Al-Andalus () was the

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

-ruled area of the

Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, comprisin ...

. The name refers to the different Muslim states that controlled these territories at various times between 711 and 1492. At its greatest geographical extent, it occupied most of the peninsula as well as

Septimania Septimania is a historical region in modern-day southern France. It referred to the western part of the Roman province of '' Gallia Narbonensis'' that passed to the control of the Visigoths in 462, when Septimania was ceded to their king, Theod ...

under

Umayyad The Umayyad Caliphate or Umayyad Empire (, ; ) was the second caliphate established after the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and was ruled by the Umayyad dynasty. Uthman ibn Affan, the third of the Rashidun caliphs, was also a membe ...

rule. These boundaries changed through a series of conquests Western

historiography Historiography is the study of the methods used by historians in developing history as an academic discipline. By extension, the term ":wikt:historiography, historiography" is any body of historical work on a particular subject. The historiog ...

has traditionally characterized as the ''

Reconquista The ''Reconquista'' (Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese for ) or the fall of al-Andalus was a series of military and cultural campaigns that European Christian Reconquista#Northern Christian realms, kingdoms waged ag ...

'',"Para los autores árabes medievales, el término Al-Andalus designa la totalidad de las zonas conquistadas – siquiera temporalmente – por tropas arabo-musulmanas en territorios actualmente pertenecientes a Portugal, España y Francia" ("For medieval Arab authors, Al-Andalus designated all the conquered areas – even temporarily – by Arab-Muslim troops in territories now belonging to Spain, Portugal and France"), García de Cortázar, José Ángel. ''V Semana de Estudios Medievales: Nájera, 1 al 5 de agosto de 1994'', Gobierno de La Rioja, Instituto de Estudios Riojanos, 1995, p. 52. eventually shrinking to the south and finally to the

Emirate of Granada The Emirate of Granada, also known as the Nasrid Kingdom of Granada, was an Emirate, Islamic polity in the southern Iberian Peninsula during the Late Middle Ages, ruled by the Nasrid dynasty. It was the last independent Muslim state in Western ...

. As a political domain, it successively constituted a province of the

Umayyad Caliphate The Umayyad Caliphate or Umayyad Empire (, ; ) was the second caliphate established after the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and was ruled by the Umayyad dynasty. Uthman ibn Affan, the third of the Rashidun caliphs, was also a member o ...

, initiated by the Caliph

al-Walid I Al-Walid ibn Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan (; – 23 February 715), commonly known as al-Walid I (), was the sixth Umayyad caliph, ruling from October 705 until his death in 715. He was the eldest son of his predecessor, Caliph Abd al-Malik (). As ...

(711–750); the

Emirate of Córdoba An emirate is a territory ruled by an emir, a title used by monarchs or high officeholders in the Muslim world. From a historical point of view, an emirate is a political-religious unit smaller than a caliphate. It can be considered equivalen ...

(–929); the

Caliphate of Córdoba A caliphate ( ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with Khalifa, the title of caliph (; , ), a person considered a political–religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of ...

(929–1031); the first ''

taifa The taifas (from ''ṭā'ifa'', plural ''ṭawā'if'', meaning "party, band, faction") were the independent Muslim principalities and kingdoms of the Iberian Peninsula (modern Portugal and Spain), referred to by Muslims as al-Andalus, that em ...

'' kingdoms (1009–1110); the

Almoravid Empire The Almoravid dynasty () was a Berber Muslim dynasty centered in the territory of present-day Morocco. It established an empire that stretched over the western Maghreb and Al-Andalus, starting in the 1050s and lasting until its fall to the Almoh ...

(1085–1145); the second ''taifa'' period (1140–1203); the

Almohad Caliphate The Almohad Caliphate (; or or from ) or Almohad Empire was a North African Berbers, Berber Muslim empire founded in the 12th century. At its height, it controlled much of the Iberian Peninsula (Al-Andalus) and North Africa (the Maghreb). Th ...

(1147–1238); the third ''taifa'' period (1232–1287); and ultimately the Nasrid Emirate of Granada (1238–1492). Under the Caliphate of Córdoba, the city of Córdoba became one of the leading cultural and economic centres throughout the Mediterranean Basin, Europe, and the Islamic world. Achievements that advanced Islamic and Western science came from al-Andalus, including major advances in trigonometry (

Jabir ibn Aflah Abū Muḥammad Jābir ibn Aflaḥ (, ; 1100–1150) was an Arab Muslim astronomer and mathematician from Seville, who was active in 12th century al-Andalus. His work ''Iṣlāḥ al-Majisṭi'' (Correction of the ''Almagest'') influenced Islam ...

), astronomy (

al-Zarqali Abū Isḥāq Ibrāhīm ibn Yaḥyā al-Naqqāsh al-Zarqālī al-Tujibi (); also known as Al-Zarkali or Ibn Zarqala (1029–1100), was an Arab maker of astronomical instruments and an astrologer from the western part of the Islamic world. ...

), surgery (

al-Zahrawi Abū al-Qāsim Khalaf ibn al-'Abbās al-Zahrāwī al-Ansari (;‎ c. 936–1013), popularly known as al-Zahrawi (), Latinisation of names, Latinised as Albucasis or Abulcasis (from Arabic ''Abū al-Qāsim''), was an Arabs, Arab physician, su ...

), pharmacology (

Ibn Zuhr Abū Marwān ‘Abd al-Malik ibn Zuhr (), traditionally known by his Latinized name Avenzoar (; 1094–1162), was an Arab physician, surgeon, and poet. He was born at Seville in medieval Andalusia (present-day Spain), was a contemporary of A ...

), and

agronomy Agronomy is the science and technology of producing and using plants by agriculture for food, fuel, fiber, chemicals, recreation, or land conservation. Agronomy has come to include research of plant genetics, plant physiology, meteorology, and ...

(

Ibn Bassal Ibn Bassal () was an 11th-century Andalusian Arab botanist and agronomist in Toledo and Seville, Spain who wrote about horticulture and arboriculture. He is best known for his book on agronomy, the ''Dīwān al-filāha'' (An Anthology of Husb ...

and Abu'l-Khayr al-Ishbili). Al-Andalus became a conduit for cultural and scientific exchange between the Islamic and Christian worlds. For much of its history, al-Andalus existed in conflict with Christian kingdoms to the north. After the fall of the Umayyad caliphate, al-Andalus was fragmented into ''taifa'' states and principalities, some of which (such as the

Taifa of Toledo The Taifa of Toledo () was an Islamic polity (''taifa'') located in the centre of the Iberian Peninsula in the High Middle Ages. It was ruled by the Dhulnunids, a Hawwara Berber clan. It emerged after 1018 upon the fracturing of the Caliphate of ...

, the

Taifa of Zaragoza The taifa of Zaragoza () was an independent Arab Muslim state in the east of Al-Andalus (present-day Spain) with its capital in Saraqusta (Zaragoza) city. It was established in the early 11th century as one of the many Taifa kingdoms that foll ...

, the

Taifa of Seville The Taifa of Seville ( ''Ta'ifat-u Ishbiliyyah'') was an Arab kingdom which was ruled by the Abbadid dynasty. It was established in 1023 and lasted until 1091, in what is today southern Spain and Portugal. It gained independence from the Calipha ...

and the

Taifa of Badajoz The Taifa of Badajoz (from ) was a medieval Islamic Moorish kingdom located in what is now parts of Portugal and Spain. It was centred on the city of Badajoz which exists today as the first city of Extremadura, in Spain.Toledo in 1085, the Almoravid empire intervened and repelled attacks on the region, then brought al-Andalus under direct Almoravid rule. For the next century and a half, al-Andalus became a province of the Muslim empires of the Almoravids and their successors, the

Almohads The Almohad Caliphate (; or or from ) or Almohad Empire was a North African Berber Muslim empire founded in the 12th century. At its height, it controlled much of the Iberian Peninsula (Al-Andalus) and North Africa (the Maghreb). The Almohad ...

, both based in

Marrakesh Marrakesh or Marrakech (; , ) is the fourth-largest city in Morocco. It is one of the four imperial cities of Morocco and is the capital of the Marrakesh–Safi Regions of Morocco, region. The city lies west of the foothills of the Atlas Mounta ...

