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Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca (Jerez de la Frontera, c. 1488/1490/1492〔"Cabeza de Vaca, Alvar Núñez (1492?-1559?)." American Eras. Vol. 1: Early American Civilizations and Exploration to 1600. Detroit: Gale, 1997. 50-51. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 10 Dec. 2014.〕 – Seville, c. 1557/1558/1559〔/1560〔"Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 08 Dec. 2014.〕) was a Spanish explorer of the New World, and one of four survivors of the 1527 Narváez expedition. During eight years of traveling across the US Southwest, he became a trader and faith healer to various Native American tribes before reconnecting with Spanish colonial forces in Mexico in 1536. After returning to Spain in 1537, he wrote an account, first published in 1542 as ''La Relación'' ("The Relation", or in more modern terms "The Account"〔''The Account: Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca's Relacion'', title of 1993 English translation by Martin Favata and Jose Fernandez.〕), which in later editions was retitled ''Naufragios'' ("Shipwrecks"). Cabeza de Vaca has been considered notable as a proto-anthropologist for his detailed accounts of the many tribes of American Indians that he encountered. In 1540 Cabeza de Vaca was appointed ''adelantado'' of what is now Argentina, where he was governor and captain general of Río de la Plata.〔"Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca," ''Encyclopedia of World Biography''. 2nd ed. Vol. 3. Detroit: Gale, 2004. 197. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 5 Dec. 2014.〕 He worked to build up the population of Buenos Aires, where settlement had declined due to the poor administration. Cabeza de Vaca was transported to Spain for trial in 1545. Although his sentence was eventually commuted, he never returned to the Americas. He died in Seville. ==Early life and education== Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca was born around 1490 into a hidalgo family, the son of Francisco Núñez de Vera and Teresa Cabeza de Vaca y de Zurita, in the town of Jerez de la Frontera, Cadiz, Spain. Despite the family's status as minor nobility, they possessed modest economic resources. In 16th-century documents, his name appears as "Alvar Nuñez Cabeza de Vaca".〔Cabeza de Vaca, Prologue, ''La Relacion'' (1542). Note: The surname ''Cabeza de Vaca'' (meaning "cow head") was granted to his mother's family in the 13th century, when his ancestor Martín Alhaja aided a Christian army attacking Moors by leaving a cow's head and a pile of rocks to point out a small secret mountain pass for their use.〕 Álvar Núñez's maternal surname, Cabeza de Vaca (meaning “head of cow”) was said to be associated with a maternal ancestor, Martin Alhaja. He had shown the Spanish king a secret mountain pass, marked by a cow’s skull, enabling the king to win the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa against the Muslim Moors in 1212.〔 Some sources indicate that after his parents died when he was young, the boy Álvar was taken in by relatives (most likely his aunt and uncle or his paternal grandfather, Pedro de Vara). Evidence suggests that he probably had a moderately comfortable early life. He was appointed chamberlain for the house of a noble family in his teen years (American Eras) then participated in the conquest of the Canary Islands where he was appointed a governor.〔 In 1511, he enlisted in the Spanish army, serving in Italy (with distinction), Spain and Navarre. He received several medals of honor and became more of a political figure in Spain.〔 In 1527, Núñez joined the Florida expedition of conquistador Pánfilo de Narváez during which he served as treasurer and marshal.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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