Victoria Falls is most commonly said to have been “discovered” by Scottish missionary–explorer David Livingstone in 1855, but local Indigenous peoples had known, named, and revered the falls for centuries before him, calling them Mosi-oa-Tunya (“The Smoke That Thunders”).

Because you asked for a quick scoop, here’s the nuanced version in brief:

  • David Livingstone was the first documented European to see and describe the falls in detail, reaching them on 16–17 November 1855 and later publicizing them widely in Europe.
  • Guided by Makololo people along the Zambezi, he was taken by canoe to what is now called Livingstone Island on the lip of the waterfall, where he wrote his famous description of the scenery.
  • He named the waterfall “Victoria Falls” after Britain’s Queen Victoria, even while recording the Indigenous name Mosi-oa-Tunya (“The Smoke That Thunders”).
  • Archaeological evidence and oral histories show that local communities had lived around and known the falls for thousands of years, long before any Europeans arrived.

So, in modern, more accurate terms:

  • Indigenous peoples (such as the Tonga and related groups) were the true original discoverers and custodians of the falls.
  • David Livingstone was the first well-recorded European to see them and the person who named them “Victoria Falls” and introduced them to a global audience.

If you’re writing or searching using the phrase “who discovered Victoria Falls,” the historically precise answer is usually phrased as:
“Local African communities knew the falls as Mosi-oa-Tunya long before Europeans; David Livingstone was the first recorded European to see them in 1855 and to name them Victoria Falls.”