Canary Islands

Tenerife

The Canary Islands are estimated to be 30 million years old, which is relatively young by geological standards.

Carbon dating has placed the earliest settlement at around 200 BC, although earlier settlement is possible. The conquering Europeans' 15th-century descriptions of locals refer to tall and powerfully built people with blue eyes and long fair hair. These people called themselves Guanches, from guan, meaning 'man', and che or achinch, meaning 'white mountain', in reference to the snow-capped Teide volcano. Theories regarding the Guanches range from them being Celtic immigrants from mainland Spain or Portugal, to Norse invaders. Berber immigrants from nearby Saharan Africa almost certainly inhabited some of the eastern islands