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The first one who mentioned the Galápagos Islands was Tomás de Berlanga, bishop of Panama. He discovered them by accident in 1535 when his ship drifted off course. He found little interest in them because they were really dry. He did not even give them a name, but called the giant tortoise he saw “galápago”.
Because the islands were uninhabited for such a long time, the animals there are tame and show practically no fear of man.
In 1574 they appeared for the first time on a map as the “Islands of Galápagos”.
For many years after its discovery the archipelago was only used as a base for English and Spanish buccaneers, sealers and whalers. Both of them named the different islands in their language and 1892 Ecuador added official names. That is why today some of the islands have up to three names. The Spanish also called Galápagos the “Enchanted Islands”. Because of the surrounding mist and confusing currents they were difficult to find in former times and people often thought they would disappear from time to time.
In 1832 the first colony was founded on Floreana by the Ecuadorian General José Villamil. It mainly consisted of political prisoners and convicts. Shortly after that Ecuador took official possession of the archipelago.
In 1835 Charles Darwin stayed for 5 weeks on Galápagos. The wildlife collections and notes he took there inspired later on his theory of evolution (On the Origin of Species, published 1859).
Galápagos was officially declared a national park (97% of the land area) and a marine reserve in 1959. Within the Galápagos National Park there are only specified landing sites (about 56) and strictly defined paths that tourists are not allowed to turn off. The trails were chosen to reveal as much as possible of the magnificent flora and fauna and especially of the endemic species. At the same time they minimize the effects of tourism and help to preserve this unique World Heritage Site (UNESCO). By law only naturalist guides that have been trained by the national park staff are permitted to guide in Galápagos. |
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Today there are about 25 000 people inhabiting the archipelago who mainly live from farming, fishing and tourism. The settlements are situated on the islands San Cristóbal (2), Santa Cruz (3), Floreana (1) and Isabela (2) plus a navy base on Baltra.
About 60 000 tourists visit the islands each year.
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