A history of the ocean must take into account oceanographic and ecological dynamics, in addition to human ones. In the context of the early modern period, European expansions provide the setting for the construction of historical narratives. We argue, therefore, that these processes profoundly altered the relationship between humans and the rest of nature; that islands served as unique spaces of support and exchange; that relations between European and non-European peoples involved both contact and confrontation, fostering the transfer of knowledge; and that the ocean promoted sociocultural interactions and the emergence of new societies on a global scale. In light of the historiographical currents of the Humanities for the Oceans, the ocean as an entity is regarded as a co-creator of narratives shared across diverse sociocultural and environmental realities.