Search Results - Góis, Bento de, 1562-1607

Bento de Góis

Bento de Góis (1562 – 11 April 1607), was a Portuguese Jesuit missionary and explorer. His name is commonly given in English as Bento de Goes or Bento de Goës; in the past, it has also been Anglicized as Benedict Goës.

He is mainly remembered as the first known European to travel overland from India to China, via current day Afghanistan and the Pamir Mountains. Inspired by controversies among the Jesuits as to whether the Cathay of Marco Polo's stories is the same country as China, his expedition conclusively proved that the two countries are one and the same, and, according to Henry Yule, made "''Cathay''... finally disappear from view, leaving ''China'' only in the mouths and minds of men". Provided by Wikipedia