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Estevanico

Estevanico (–1539), Esteban de Dorantes and Estevanico the Moor, was the first person as well as the first person of African descent to explore what is considered the present-day United States region of North America and one of the last four survivors of the Narváez expedition. He is preceded by Juan Garrido who is the first person of African descent to explore North America.

Little is known about Estevanico's background but contemporary accounts described him as a "''negro alárabe''" or "''Arabic-speaking black man''" native to Azemmour, Morocco. In 1522, he was sold as a slave to the Spanish nobleman Andrés Dorantes de Carranza in the Portuguese-controlled Moroccan town of Azemmour.

Starting in 1528, he participated in the Narváez expedition, which set out from Cuba under the leadership of Pánfilo de Narváez to explore and colonize Spanish Florida. After numerous challenges, including shipwrecks and enslavement by Native Americans, Estevanico, along with three other survivors, escaped their captivity in 1534 and became medicine men. They embarked on an epic journey, covering nearly 2,000 miles, through the American interior, becoming the first Europeans and African to enter the American West. Their travels were greeted with respect and admiration from the indigenous communities, and they finally reached a Spanish settlement in Sinaloa, Mexico, in July 1536.

Their tales of rich civilizations in the north captivated Spaniards in Mexico City, leading the Viceroy of New Spain, Antonio de Mendoza, to commission Fray Marcos de Niza to search for the fabled Seven Cities of Cibola. Estevanico served as a guide for the expedition, venturing ahead of the main party with a group of Sonoran Indians and trade goods. However, tragedy struck near Cíbola when the village inhabitants attacked Estevanico, leading to his death. Several contemporary accounts describe his demise but the motivations behind the attack remain unclear.

His journey, as chronicled by Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca, provided insights into the peoples, wildlife, and geography of western North America. Provided by Wikipedia