. Ultimately, the northern Christian kingdoms overpowered the Muslim states to the south. In the 13th century, most of the south quickly fell under Christian rule, with Gharb al-Andalus, the Guadalquivir Valley and Eastern al-Andalus falling to Portuguese, Castilian, and Aragonese conquests. This left the

, that was to become a tributary state of the Crown of Castile, as the remaining Muslim state on the Iberian Peninsula, and was surrendered in 1492 to the

Catholic Monarchs The Catholic Monarchs were Isabella I of Castile, Queen Isabella I of Crown of Castile, Castile () and Ferdinand II of Aragon, King Ferdinand II of Crown of Aragón, Aragon (), whose marriage and joint rule marked the ''de facto'' unification of ...

Etymology

The toponym ''al-Andalus'' is first attested by inscriptions on coins minted in 716 by the new Muslim government of Iberia. These coins, called ''

dinars The dinar () is the name of the principal currency unit in several countries near the Mediterranean Sea, with a more widespread historical use. The English word "dinar" is the transliteration of the Arabic دينار (''dīnār''), which was bor ...

'', were inscribed in both

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

and

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

. The etymology of the name ''al-Andalus'' has traditionally been derived from the name of the

Vandals The Vandals were a Germanic people who were first reported in the written records as inhabitants of what is now Poland, during the period of the Roman Empire. Much later, in the fifth century, a group of Vandals led by kings established Vand ...

(''vándalos'' in Spanish, ''vândalos'' in Portuguese). Since the 1980s, several alternative etymologies have challenged this tradition. In 1986, Joaquín Vallvé proposed that ''al-Andalus'' was a corruption of the name ''

Atlantis Atlantis () is a fictional island mentioned in Plato's works '' Timaeus'' and ''Critias'' as part of an allegory on the hubris of nations. In the story, Atlantis is described as a naval empire that ruled all Western parts of the known world ...

''. Heinz Halm in 1989 derived the name from a Gothic term, ''*landahlauts'', and in 2002, Georg Bossong suggested its derivation from a pre-Roman substrate.

History

Province of the Umayyad Caliphate

During the caliphate of the Umayyad Caliph

Al-Walid I Al-Walid ibn Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan (; – 23 February 715), commonly known as al-Walid I (), was the sixth Umayyad caliph, ruling from October 705 until his death in 715. He was the eldest son of his predecessor, Caliph Abd al-Malik (). As ...

, the commander Tariq ibn-Ziyad led an army of 7,000 that landed at

Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...

on April 30, 711, ostensibly to intervene in a

Visigothic The Visigoths (; ) were a Germanic people united under the rule of a king and living within the Roman Empire during late antiquity. The Visigoths first appeared in the Balkans, as a Roman-allied barbarian military group united under the comman ...

civil war. After a decisive victory over King

Roderic Roderic (also spelled Ruderic, Roderik, Roderich, or Roderick; Spanish language, Spanish and , ; died 711) was the Visigoths, Visigothic king in Hispania between 710 and 711. He is well known as "the last king of the Goths". He is actually an ex ...

at the

Battle of Guadalete The Battle of Guadalete was the first major battle of the Muslim conquest of the Iberian Peninsula, fought in 711 at an unidentified location in what is now southern Spain between the Visigoths under their king, Roderic, and the invading forces o ...

on July 19, 711, Tariq, accompanied by his ''

mawla ''Mawlā'' (, plural ''mawālī'' ), is a polysemous Arabic word, whose meaning varied in different periods and contexts.A.J. Wensinck, Encyclopedia of Islam 2nd ed, Brill. "Mawlā", vol. 6, p. 874. Before the Islamic prophet Muhammad, the te ...

'', governor

Musa ibn Nusayr Musa ibn Nusayr ( ''Mūsá bin Nuṣayr''; 640 – c. 716) was an Arab general and governor who served under the Umayyad caliph Al-Walid I. He ruled over the Muslim province of Ifriqiya, and directed the Islamic conquest of the Visigothic King ...

Ifriqiya Ifriqiya ( '), also known as al-Maghrib al-Adna (), was a medieval historical region comprising today's Tunisia, eastern Algeria, and Tripolitania (roughly western Libya). It included all of what had previously been the Byzantine province of ...

, brought most of the

Visigothic Kingdom The Visigothic Kingdom, Visigothic Spain or Kingdom of the Goths () was a Barbarian kingdoms, barbarian kingdom that occupied what is now southwestern France and the Iberian Peninsula from the 5th to the 8th centuries. One of the Germanic people ...

under Muslim rule in a seven-year campaign. They crossed the

Pyrenees The Pyrenees are a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. They extend nearly from their union with the Cantabrian Mountains to Cap de Creus on the Mediterranean coast, reaching a maximum elevation of at the peak of Aneto. ...

and occupied Visigothic

in southern France. Most of the Iberian peninsula became part of the expanding Umayyad Empire, under the name of ''al-Andalus''. It was organized as a province subordinate to

, so, for the first few decades, the governors of al-Andalus were appointed by the emir of

Kairouan Kairouan (, ), also spelled El Qayrawān or Kairwan ( , ), is the capital of the Kairouan Governorate in Tunisia and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The city was founded by the Umayyads around 670, in the period of Caliph Mu'awiya (reigned 661� ...

, rather than the Caliph in

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

. The regional capital was set at Córdoba, and the first influx of Muslim settlers was widely distributed. Following the Muslim conquest of Spain, al-Andalus, then at its greatest extent, was divided into five administrative units, corresponding very roughly to: modern

Andalusia Andalusia ( , ; , ) is the southernmost autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain, located in the south of the Iberian Peninsula, in southwestern Europe. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomou ...

; Castile and León;

Navarre Navarre ( ; ; ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre, is a landlocked foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, bordering the Basque Autonomous Community, La Rioja, and Aragon in Spain and New Aquitaine in France. ...

Aragon Aragon ( , ; Spanish and ; ) is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces of Spain, ...

, and

Catalonia Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006, Statute of Autonomy. Most of its territory (except the Val d'Aran) is situate ...

;

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

and Galicia; and the

Languedoc-Roussillon Languedoc-Roussillon (; ; ) is a former regions of France, administrative region of France. On 1 January 2016, it joined with the region of Midi-Pyrénées to become Occitania (administrative region), Occitania. It comprised five departments o ...

area of

Occitania Occitania is the historical region in Southern Europe where the Occitan language was historically spoken and where it is sometimes used as a second language. This cultural area roughly encompasses much of the southern third of France (except ...

. The small army Tariq led in the initial conquest consisted mostly of Berbers, while Musa's largely Arab force of over 12,000 soldiers was accompanied by a group of ''mawālī'' (Arabic, موالي), that is, non-Arab Muslims, who were clients of the Arabs. The Berber soldiers accompanying Tariq were garrisoned in the centre and the north of the peninsula, as well as in the Pyrenees, while the

Berber Berber or Berbers may refer to: Ethnic group * Berbers, an ethnic group native to Northern Africa * Berber languages, a family of Afro-Asiatic languages Places * Berber, Sudan, a town on the Nile People with the surname * Ady Berber (1913–196 ...

colonists who followed settled in all parts of the country north, east, south and west. Visigothic lords who agreed to recognize Muslim suzerainty were allowed to retain their fiefs (notably, in Murcia, Galicia, and the Ebro valley). Resistant Visigoths took refuge in the Cantabrian highlands, where they carved out a rump state, the

Kingdom of Asturias The Kingdom of Asturias was a kingdom in the Iberian Peninsula founded by the nobleman Pelagius who traditionally has been described as being of Visigothic stock. Modern research is leaning towards the view that Pelagius was of Hispano-Roman ...

In the 720s, the al-Andalus governors launched several ''sa'ifa'' raids into

Aquitaine Aquitaine (, ; ; ; ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Aguiéne''), archaic Guyenne or Guienne (), is a historical region of southwestern France and a former Regions of France, administrative region. Since 1 January 2016 it has been part of the administ ...

but were decisively defeated by Duke

Odo the Great Odo the Great (also called ''Eudes'' or ''Eudo'') (died 735–740), was the Duke of Aquitaine by 700. His territory included Vasconia in the south-west of Gaul and the Duchy of Aquitaine (at that point located north-east of the river Garonne), ...

of Aquitaine at the

Battle of Toulouse (721) The Battle of Toulouse (721) was a victory of an Aquitanian Christian army led by Odo the Great, Duke of Aquitaine over an Umayyad Muslim army besieging the city of Toulouse, led by al-Samh ibn Malik al-Khawlani, the Umayyad '' wāli'' (g ...

