Origins & Early Life

João Fernandes "Lavrador" (fl. 1486–1501) was a Portuguese explorer of the late 15th century. He was one of the first modern explorers of the northeast coasts of North America. The name Labrador was first applied to Greenland based on his early sighting of the island.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

The name was later moved to the Labrador peninsula in present-day Canada. João Fernandes has been referred to as João Fernandes Lavrador or simply "the Lavrador", where Lavrador is a nickname, a title, or a reference to his profession. Writers have translated the Portuguese word as landowner, or farmer. Fernandes was from Terceira in the Azores archipelago. Almost nothing is known about his earlier life.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

Customs records suggest that he was a merchant trading in sugar and cloth between Bristol and Lisbon as early as 1486. His voyages to the North Atlantic in the 1490s are poorly documented and somewhat confusing. Much of the record of his travels comes from the interpretation of old maps which can be unreliable or inconsistent. In the mid-1490s Fernandes may have undertaken a voyage with fellow Azorean, Pero de Barcelos, into the northwest Atlantic. They traveled as far as Greenland and perhaps...

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