1653 Tsunami: Azores, Portugal
A tsunami of unknown cause began at Azores, Portugal in 1653.
Where the waves reached
The source of the tsunami. No runup with a place is recorded for it.
- Under 1 m
- 1 to 3 m
- 3 to 10 m
- 10 to 30 m
- 30 m and more
- Height not recorded
The tsunami
- Date
- 1653
- Source
- Azores, Portugal
- Cause
- Unknown
- Runups recorded
- 0
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Very doubtful tsunami
- Source location
- 38.400° N, 27.100° W
The toll
- Damage
- Limited (under about $1 million)
Where the literature gives no number, NCEI records a description on a scale of 1 to 4, printed here in its words. Damage is in millions of US dollars of the year of the event, not adjusted for inflation.
What the record says
NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.
1653. Azores. There was a large tsunami which destroyed a large part of the coastal fortifications of the Ilha Terceira (38'43'N., 27'13'W.). (reference #41)
1653. The observed destruction is not indicative of the occurrence of any tsunamigenic event, since this has often occurred on other occasions owing to storms. Thus, the 1653 flood was probably due to a storm (reference #13057)
1653. Notwithstanding that this event is considered to be the result of a tsunami, the possibility exists that it may be related to an extreme storm event. (reference #5046)
More
Every tsunami in 1653The 1600sTsunamis of PortugalAlerts in force
Sources
Tsunami events and runups from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Hazard Database, cited as NCEI/WDS, doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7. Public domain. Read 2026-09-24. NCEI tsunami event 277.