. However, after crushing Odo's Berber ally Uthman ibn Naissa on the eastern Pyrenees, Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi led an expedition north across the western Pyrenees and defeated the Aquitanian duke, who in turn appealed to the

Frankish Frankish may refer to: * Franks, a Germanic tribe and their culture ** Frankish language or its modern descendants, Franconian languages, a group of Low Germanic languages also commonly referred to as "Frankish" varieties * Francia, a post-Roman ...

leader

Charles Martel Charles Martel (; – 22 October 741), ''Martel'' being a sobriquet in Old French for "The Hammer", was a Franks, Frankish political and military leader who, as Duke and Prince of the Franks and Mayor of the Palace, was the de facto ruler of ...

for assistance, offering to place himself under Carolingian sovereignty. At the

Battle of Poitiers The Battle of Poitiers was fought on 19September 1356 between a Kingdom of France, French army commanded by King John II of France, King JohnII and an Kingdom of England, Anglo-Gascony, Gascon force under Edward the Black Prince, Edward, the ...

in 732, the al-Andalus raiding army was defeated by Charles Martel and Al Ghafiqi was killed. In 734, the Andalusi launched raids to the east, capturing

Avignon Avignon (, , ; or , ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of southeastern France. Located on the left bank of the river Rhône, the Communes of France, commune had a ...

and

Arles Arles ( , , ; ; Classical ) is a coastal city and Communes of France, commune in the South of France, a Subprefectures in France, subprefecture in the Bouches-du-Rhône Departments of France, department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Reg ...

and overran much of

Provence Provence is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which stretches from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the France–Italy border, Italian border to the east; it is bordered by the Mediterrane ...

. In 737, they traveled up the

Rhône The Rhône ( , ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Ròse''; Franco-Provençal, Arpitan: ''Rôno'') is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and Southeastern France before dischargi ...

valley, reaching as far north as

Burgundy Burgundy ( ; ; Burgundian: ''Bregogne'') is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. ...

. Charles Martel of the Franks, with the assistance of Liutprand of the

Lombards The Lombards () or Longobards () were a Germanic peoples, Germanic people who conquered most of the Italian Peninsula between 568 and 774. The medieval Lombard historian Paul the Deacon wrote in the ''History of the Lombards'' (written betwee ...

, invaded Burgundy and Provence and expelled the raiders by 739. In 740, a

Berber Revolt The Berber Revolt or the Kharijite Revolt of 740–743 AD (122–125 AH in the Islamic calendar) took place during the reign of the Umayyad Caliph Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik and marked the first successful secession from the Arab caliphate (ruled ...

erupted in the

Maghreb The Maghreb (; ), also known as the Arab Maghreb () and Northwest Africa, is the western part of the Arab world. The region comprises western and central North Africa, including Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, and Tunisia. The Maghreb al ...

(North Africa). To put down the rebellion, the Umayyad Caliph

Hisham Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan (; 6 February 743) was the tenth Umayyad caliph, ruling from 724 until his death in 743. Early life Hisham was born in Damascus, the administrative capital of the Umayyad Caliphate, in AH 72 (691–692 CE). Hi ...

dispatched a large Arab army, composed of regiments ('' Junds'') of Bilad Ash-Sham, to North Africa. But the great Umayyad army was crushed by the Berber rebels at the Battle of Bagdoura (in Morocco). Heartened by the victories of their North African brethren, the Berbers of al-Andalus quickly raised their own revolt. Berber garrisons in the north of the Iberian Peninsula mutinied, deposed their Arab commanders, and organized a large rebel army to march against the strongholds of Toledo, Córdoba, and Algeciras. In 741, Balj b. Bishr led a detachment of some 10,000 Arab troops across the

straits A strait is a water body connecting two seas or water basins. The surface water is, for the most part, at the same elevation on both sides and flows through the strait in both directions, even though the topography generally constricts the ...

. The Arab governor of al-Andalus, joined by this force, crushed the Berber rebels in a series of ferocious battles in 742. However, a quarrel immediately erupted between the Syrian commanders and the Andalusi, the so-called "original Arabs" of the earlier contingents. The Syrians defeated them at the hard-fought Battle of Aqua Portora in August 742 but were too few to impose themselves on the province. The quarrel was settled in 743 when Abū l-Khaṭṭār al-Ḥusām, the new governor of al-Andalus, assigned the Syrians to regimental fiefs across al-Andalus the Damascus jund was established in Elvira (

Granada Granada ( ; ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada (Spain), Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence ...

), the Jordan jund in Rayyu (

Málaga Málaga (; ) is a Municipalities in Spain, municipality of Spain, capital of the Province of Málaga, in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia. With a population of 591,637 in 2024, it is the second-most populo ...

and

Archidona Archidona is a town and municipality in the province of Málaga, part of the autonomous community of Andalusia in southern Spain. It is the center of the comarca of Nororiental de Málaga and the head of the judicial district that bears its name. ...

), the Jund Filastin in Medina-Sidonia and Jerez, the Emesa (Hims) jund in

Seville Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Guadalquivir, ...

and Niebla, and the Qinnasrin jund in Jaén. The Egypt jund was divided between Beja (

Alentejo Alentejo ( , , ) is a geographical, historical, and cultural region of south–central and southern Portugal. In Portuguese, its name means "beyond the Tagus" (). Alentejo includes the regions of Alto Alentejo Province, Alto Alentejo and Bai ...

) in the west and Tudmir (

Murcia Murcia ( , , ) is a city in south-eastern Spain, the Capital (political), capital and most populous city of the autonomous community of the Region of Murcia, and the Ranked lists of Spanish municipalities#By population, seventh largest city i ...

) in the east. The arrival of the Syrians substantially increased the Arab element in the Iberian peninsula and helped strengthen the Muslim hold on the south. However, at the same time, unwilling to be governed, the Syrian ''junds'' carried on an existence of autonomous feudal anarchy, severely destabilizing the authority of the governor of al-Andalus. A second significant consequence of the revolt was the expansion of the Kingdom of the Asturias, hitherto confined to enclaves in the Cantabrian highlands. After the rebellious Berber garrisons evacuated the northern frontier fortresses, the Christian king

Alfonso I of Asturias Alfonso I of Asturias, called the Catholic (''el Católico''), ( – 757) was the third king of Asturias, reigning from 739 to his death in 757. His reign saw an extension of the Christian domain of Asturias, reconquering Galicia and León. ...

set about immediately seizing the empty forts for himself, quickly adding the northwestern provinces of Galicia and León to his fledgling kingdom. The Asturians evacuated the Christian populations from the towns and villages of the Galician-Leonese lowlands, creating an empty buffer zone in the

Douro River The Douro (, , , ; ; ) is the largest river of the Iberian Peninsula by discharge. It rises near Duruelo de la Sierra in the Spanish province of Soria, meanders briefly south, then flows generally west through the northern part of the Meseta ...

valley (the " Desert of the Duero"). This newly emptied frontier remained roughly in place for the next few centuries as the boundary between the Christian north and the Islamic south. Between this frontier and its heartland in the south, the al-Andalus state had three large march territories (''thughur''): the

Lower March The Lower March (, ''al-Thaghr al-Adnā''; ) was a march of al-Andalus. It included territory that is now in Portugal. As a borderland territory, it was home to the so-called '' muwalladun'' or indigenous converts and their descendants, some of wh ...

(capital initially at Mérida, later

Badajoz Badajoz is the capital of the Province of Badajoz in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Extremadura, Spain. It is situated close to the Portugal, Portuguese Portugal–Spain border, border, on the left bank of the river ...

), the Middle March (centred at Toledo), and the

Upper March The Upper March (; Spanish ''Marca Superior'') was an administrative and military division in northeastern al-Andalus, roughly corresponding to the Ebro valley and adjacent Mediterranean coast, from the 8th century to the early 11th century. It ...

