bahamas, marking the beginning of European exploration and colonization in the Americas. Columbus's misidentification of the New World as part of Asia had profound consequences for both the indigenous peoples and European nations.