Abstract
Taking their cue from Michael Gannon, Florida's historians are fond of pointing out that by the time Jamestown was founded, St. Augustine was ready for urban renewal. Our state's literary scholars add that long before the Virginia Company established Jamestown, Florida already had an extensive library of works in three languages. From the beginning, that linguistic diversity would mark the region's literary tradition. While many of the earliest works about Florida, from Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca's La Relacion (popularly known as Naufragios) in 1542 to the Gentleman of Elvas' history of DeSoto's expedition in 1557, were in Spanish, other works appeared in French and English as the world's colonial powers jockeyed for control of what appeared to be the gateway to North America.
Recommended Citation
O'Sullivan, Maurice
(2010)
"Introduction: This Incomperable Lande,"
Florida Historical Quarterly: Vol. 89:
No.
4, Article 3.
Available at:
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/fhq/vol89/iss4/3