(centred at

Zaragoza Zaragoza (), traditionally known in English as Saragossa ( ), is the capital city of the province of Zaragoza and of the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. It lies by the Ebro river and its tributaries, the ...

). These disturbances and disorder also allowed the Franks, now under the leadership of

Pepin the Short the Short (; ; ; – 24 September 768), was King of the Franks from 751 until his death in 768. He was the first Carolingian dynasty, Carolingian to become king. Pepin was the son of the Frankish prince Charles Martel and his wife Rotrude of H ...

, to invade the strategic strip of

in 752, hoping to deprive al-Andalus of an easy launching pad for raids into

Francia The Kingdom of the Franks (), also known as the Frankish Kingdom, or just Francia, was the largest History of the Roman Empire, post-Roman barbarian kingdom in Western Europe. It was ruled by the Franks, Frankish Merovingian dynasty, Merovingi ...

. After a lengthy siege, the last Arab stronghold, the citadel of

Narbonne Narbonne ( , , ; ; ; Late Latin:) is a commune in Southern France in the Occitanie region. It lies from Paris in the Aude department, of which it is a sub-prefecture. It is located about from the shores of the Mediterranean Sea and was ...

, finally fell to the Franks in 759. Al-Andalus was sealed off at the Pyrenees. The third consequence of the Berber revolt was the collapse of the authority of the

Caliphate over the western provinces. With the Umayyad Caliphs distracted by the challenge of the

Abbasid The Abbasid Caliphate or Abbasid Empire (; ) was the third caliphate to succeed the prophets and messengers in Islam, Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib (566–653 C ...

s in the east, the western provinces of the Maghreb and al-Andalus spun out of their control. From around 745, the Fihrids, an illustrious local Arab clan descended from Oqba ibn Nafi al-Fihri, seized power in the western provinces and ruled them almost as a private family empire of their own

Abd al-Rahman ibn Habib al-Fihri ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Ḥabīb al-Fihrī () (died 755) was an Arab noble of the Fihrid family, and ruler of Ifriqiya (North Africa) from 745 through 755 AD. Background Abd al-Rahman ibn Habib was a great-grandson of Uqba ibn Nafi al-Fihri ...

in Ifriqiya and Yūsuf al-Fihri in al-Andalus. The Fihrids welcomed the fall of the Umayyads in the east, in 750, and sought to reach an understanding with the

Abbasids The Abbasid Caliphate or Abbasid Empire (; ) was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib (566–653 CE), from whom the dynasty takes i ...

, hoping they might be allowed to continue their autonomous existence. But when the Abbasids rejected the offer and demanded submission, the Fihrids declared independence and, probably out of spite, invited the deposed remnants of the Umayyad clan to take refuge in their dominions. It was a fateful decision that they soon regretted, for the Umayyads, the sons and grandsons of caliphs, had a more legitimate claim to rule than the Fihrids themselves. Rebellious-minded local lords, disenchanted with the autocratic rule of the Fihrids, conspired with the arriving Umayyad exiles.

Umayyad Emirate of Córdoba

Establishment

In 755, the exiled Umayyad prince

Abd al-Rahman I Abd al-Rahman ibn Mu'awiya ibn Hisham (; 7 March 731 – 30 September 788), commonly known as Abd al-Rahman I, was the founder and first emir of the Emirate of Córdoba, ruling from 756 to 788. He established the Umayyad dynasty in al-Andalus, ...

(also called ''al-Dākhil'', the 'Immigrant') arrived on the coast of Spain. He had fled the Abbasids, who had overthrown the Umayyads in Damascus and were slaughtering members of that family, and then he spent four years in exile in North Africa, assessing the political situation in al-Andalus across the Straits of Gibraltar, before he landed at

Almuñécar Almuñécar () is a Spanish city and municipalities of Spain, municipality located in the southwestern part of the comarcas of Spain, comarca of the Costa Granadina, in the province of Granada. It is located on the shores of the Mediterranean sea ...

. News of his arrival spread across al-Andalus, and when word reached its governor, Yūsuf al-Fihri, he was not pleased. During this time, Abd al-Rahman and his supporters quickly conquered

and then

, finally besieging the capital of al-Andalus, Córdoba. Abd al-Rahman's army was exhausted after their conquest, meanwhile Governor Yūsuf al-Fihri had returned from quashing another rebellion with his army. The siege of Córdoba began, and noticing the starving state of Abd al-Rahman's army, al-Fihri began throwing lavish feasts every day as the siege went on, to tempt Abd al Rahman's supporters to defect to his side. However, Abd al-Rahman persisted, even rejecting a truce that would have allowed Abd al-Rahman to marry al-Fihri's daughter. After decisively defeating Yūsuf al-Fihri's army, Abd al-Rahman was able to conquer Córdoba, where he proclaimed himself emir in 756. The rest of Iberia was easily conquered, and Abd al-Rahman soon had control of all of Iberia.

Rule

Abd al Rahman's rule was stable in the years after his conquest – he built major public works, most famously the Mosque of Córdoba, and helped urbanize the emirate while defending it from invaders, including the quashing of numerous rebellions, and decisively repelling the invasion by

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( ; 2 April 748 – 28 January 814) was List of Frankish kings, King of the Franks from 768, List of kings of the Lombards, King of the Lombards from 774, and Holy Roman Emperor, Emperor of what is now known as the Carolingian ...

(which would later inspire the epic,

Chanson de Roland The ''Song of Roland'' () is an 11th-century based on the deeds of the Frankish kingdom, Frankish military leader Roland at the Battle of Roncevaux Pass in AD 778, during the reign of the Charlemagne, Emperor Charlemagne. It is the oldest surv ...

). By far the most important of these invasions was the attempted reconquest by the

Abbasid Caliphate The Abbasid Caliphate or Abbasid Empire (; ) was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib (566–653 CE), from whom the dynasty takes ...

. In 763 Caliph

Al-Mansur Abū Jaʿfar ʿAbd Allāh ibn Muḥammad al-Manṣūr (; ‎; 714 – 6 October 775) usually known simply as by his laqab al-Manṣūr () was the second Abbasid caliph, reigning from 754 to 775 succeeding his brother al-Saffah (). He is known ...

of the Abbasids installed al-Ala ibn-Mugith as governor of Africa (whose title gave him dominion over the province of al-Andalus). He planned to invade and destroy the Emirate of Córdoba, so in response Abd al Rahman fortified himself within the fortress of Carmona with a tenth as many soldiers as al-Ala ibn-Mugith. After a long siege, it appeared that Abd al Rahman would be defeated, but in a last stand Abd al Rahman with his outnumbered forces opened the gates of the fortress and charged at the resting Abbasid army, and decisively defeated them. After being sent the embalmed head of al-Ala ibn-Mugith, it is said Al Mansur exclaimed "Praise be to God who has put the sea between me and this devil!" Abd al Rahman I died in 788 after a lengthy and prosperous reign. He was succeeded by his son,

Hisham I Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan (; 6 February 743) was the tenth Umayyad caliph, ruling from 724 until his death in 743. Early life Hisham was born in Damascus, the administrative capital of the Umayyad Caliphate, in AH 72 (691–692 CE). Hi ...

, who secured power by exiling his brother who had tried to rebel against him. Hisham enjoyed a stable reign of eight years and was succeeded by his son

Al-Hakam I Abu al-As al-Hakam ibn Hisham ibn Abd al-Rahman () was Umayyad Emir of Cordoba from 796 until 822 in Al-Andalus ( Moorish Iberia). Biography Al-Hakam was the second son of his father, his older brother having died at an early age. When he came ...

. The next few decades were relatively uneventful, with only occasional minor rebellions, and saw the rise of the emirate. In 822 Al Hakam died and was succeeded by

Abd al-Rahman II Abd ar-Rahman II (; 792–852) was the fourth ''Umayyad'' Emir of Córdoba in al-Andalus from 822 until his death in 852. A vigorous and effective frontier warrior, he was also well known as a patron of the arts. Abd ar-Rahman was born in Toledo ...

, the first great emir of Córdoba. He rose to power with no opposition and sought to reform the emirate. He quickly reorganized the bureaucracy to be more efficient and built many mosques across the emirate. During his reign science and art flourished, as many scholars fled the Abbasid caliphate due to the disastrous

Fourth Fitna The Fourth Fitna, Fourth Muslim Civil War, or Great Abbasid Civil War resulted from the conflict between the brothers al-Amin and al-Ma'mun over the succession to the throne of the Abbasid Caliphate. Their father, Caliph Harun al-Rashid, had name ...

