A famous bearer was the 15th-century Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama the first person to sail from Europe around Africa to India.ġ460 Sines Portugaldied DecemCochin India Portuguese navigator whose voyages to India 149799 150203 1524 opened up the sea route from western Europe to the East by way of the Cape of Good Hope. Other Languages Cultures Velasco Medieval Spanish Surname Descendants Vásquez Vázquez Spanish. Vasco da Gama is a great Portuguese navigator traditionally considered the first European to arrive in India by sea around the Cape of Good Hope in 1498. Vasco da Gama was born around 1460 in Sines a coastal town in the Alentejo region in the southwestern part of Portugal. Vasco da Gama is a cruise ship owned by Portuguese company Mystic Invest. An obscure but well-connected courtier he had been chosen much to everyones surprise by King Manuel I to head the ambitious expedition to chart a new route to India. Vasco Da Gama Facts You Do Not Learn In School Documentarytube It is the headquarters of the Mormugão taluka subdistrict. The Portuguese nobleman Vasco da Gama 1460-1524 sailed from Lisbon in 1497 on a mission to reach India and open a sea route from Europe to the East. Vasco da Gama was born in 1469 in the city of Sines. Majority of chili grown in India is cultivated in states such as Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and Orissa. Indian chilies have been dominating international chili market. Some of the hottest chilies are grown in India. It contributes 25% of world’s total production of chili. India has become world’s largest producer and exporter of chili, exporting to USA, Canada, UK, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Malaysia, Germany and many countries across the world. Today, it is unimaginable to think of India cuisine without the hot spice, chili. According to ayurveda, chili has many medicinal properties such as stimulating good digestion and endorphins, a natural pain killer to relieve pains. Chili found its way in ayurveda, the traditional Indian medical system. Chili became extremely popular in India after it was first brought to India by Vasco-da-Gama. The world’s hottest chili “Naga Jolokia” is cultivated in hilly terrain of Assam in a small town Tezpur, India. There are more than 400 different varieties of chilies found all over the world. Unlike, earlier methods, the Scoville test was subjective and accurate. This new method came to be known as Scoville Organoleptic Test. Scoville, a pharmacist found a new method to measure the pungency of the chili. Soon, more chili varieties were evolved such as strong breed of Mexican chile. In 1906, a new variety of chili, Anaheim, was grown. In 1888, experiments began for cross breeding of chili plants. In 1498, the Portuguese explorer Vasco-da-Gama reached Indian shores bringing with him the pungent spice.Ĭhili seeds were brought to North America for cultivation. Chili became the indispensable spice in European cuisines. That is how the chili got the name ‘ chile pepper.’ He took chile pepper back to Spain where it became a very famous spice.Ĭhili spread to rest of the European countries. Christopher not only mistook America for India, but also mistook chili as the black pepper. Christopher had set from Spain to reach India to bring spices such as pepper back to his country. Chili was brought to the rest of the world by Christopher Columbus who discovered America in 1493. Chilies were grown and cultivated from 3500 BC. The origin of chilies is believed to be as old as 7000 B.C.