John Davis or Davys, John (1550?-1605), English navigator, born near Dartmouth. He made three voyages in search of a northwest passage from Europe to the Indies in 1585 and the two succeeding years. During the last of these voyages he explored the west coast of Greenland as far north as 73° latitude, passing through the strait, which was named after him, between Greenland and Baffin Island. In 1588 he commanded a ship in the battle against the Spanish Armada, and in 1591 he sailed with the English navigator Thomas Cavendish on an expedition to the South Seas, during which Davis discovered the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas). He sailed on several more long voyages, during the last of which he was killed by Japanese pirates near the present site of Singapore. Davis was the inventor of a navigational instrument that became known as the Davis quadrant, which long remained in use, and he was the author of several works on navigation.