. The scholar

Abbas ibn Firnas Abū al-Qāsim ʿAbbās ibn Firnās ibn Wardūs al-Tākurnī (; c. 809/810 – 887 CE), known as ʿAbbās ibn Firnās () was an Andalusi polymath: Lynn Townsend White, Jr. (Spring, 1961). "Eilmer of Malmesbury, an Eleventh Century Aviator: A C ...

made an attempt to fly, though accounts vary on his success. In 852 Abd al Rahman II died, leaving behind him a powerful and well-established state that had become one of the most powerful in the Mediterranean. Abd al Rahman was succeeded by

Muhammad I of Córdoba Muhammad I of Cordoba (; 823–886) was the Fifth Umayyad ruler of al-Andalus. He ruled during a time of thriving art, architecture and culture in Islamic Iberia in the 9th century, turning Cordoba into a cultural and political center. Reign ...

, who according to legend had to wear women's clothing to sneak into the imperial palace and be crowned, since he was not the heir apparent. His reign marked a decline in the emirate, which was ended by Abd al-Rahman III. His reign was marked by multiple rebellions, which were dealt with poorly and weakened the emirate, most disastrously following the rebellion of Umar ibn Hafsun. When Muhammad died, he was succeeded by emir Abdullah ibn Muhammad al-Umawi whose power barely reached outside of the city of Córdoba. As Ibn Hafsun ravaged the south, Abdullah did almost nothing, and slowly became more and more isolated, barely speaking to anyone. Abdullah purged his administration of his brothers, which lessened the bureaucracy's loyalty towards him. Around this time several local Arab lords began to revolt, including one Kurayb ibn Khaldun, who was able to conquer Seville. Some loyalists tried to quell the rebellion, but without proper material support, their efforts were in vain. He declared that the next emir would be his grandson Abd al-Rahman III, ignoring the claims of his four living children. Abdullah died in 912, and the throne passed to Abd al Rahman III. Through force of arms and diplomacy, he put down the rebellions that had disrupted his grandfather's reign, obliterating Ibn Hafsun and hunting down his sons. After this he led several sieges against the Christians, sacking the city of

Pamplona Pamplona (; ), historically also known as Pampeluna in English, is the capital city of the Navarre, Chartered Community of Navarre, in Spain. Lying at near above sea level, the city (and the wider Cuenca de Pamplona) is located on the flood pl ...

, and restoring some prestige to the emirate. Meanwhile, across the sea the

Fatimids The Fatimid Caliphate (; ), also known as the Fatimid Empire, was a caliphate extant from the tenth to the twelfth centuries CE under the rule of the Fatimid dynasty, Fatimids, an Isma'ili Shi'a dynasty. Spanning a large area of North Africa ...

had risen up in force, ousted the Abbasid government in North Africa, and declared themselves a caliphate. Inspired by this action, Abd al Rahman joined the rebellion and declared himself caliph in 929. For nearly 100 years under the Córdoban Umayyad period, from the 9th century to the 10th, al-Andalus also extended its presence from

Fraxinetum Fraxinetum or Fraxinet ( or , from Latin ''fraxinus'': " ash tree", ''fraxinetum'': "ash forest") was the site of a Muslim stronghold at the centre of a frontier state in Provence between about 887 and 972. It is identified with modern La Garde- ...

into the Alps with a series of organized raids.

Umayyad Caliphate of Córdoba

The period of the

Caliphate A caliphate ( ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with Khalifa, the title of caliph (; , ), a person considered a political–religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of ...

is seen as the

golden age The term Golden Age comes from Greek mythology, particularly the ''Works and Days'' of Hesiod, and is part of the description of temporal decline of the state of peoples through five Ages of Man, Ages, Gold being the first and the one during wh ...

of al-Andalus. Córdoba under the Caliphate, with a population of more than half a million, eventually overtook

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

as the largest and most prosperous city in Europe.Chandler, Tertius. ''Four Thousand Years of Urban Growth: An Historical Census'' (1987), St. David's University Press
etext.org
). . Al-Andalus became a centre for the arts, medicine, science, music, literature and philosophy. The work of its most important philosophers and scientists, such as

Abulcasis Abū al-Qāsim Khalaf ibn al-'Abbās al-Zahrāwī al-Ansari (;‎ c. 936–1013), popularly known as al-Zahrawi (), Latinised as Albucasis or Abulcasis (from Arabic ''Abū al-Qāsim''), was an Arab physician, surgeon and chemist from al-And ...

and

Averroes Ibn Rushd (14 April 112611 December 1198), archaically Latinization of names, Latinized as Averroes, was an Arab Muslim polymath and Faqīh, jurist from Al-Andalus who wrote about many subjects, including philosophy, theology, medicine, astron ...

, had a major influence on the intellectual life of medieval Europe. Muslims and non-Muslims often came from abroad to study at the libraries and universities of al-Andalus, and after the reconquest of Toledo, several translation institutions such as the Toledo School of Translators were established for translating books and texts from Arabic into Latin. The most noted figures in this being

Gerard of Cremona Gerard of Cremona (Latin: ''Gerardus Cremonensis''; c. 1114 – 1187) was an Italians, Italian translator of scientific books from Arabic into Latin. He worked in Toledo, Spain, Toledo, Kingdom of Castile and obtained the Arabic books in the libr ...

and

Michael Scot Michael Scot (Latin: Michael Scotus; 1175 – ) was a Scottish mathematician and scholar in the Middle Ages. He was educated at University of Oxford, Oxford and University of Paris, Paris, and worked in Bologna and Toledo, Spain, Toledo, where ...

, who took these works to Italy. The transmission of ideas significantly affected the formation of the European

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

.Perry, Marvin; Myrna Chase, Margaret C. Jacob, James R. Jacob
''Western Civilization: Ideas, Politics, and Society''
(2008), 903 pages, pp. 261–262. The Caliphate of Córdoba also had extensive trade with other parts of the Mediterranean, including Christian parts. Trade goods included luxury items (silk, ceramics, gold), essential foodstuffs (grain, olive oil, wine), and containers (such as ceramics for storing perishables). In the tenth century, Amalfitans were already trading

Fatimid The Fatimid Caliphate (; ), also known as the Fatimid Empire, was a caliphate extant from the tenth to the twelfth centuries CE under the rule of the Fatimid dynasty, Fatimids, an Isma'ili Shi'a dynasty. Spanning a large area of North Africa ...

and

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

silks in Córdoba. Later references to Amalfitan merchants were sometimes used to emphasize the previous golden age of Córdoba. Fatimid Egypt was a supplier of many luxury goods, including elephant tusks, and raw or carved crystals. The Fatimids were traditionally thought to be the only supplier of such goods, and control over these trade routes would be a cause for conflict between the Umayyads and Fatimids.

''Taifas'' period

The

effectively collapsed during a ruinous civil war between 1009 and 1013, although it was not finally abolished until 1031 when ''al-Andalus'' broke up into a number of mostly independent mini-states and principalities called ''

s''. In 1013, invading Berbers sacked Córdoba, massacring its inhabitants, pillaging the city, and burning the palace complex to the ground. The largest of the taifas to emerge were

(''Batalyaws''), Toledo (''Ṭulayṭulah''),

(''Saraqusta''), and

(''Ġarnāṭah''). After 1031, the ''taifas'' were generally too weak to defend themselves against repeated raids and demands for tribute from the Christian states to the north and west, which were known to the Muslims as "the Galician nations", and which had spread from their initial strongholds in Galicia,

Asturias Asturias (; ; ) officially the Principality of Asturias, is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in northwest Spain. It is coextensive with the provinces of Spain, province of Asturias and contains some of the territory t ...

Cantabria Cantabria (, ; ) is an autonomous community and Provinces of Spain, province in northern Spain with Santander, Cantabria, Santander as its capital city. It is called a , a Nationalities and regions of Spain, historic community, in its current ...

