A history of the Magellanic Clouds and the European exploration of the
  Southern Hemisphere
  The Magellanic Clouds were known before Magellan's voyage exactly 500 years
ago, and were not given that name by Magellan himself or his chronicler Antonio
Pigafetta. They were, of course, already known by local populations in South
America, such as the Mapuche and Tupi-Guaranis. The Portuguese called them
Clouds of the Cape, and scientific circles had long used the name of Nubecula
Minor and Major. We trace how and when the name Magellanic Clouds came into
common usage by following the history of exploration of the southern hemisphere
and the southern sky by European explorers. While the name of Magellan was
quickly associated to the Strait he discovered (within about 20 years only),
the Clouds got their final scientific name only at the end of the 19th century,
when scientists finally abandoned Latin as their communication language.
