When Columbus first discovered the new world, how did he communicate with the local aborigines? They didn't understand each other.

When Columbus first arrived in the New World, he did communicate with the aborigines with gestures in sign language. This is just like traveling to a strange country. You can't speak the local language or read the local characters, but you can only use gestures. Fortunately, some human needs and behavior patterns can be conveyed by gestures. If you want to eat or drink, just stick something in your mouth. Others are not stupid, and naturally they can understand this behavior. This has caused a lot of misunderstandings. Isn't that what the joke about Australia said? Kangaroo got its name from the British colonists after they landed on the mainland. In fact, however, this word means "I don't know". Although this linguistic joke is false, the logic behind it is true.

Before the era of great European navigation, the most active navigators in the world's oceans were all from Arabia. This point may not be well understood by people nowadays, but at that time, Arabia was not a symbol of backwardness and occlusion, but a very dynamic business people. The second semu of the so-called four categories of citizens in the Yuan Dynasty refers to the Arab businessmen. These people trade all over Eurasia, bringing great wealth to Mongolians who can't manage the economy. It is the same in Europe. Explorers must consult Arab businessmen about the ocean before going out to sea. More importantly, Arabs are well-informed and can rent linguists who can speak many languages to go to sea with the ship. Columbus's expedition included such experts.

But in fact, this expert didn't come in handy, and his only function was probably to preliminarily record the language used by the local people and bring original materials to the later translation work. However, Europeans obviously don't think that these indigenous people in the New World are intelligent and civilized human beings, so they don't spend much energy on studying their languages. When Columbus's team explored the American continent, he found out the capital of the other kingdom and the location of gold by pointing. Indigenous people who are unconscious of their situation have no idea what kind of tragic situation they will face.