, the Basque country, and the

Carolingian The Carolingian dynasty ( ; known variously as the Carlovingians, Carolingus, Carolings, Karolinger or Karlings) was a Frankish noble family named after Charles Martel and his grandson Charlemagne, descendants of the Arnulfing and Pippinid c ...

Marca Hispanica The Spanish March or Hispanic March was a march or military buffer zone established c. 795 by Charlemagne in the eastern Pyrenees and nearby areas, to protect the new territories of the Christian Carolingian Empire—the Duchy of Gascony, the D ...

'' to become the Kingdoms of

, León,

, Castile and

, and the

County of Barcelona The County of Barcelona (, ) was a polity in northeastern Iberian Peninsula, originally located in the southern frontier region of the Carolingian Empire. In the 10th century, the Counts of Barcelona progressively achieved independence from F ...

. During the eleventh century several centres of power existed among the taifas, and the political situation shifted rapidly. Before the rise of the

Almoravids The Almoravid dynasty () was a Berber Muslim dynasty centered in the territory of present-day Morocco. It established an empire that stretched over the western Maghreb and Al-Andalus, starting in the 1050s and lasting until its fall to the Almo ...

from Africa or the Christians from the north, the Abbadid-ruled

succeeded in conquering a dozen lesser kingdoms, becoming the most powerful and renowned of the taifas, such that it could have laid claim to be the true heir to the Caliphate of Córdoba. The taifas were vulnerable and divided but had immense wealth. During its prominence the Taifa of Seville produced technically complex lusterware and exerted significant influence on ceramic production across al-Andalus. In the 1080s, the ''taifa'' kingdoms began to face an existential threat from the Christian kingdoms to the north, as Alfonso VI of Castile escalated attacks against them. In 1083, he led a punitive expedition against Seville that reached all the way to Tarifa at the southern tip of al-Andalus. In 1085, he annexed Toledo, a turning point which galvanized the remaining ''taifa'' leaders into seeking outside help.

Almoravids and Almohads

After the fall of Toledo, most of the major ''taifa'' rulers agreed to request the intervention of the Almoravids, a Berber empire based in

that had conquered much of northwest Africa. The Almoravid leader,

Yusuf Ibn Tashfin Yusuf ibn Tashfin, also Tashafin, Teshufin, (; reigned c. 1061 – 1106) was a Sanhaja leader of the Almoravid Empire. He cofounded the city of Marrakesh and led the Muslim forces in the Battle of Sagrajas. Yusuf ibn Tashfin came to al-And ...

, led several campaigns into al-Andalus, initially in defense of the ''taifa'' kingdoms. At the

Battle of Sagrajas The Battle of Sagrajas (23 October 1086), also called Zalaca or Zallaqah (), was a conflict fought in 1086 between the Almoravid dynasty, Almoravid army, led by their king, Yusuf ibn Tashfin, and the forces of King Alfonso VI of León and Cas ...

(or Battle of Zallaqa in Arabic), a Muslim army led by the Almoravids soundly defeated Alfonso VI. By 1090, however, Yusuf ibn Tashfin was disillusioned with the disunity of the ''taifa'' leaders and he returned on a campaign to conquer al-Andalus instead. Most of the ''taifas'', except for Zaragoza, were annexed by 1094. Valencia, which had come under the control of

El Cid Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar ( – 10 July 1099) was a Castilian knight and ruler in medieval Spain. Fighting both with Christian and Muslim armies during his lifetime, he earned the Arabic honorific ("the Lord" or "the Master"), which would evolve i ...

at the end of its taifa period, was eventually occupied in 1102, after El Cid's death. Zaragoza was annexed in 1110. Modern scholarship has sometimes admitted originality in North African architecture, but according to Yasser Tabbaa, historian of Islamic art and architecture, the Iberocentric viewpoint is anachronistic when considering the political and cultural environment during the rule of the Almoravid dynasty. The rise and fall of the Almoravids is sometimes seen as an expression of

Ibn Khaldun Ibn Khaldun (27 May 1332 – 17 March 1406, 732–808 Hijri year, AH) was an Arabs, Arab Islamic scholar, historian, philosopher and sociologist. He is widely acknowledged to be one of the greatest social scientists of the Middle Ages, and cons ...

asabiyyah 'Asabiyyah (, also 'asabiyya, 'group feeling' or 'social cohesion') is a concept of social solidarity with an emphasis on unity, group consciousness, and a sense of shared purpose and social cohesion, originally used in the context of tribalism ...

paradigm.

By 1147, the Almoravids were overthrown in North Africa by the

Almohad The Almohad Caliphate (; or or from ) or Almohad Empire was a North African Berber Muslim empire founded in the 12th century. At its height, it controlled much of the Iberian Peninsula (Al-Andalus) and North Africa (the Maghreb). The Almohad ...

s, another Berber dynasty, under the leadership of

Abd al-Mu'min Abd al-Mu'min (c. 1094–1163) (; full name: ʿAbd al-Muʾmin ibn ʿAlī ibn ʿAlwī ibn Yaʿlā al-Kūmī Abū Muḥammad) was a prominent member of the Almohad movement. Although the Almohad movement itself was founded by Ibn Tumart, Abd al-Mu' ...

. As Almoravid rule collapsed, another brief period of ''taifa'' kingdoms followed in al-Andalus, during which the Christian kingdoms expanded southward again. From 1146 onward, the Almohads intervened and took control of al-Andalus. One of Abd al-Mu'min's successors, Ya'qub al-Mansur, won a major victory over the Castilian

Alfonso VIII Alfonso VIII (11 November 11555 October 1214), called the Noble (El Noble) or the one of Las Navas (el de las Navas), was King of Castile from 1158 to his death and King of Toledo. After having suffered a great defeat with his own army at Alarc ...

at the

Battle of Alarcos Battle of Alarcos (July 18, 1195), was fought between the Almohads led by Abu Yusuf Ya'qub al-Mansur and King Alfonso VIII of Castile.''Medieval Iberia: an encyclopedia'', 42. It resulted in the defeat of the Kingdom of Castile, Castilian forc ...

in 1195. In 1212, a coalition of Christian kings under the leadership of Alfonso VIII defeated the Almohads at the

Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa The Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa, known in Islamic history as the Battle of Al-Uqab (), took place on 16 July 1212 and was an important turning point in the ''Reconquista'' and the Spain in the Middle Ages, medieval history of Spain. The Christian ...

. Almohad rule was diminished in prestige and in 1228 the Almohad caliph

al-Ma'mun Abū al-ʿAbbās Abd Allāh ibn Hārūn al-Maʾmūn (; 14 September 786 – 9 August 833), better known by his regnal name al-Ma'mun (), was the seventh Abbasid caliph, who reigned from 813 until his death in 833. His leadership was marked by t ...

withdrew from al-Andalus altogether. In this political vacuum, a new wave of ''taifa'' kingdoms emerged, which were progressively conquered by Portugal, Castile, and Aragon. Córdoba was conquered in 1236 and Seville was conquered in 1248. Some Muslim city-states, such as

and Niebla, survived as vassal kingdoms of Castile until the 1260s. Only the region of Granada remained unconquered.

Emirate of Granada, its fall, and aftermath

From the mid 13th to the late 15th century, the only remaining domain of al-Andalus was the

, the last Muslim stronghold in the Iberian Peninsula. The emirate was established by Muhammad ibn al-Ahmar in 1230 and was ruled by the

Nasrid dynasty The Nasrid dynasty ( ''banū Naṣr'' or ''banū al-Aḥmar''; ) was an Arab dynasty that ruled the Emirate of Granada from 1232 to 1492. It was the last Muslim dynasty in the Iberian Peninsula. Twenty-three sultans ruled Granada from the foun ...

, the longest reigning dynasty in the history of al-Andalus. Although surrounded by Castilian lands, the emirate was wealthy through being tightly integrated in Mediterranean trade networks and enjoyed a period of considerable cultural and economic prosperity. Despite internal conflicts, the Nasrids of Granada were able to survive in part by playing the Christian kingdoms of the north against each other, while at other times soliciting aid from the Marinids, a new Berber dynasty ruling in North Africa from their capital in Fez. For much of its existence, Granada paid tribute to the Castilian kings. Along with this political status, its favorable geographic location, with the

Sierra Nevada The Sierra Nevada ( ) is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primari ...

as a natural barrier, helped to prolong Nasrid rule. Granada also accommodated a large number of Muslim refugees fleeing the ''

'' or expelled from Christian-controlled territories, which grew the city and the emirate's population. The city even became one of the largest in Europe throughout the 15th century in terms of population. The most visible legacy of the Nasrids is the

Alhambra The Alhambra (, ; ) is a palace and fortress complex located in Granada, Spain. It is one of the most famous monuments of Islamic architecture and one of the best-preserved palaces of the historic Muslim world, Islamic world. Additionally, the ...

