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How did the name America become connected with Amerigo Vespucci?

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Map of North America showing international boundaries, country names, and capital cities. The map includes Canada, the United States, Mexico, Greenland, Central American countries, and Caribbean nations, with a locator inset at the bottom left for global context. Major bodies of water such as the Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Arctic Ocean, and Caribbean Sea are labeled.
North America

The name "America" is derived from the given name of the Italian explorer Amerigo Vespucci, who participated in early voyages to the New World and described his travels in widely circulated letters.12

The connection was established by the German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller. In his 1507 work Cosmographiae introductio, Waldseemüller included some of Vespucci’s writings and suggested that the newly discovered land be named "America"—a feminized version of the Latin form of Vespucci's name, Americus—in recognition of his role as an explorer. Waldseemüller applied this name to his 1507 world map, initially using it only to refer to South America.1342

Waldseemüller’s book was widely read, and the name eventually gained universal acceptance. Later, the geographer Gerardus Mercator extended the use of the name "America" to encompass the entire Western Hemisphere.13