EXPLORER

Juan Sebastián Elcano

1476 - 1526

Photo of Juan Sebastián Elcano

Icon of person Juan Sebastián Elcano

Juan Sebastián Elcano (Elkano in modern Basque; sometimes given as del Cano; 1486/1487 – 4 August 1526) was a Spanish navigator, ship-owner and explorer of Basque origin from Getaria, part of the Crown of Castile when he was born, best known for having completed the first circumnavigation of the Earth in the Spanish ship Victoria on the Magellan expedition to the Spice Islands. He received recognition for his achievement by Charles I of Spain with a coat of arms bearing a globe and the Latin motto Primus circumdedisti me (You were the first to circumnavigate me). Despite his achievements, information on Elcano is scarce and he is the subject of great historiographical controversy, because of the scarcity of original sources which illuminate his private life and personality. Read more on Wikipedia

Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Juan Sebastián Elcano has received more than 1,149,260 page views. His biography is available in 60 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 57 in 2019). Juan Sebastián Elcano is the 19th most popular explorer (up from 25th in 2019), the 36th most popular biography from Spain (up from 45th in 2019) and the 3rd most popular Spanish Explorer.

Juan Sebastián Elcano is most famous for being the first person to circumnavigate the world.

Memorability Metrics

  • 1.1M

    Page Views (PV)

  • 75.02

    Historical Popularity Index (HPI)

  • 60

    Languages Editions (L)

  • 9.70

    Effective Languages (L*)

  • 3.02

    Coefficient of Variation (CV)

Among EXPLORERS

Among explorers, Juan Sebastián Elcano ranks 19 out of 498. Before him are Francisco Pizarro, Prince Henry the Navigator, Abel Tasman, Pedro Álvares Cabral, Xuanzang, and Fridtjof Nansen. After him are Jacques Cartier, David Livingstone, Jacques Cousteau, Erik the Red, Vitus Bering, and Leif Erikson.

Most Popular Explorers in Wikipedia

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 1476, Juan Sebastián Elcano ranks 1. After him are Pope Paul IV, 2nd Dalai Lama, Yeonsangun of Joseon, Louise of Savoy, Huayna Capac, Alfonso I d'Este, Duke of Ferrara, Girolamo Fracastoro, Pierre Terrail, seigneur de Bayard, Cuitláhuac, Helena of Moscow, and Ayşe Hatun. Among people deceased in 1526, Juan Sebastián Elcano ranks 1. After him are Louis II of Hungary, Vittore Carpaccio, Isabella of Austria, Giovanni dalle Bande Nere, Scipione del Ferro, Emperor Go-Kashiwabara, Ibrahim Lodi, Rodrigo de Triana, Peter Martyr d'Anghiera, Elisabetta Gonzaga, and Shō Shin.

Others Born in 1476

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Others Deceased in 1526

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In Spain

Among people born in Spain, Juan Sebastián Elcano ranks 36 out of 3,355. Before him are Ferdinand II of Aragon (1452), Federico García Lorca (1898), Julio Iglesias (1943), Philip III of Spain (1578), Anne of Austria (1601), and Saint Dominic (1170). After him are Isidore of Seville (560), Alfonso XIII of Spain (1886), Luis Buñuel (1900), Charles III of Spain (1716), Pope Callixtus III (1379), and Joan Fuster (1922).

Others born in Spain

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Among EXPLORERS In Spain

Among explorers born in Spain, Juan Sebastián Elcano ranks 3. Before him are Hernán Cortés (1485), and Francisco Pizarro (1478). After him are Vasco Núñez de Balboa (1475), Juan Ponce de León (1460), Francisco de Orellana (1511), Diego de Almagro (1475), Vicente Yáñez Pinzón (1460), Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar (1465), Alonso de Ojeda (1466), Hernando de Soto (1500), and Lope de Aguirre (1518).

Spanish born Explorers

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