willoughby came no where near spitsbergen in his farthest north was only degrees north a full four degrees south of spitsbergen's southern point he either sighted novaya zemlya or kolguyev island also there is absolutely no evidence that the historical svalbard refers to modern spitsbergen barentsz sighting of spitsbergen is the first documented european discovery of the island also conway referred to the dutch spelling spitsbergen the only correct spelling in english as the correct version seeing as how it was a dutchman not a german who had actually discovered the island