Lanzarote is an alternate form of the Spanish name Lancelot - as in Lancelotto Malecello, the Genoese explorer who made the first known European visit to the island. Of course, native peoples had populated Lanzarote for millennia: anthropologists believe ancient Cro-Magnons reached the island by boat either from Europe or the northern coast of Africa.

Almost a hundred years after Lancelotto’s initial expedition, the Spanish monarchy took steps to cement its unofficially recognized authority over the Canary Islands. The Norman Juan de Bethencourt was commissioned to claim the Canaries for Castile, and he did so without using force by promising to protect the islanders from the rampant piracy that had plagued them for many years. He kept his promise by fortifying the Lanzarote coastline; indeed, some of the ruins of Bethencourt’s forts can still be seen today. Another lasting effect of Bethencourt’s rule was that the native king was deposed and baptized a Roman Catholic, and most of his people followed suit.

A series of colonial kings succeeded Bethencourt, some more tyrannical in their rule than others. In 1812, feudalism was outlawed, colonialism ended and Lanzarote was made a province of Spain. Today it boasts the best of both the old and the new worlds: a thriving native culture coexisting with a booming tourist industry.