José de Acosta

Timeline

1. c. 1540–1571Medina del Campo · Castile and LeónBorn in Medina del Campo, Castile, he entered the Jesuits as a youth, studying and teaching theology at several colleges in Spain. In 1571 he was sent to the Americas, crossing the Isthmus of Panama into the Viceroyalty of Peru and arriving in Lima the next year, beginning his New World missionary and observational career.
2. 1572–1586Lima · LimaHe founded several colleges in Peru and opened mission stations around Lake Titicaca. From 1576 to 1581 he served as Provincial of the Jesuits in Peru, concurrent with colonial reforms under Viceroy Toledo. In 1582 he became theological adviser to the Third Provincial Council of Lima, helping compile catechisms in Quechua and Aymara, among the earliest books printed in Peru.
3. 1587–1600Salamanca · Castile and LeónAfter returning to Spain in 1587 he compiled his American observations, publishing On the Salvation of the Indians in 1588 and the seven-volume Natural and Moral History of the Indies in Seville in 1590, describing New World climates and products and the religions and governments of Mexico and Peru. He died in Salamanca on February 15, 1600.