Who lived on the Canary Islands before the Spanish?

The original inhabitants of the Canaries were the Guanches (see Guanche and Canario); now assimilated into the general population, they were a Berber people who were conquered by the Spanish in the 15th century. The Romans learned of the Canaries through Juba II, king of Mauritania, whose account of an expedition (c.



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The original inhabitants of the Canaries were the Guanches (see Guanche and Canario); now assimilated into the general population, they were a Berber people who were conquered by the Spanish in the 15th century. The Romans learned of the Canaries through Juba II, king of Mauritania, whose account of an expedition (c.

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Strictly speaking, the Guanches were the indigenous peoples of Tenerife.

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Tall, blond and blue-eyed, the Guanches have long intrigued the anthropologists, for blond natives are rarity. According to the reliable Encyclopedia Britannica, the Guanches are thought to have been of Cro-Magnon origin... and had a brown complexion, blue or gray eyes, and blondish hair.

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History: Created by a volcano 10 millions years ago, Tenerife was originally inhabited by the Guanches, which were a cavern tribe originally from African. Until the arrival of the Spaniards the Guanches had been living in peace with their prehistoric customs and culture.

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The Canary Islands were created by a series of volcanic eruptions millions of years ago. The oldest of these is Fuerteventura, which is thought to be over 20 million years old, followed by Lanzarote, Gran Canaria, Tenerife, La Gomera, La Palma and El Hierro, respectively.

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Phoenician, Carthaginian and Roman traders are known to have visited the islands and Roman artifacts have been found in the Canaries dating from around the 4th century CE, although there is no evidence of a Roman settlement.

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It was the last of the Canary Islands to fall to Spain in 1496 and subsequently became an important trading centre. Although part of the European Union, the Canary Islands are physically closer to Africa, with Tenerife lying just 300km off the coast of Morocco.

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