, their fortified palace complex, partly preserved today. The independent Nasrid kingdom was also a trade hub between the Atlantic and Mediterranean, and was frequented especially by Genoese merchants. The Marinids intervened in the south of the Iberian Peninsula multiple times up until their defeat at the Battle of Río Salado in 1340. After this, they ceased to play a major role. The subsequent internal turmoil within Castile, however, helped Nasrid Granada to enjoy a period of relative external peace and internal prosperity until the end of the 14th century, under the reigns of Yusuf I () and Muhammad V (). Important cultural figures, such as

Ibn al-Khatib Lisan ad-Din Ibn al-Khatib (; 16 November 1313 – 1374) was an Arab Andalusi polymath, poet, writer, historian, philosopher, physician and politician from Emirate of Granada. Being one of the most notable poets from Granada, his poems decorate ...

, Ibn Zamrak, and

all served in the Nasrid court during this period. In 1468, Isabella, the only child of

Henry IV of Castile Henry IV of Castile (Spanish language, Castilian: ''Enrique IV''; 5 January 1425 – 11 December 1474), nicknamed the Impotent, was King of Kingdom of Castile, Castile and Kingdom of León, León and the last of the weak late-medieval kings of Ca ...

, married

Ferdinand Ferdinand is a Germanic name composed of the elements "journey, travel", Proto-Germanic , abstract noun from root "to fare, travel" (PIE , "to lead, pass over"), and "courage" or "ready, prepared" related to Old High German "to risk, ventu ...

, the son of

John II of Aragon John II (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Juan II'', Catalan language, Catalan: ''Joan II'', Aragonese language, Aragonese: ''Chuan II'' and ; 29 June 1398 – 20 January 1479), called the Great (''el Gran'') or the Faithless (''el Sense Fe''), was ...

, and by 1479 they were rulers of a united Castile and Aragon. This development meant that Granada could no longer exploit divisions between the two kingdoms and the new royal couple, also known as the

, were united in their intention to conquer it. The final war to conquer Granada began in earnest in 1482. Year by year, the Christian advance captured new cities and fortresses until the last Nasrid ruler, Muhammad XII (known as Boabdil to the Christians), formally surrendered Granada to the Catholic Monarchs on 2 January 1492. Salida de la familia de Boabdil de la Alhambra

Salida de la familia de Boabdil de la Alhambra

By this time Muslims in Castile numbered half a million. After the fall, "100,000 had died or been enslaved, 200,000 emigrated, and 200,000 remained as the residual population. Many of the Muslim elite, including Muhammad XII, who had been given the area of the

Alpujarras The Alpujarra (, ) is a natural and historical region in Andalusia, Spain, on the south slopes of the Sierra Nevada and the adjacent valley. The average elevation is above sea level. It extends over two provinces, Granada and Almería; ...

mountains as a principality, found life under Christian rule intolerable and passed over into North Africa." Under the conditions of the Capitulations of 1492, the Muslims in Granada were to be allowed to continue to practice their religion. Mass forced conversions of Muslims in 1499 led to a

revolt Rebellion is an uprising that resists and is organized against one's government. A rebel is a person who engages in a rebellion. A rebel group is a consciously coordinated group that seeks to gain political control over an entire state or a ...

that spread to Alpujarras and the mountains of

Ronda Ronda () is a Municipalities in Spain, municipality of Spain belonging to the province of Málaga, within the autonomous community of Andalusia. Its population is about 35,000. Ronda is known for its cliffside location and a deep canyon that ca ...

; after this uprising the capitulations were revoked. In 1502 the Catholic Monarchs decreed the forced conversion of all Muslims living under the rule of the Crown of Castile, although in the kingdoms of

and

Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...

(both now part of Spain) the open practice of Islam was allowed until 1526. Descendants of the Muslims were subject to expulsions from Spain between 1609 and 1614 (see Expulsion of the Moriscos). The last mass prosecution against

Morisco ''Moriscos'' (, ; ; "Moorish") were former Muslims and their descendants whom the Catholic Church and Habsburg Spain commanded to forcibly convert to Christianity or face compulsory exile after Spain outlawed Islam. Spain had a sizeable Mus ...

s for

crypto-Islam Crypto-Islam is the secret adherence to Islam while publicly professing to be of another faith; people who practice crypto-Islam are referred to as "crypto-Muslims." The word has mainly been used in reference to Spanish Muslims and Sicilian Musli ...

ic practices occurred in Granada in 1727, with most of those convicted receiving relatively light sentences. The Morisco community including these final convicts kept their identity alive at least through the late eighteenth century.

Science

There was much scientific activity in Al-Andalus, especially in the fields of

medicine Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for patients, managing the Medical diagnosis, diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, ...

astronomy Astronomy is a natural science that studies celestial objects and the phenomena that occur in the cosmos. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and their overall evolution. Objects of interest includ ...

mathematics Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...

, and

. At the same time, Andalusi scholars were also highly active in

philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

(see below), especially in the field of

logic Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the study of deductively valid inferences or logical truths. It examines how conclusions follow from premises based on the structure o ...

. The earliest evidence of such activities in al-Andalus dates to the reign of Abd ar-Rahman II (), when developments were spurred by exposure to older works translated from, Greek, Persian and other languages. Scientific studies continued to be pursued in the following centuries, though certain fields and subjects thrived more depending on the period. Scholars often worked in many different and overlapping subjects, so it is difficult to place those discussed here into a single scientific field each.

Medicine

Albucasis blistering a patient in the hospital at Cordova

There were many notable surgeons, physicians, and medical scholars from al-Andalus including Ibn al-Baytar (d. 1248),

Abu al-Qasim al-Zahrawi Abū al-Qāsim Khalaf ibn al-'Abbās al-Zahrāwī al-Ansari (;‎ c. 936–1013), popularly known as al-Zahrawi (), Latinised as Albucasis or Abulcasis (from Arabic ''Abū al-Qāsim''), was an Arab physician, surgeon and chemist from al-And ...

(Albucasis; d. 1013), Muhammad al-Shafrah (d. 1360), Abu Marwan 'Abd al-Malik ibn Habib (d. 853), and Abu Marwan ibn Zuhr (Avenzoar; d. 1162). And of particular note is al-Zahrawi, who is considered by many to be "probably the greatest physician in the entire history of Western Islam." Around the year 1000 C.E, he wrote a book with a title that roughly translates to ''The Arrangement of Medical Knowledge for One Who is Not Able to Compile a Book for Himself'' (''Kitab al-tasrif li-man 'ajiza 'an al-ta'alif'')—a comprehensive medical encyclopedia with the goal of summarizing all existing medical knowledge and eliminating the need for students and practitioners to rely on multiple medical texts. The book is renowned for its chapter on surgery which included important illustrations of surgical instruments, as well as sections "on

cauterization Cauterization (or cauterisation, or cautery) is a medical practice or technique of burning a part of a body to remove or close off a part of it. It destroys some tissue in an attempt to mitigate bleeding and damage, remove an undesired growth, o ...

