Where did syphilis originate?

The origin of syphilis had been a point of great debate among experts, with some authorities favoring a New World origin because of an epidemic of syphilis that ravaged Europe in the last decade of the 15th century, when it was referred to as the “Great Pox” (as opposed to smallpox). Because this epidemic coincided with the return of Columbus from America in 1493, this suggested that it was imported from the West Indies. Of interest, Columbus himself is thought to have died from syphilitic aortitis. Other authorities maintained that it had always been present in the Old World. Studies on skeletal remains clearly demonstrate that while treponemal disease was present in the Old World, epidemic syphilis was imported from the New World.

Tognotti E: The rise and fall of syphilis in Renaissance Europe, J Med Humanit 30:99–113, 2009.