, on incisions,

venesection In medicine, venipuncture or venepuncture is the process of obtaining intravenous access for the purpose of venous blood sampling (also called ''phlebotomy'') or intravenous therapy. In healthcare, this procedure is performed by medical labor ...

and wounds, and on bone-setting." For hundreds of years after its publication it was one of the most widely used medical texts for students and medical practitioners and was translated into Hebrew, Latin, and Castilian. This encyclopedia is also significant for its inclusion of al-Zahrawi's personal experiences as a surgeon, which provided important case studies for aspiring surgeons. This distinguishes it from other strictly factual medical works of the time, most notably Ibn Sina's '' Canon of Medicine''. Other important medical texts include al-Baytar's ''Comprehensive Book on Simple Drugs and Foodstuffs''—an encyclopedia with descriptions of the medical uses of over 1400 plants and other types of medicine—and ibn Habib's ''Book of the Medicine of the Arabs'' (''Kitab tibb al-'arab'')—a historical summary of Arabic medicine until the 9th century. Ibn Habib's work is significant because it is one of the oldest known writings in the field of prophetic medicine, which uses

hadith Hadith is the Arabic word for a 'report' or an 'account f an event and refers to the Islamic oral tradition of anecdotes containing the purported words, actions, and the silent approvals of the Islamic prophet Muhammad or his immediate circle ...

s to create Islamic-based medicinal guidelines. His book is also significant because it uses principles of Galenic medicine, such as

humorism Humorism, the humoral theory, or humoralism, was a system of medicine detailing a supposed makeup and workings of the human body, adopted by Ancient Greek and Roman physicians and philosophers. Humorism began to fall out of favor in the 17th ce ...

and the theory of

four temperaments The four temperament theory is a proto-psychological theory which suggests that there are four fundamental personality types: sanguine, choleric, melancholic, and phlegmatic. Most formulations include the possibility of mixtures among the types ...

, as the basis of its medical recommendations. The ibn Zuhr family played a very important role in the production of Andalusi medical knowledge, as they produced five generations of medical experts, particularly in the fields of dietary sciences and medicaments. Abu Marwan ibn Zuhr (d. 1162) is particularly notable, as he wrote the ''Book of Moderation'' (''Kitab al-Iqtisad'')—a treatise on general therapy; the ''Book of Foods'' (''Kitab al-Aghdhiya'')—a manual on foods and regimen which contains guidelines for a healthy life; and the ''Kitab al-Taysir''—a book written to act as a compendium to Ibn Rushd's Colliget. In ''Kitab al-Taysir'' he provides one of the earliest clinical descriptions of the

scabies Scabies (; also sometimes known as the seven-year itch) is a contagious human skin infestation by the tiny (0.2–0.45 mm) mite ''Sarcoptes scabiei'', variety ''hominis''. The word is from . The most common symptoms are severe itchiness a ...

mite.

Astronomy

Three of the most notable Andalusi astronomers were

Ibn Tufail Ibn Ṭufayl ( – 1185) was an Arab Andalusian Muslim polymath: a writer, Islamic philosopher, Islamic theologian, physician, astronomer, and vizier. As a philosopher and novelist, he is most famous for writing the first philosophical nov ...

(d. 1185),

Ibn Rushd Ibn Rushd (14 April 112611 December 1198), archaically Latinized as Averroes, was an Arab Muslim polymath and jurist from Al-Andalus who wrote about many subjects, including philosophy, theology, medicine, astronomy, physics, psychology, math ...

(Averroes; d. 1198), and Nur ad-Din al-Bitruji (Alpetragius; d. 1204). All lived around the same time and focused their astronomical works on critiquing and revising

Ptolemaic astronomy In astronomy, the geocentric model (also known as geocentrism, often exemplified specifically by the Ptolemaic system) is a superseded description of the Universe with Earth at the center. Under most geocentric models, the Sun, Moon, stars, a ...

and the problem of the

equant Equant (or punctum aequans) is a mathematical concept developed by Claudius Ptolemy in the 2nd century AD to account for the observed motion of the planets. The equant is used to explain the observed speed change in different stages of the plane ...

in his astronomical model. Instead, they accepted

Aristotle Aristotle (; 384–322 BC) was an Ancient Greek philosophy, Ancient Greek philosopher and polymath. His writings cover a broad range of subjects spanning the natural sciences, philosophy, linguistics, economics, politics, psychology, a ...

's model and promoted the theory of homocentric spheres. Al-Bitruji is believed to have studied under Ibn Tufail and Bitruji's ''Book on Cosmology'' (''Kitab fi al-hay'a'') built on Ibn Tufail's work, as well as that of Ibn Rushd, Ibn Bajja, and Maimonides. The book's goal was "to overcome the physical difficulties inherent in the geometrical models of

Ptolemy Claudius Ptolemy (; , ; ; – 160s/170s AD) was a Greco-Roman mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were important to later Byzantine science, Byzant ...

's ''

Almagest The ''Almagest'' ( ) is a 2nd-century Greek mathematics, mathematical and Greek astronomy, astronomical treatise on the apparent motions of the stars and planetary paths, written by Ptolemy, Claudius Ptolemy ( ) in Koine Greek. One of the most i ...

'' and to describe the cosmos in agreement with Aristotelian or Neoplatonic physics," which it succeeded in doing to an extent. Bitruji's book set a precedent of criticizing the ''Almagest'' in future works in the field of astronomy. Although Ibn Rushd originally trained and practiced as a jurist, he was exposed to astronomy—possibly through Ibn Tufail—and became a renowned scientist in the field. His most popular work was his ''Summary of the Almagest'', but he also published shorter works discussing Aristotle's planetary theories. Ibn Rushd published writings on philosophy, theology, and medicine throughout his life too, including commentaries on the works of Ibn Sina. In addition to writing the important ''Book of the Medicine of the Arabs'', Ibn Habib also wrote the ''Book on Stars'' (''Kirab fi l-nujim''). This book included important "teachings on the lunar mansions, the signs of the zodiac, ndthe division of the seasons." In these teachings, Ibn-Habib calculated the phases of the moon and dates of the annual solstices and equinoxes with relative accuracy. Another important astronomer from al-Andalus was Maslama al-Majriti (d. 1007), who played a role in translating and writing about Ptolemy's ''

Planisphaerium The ''Planisphaerium'' is a work by Ptolemy. The title can be translated as "celestial plane" or "star chart". In this work Ptolemy explored the mathematics of mapping figures inscribed in the celestial sphere onto a plane by what is now known ...

'' and ''Almagest''. He built on the work of older astronomers, like

Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi , or simply al-Khwarizmi, was a mathematician active during the Islamic Golden Age, who produced Arabic-language works in mathematics, astronomy, and geography. Around 820, he worked at the House of Wisdom in B ...

, whose astronomical tables he wrote a discussion on and subsequently improved. Abu Ishaq Ibrahim al-Zarqali (d. 1087) had many influential astronomical successes, as shown by

Copernicus Nicolaus Copernicus (19 February 1473 – 24 May 1543) was a Renaissance polymath who formulated a mathematical model, model of Celestial spheres#Renaissance, the universe that placed heliocentrism, the Sun rather than Earth at its cen ...

's recognition of him in his ''

On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres ''De revolutionibus orbium coelestium'' (English translation: ''On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres'') is the seminal work on the Copernican heliocentrism, heliocentric theory of the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus (1473–1543) of the Rena ...

'' five centuries later. Along with other astronomers, he undertook extensive work to edit the Toledan Zij astronomical tables. He also accurately calculated the motion of the solar apogee to be 12.04 seconds per year, which is relatively close to today's calculation of 11.8 seconds per year.

Agronomy

Other important scientific advances in al-Andalus occurred in the field of

. These advances were in part facilitated by technological innovations in irrigation systems. State organized, large-scale irrigation projects provided water to city baths, mosques, gardens, residential homes, and governing palaces, such as the al-Hambra and its gardens in Granada. Collective, peasant-built irrigation infrastructure also played an important role, especially in agriculture. Many of these irrigation techniques, especially those utilized by peasants, were brought to al-Andalus by migrating

and Arab tribes. Although some irrigation projects built on existing

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

infrastructure, most of al-Andalus's irrigation systems were new projects built separate from old Roman aqueducts. However, there is some debate about this among scholars. One notable agriculturalist was

Ibn al-'Awwam Ibn al-'Awwam (), also called Abu Zakariya Ibn al-Awwam (), was an Al-Andalus agriculturist who flourished at Seville (modern-day southern Spain) in the later 12th century. He wrote a lengthy handbook on agriculture entitled in Arabic '' Kitāb al ...

, who wrote the ''Book of Agriculture''. This book contains 34 chapters about various aspects of agriculture and animal husbandry, including discussions of over 580 different types of plants and how to treat plant diseases. Other agronomic innovations in al-Andalus include the cultivation of the pomegranate from Syria, which has since become the namesake and ubiquitous symbol of the city of Granada, as well as the first attempt to create a botanical garden near Córdoba by '

Culture

Society

The society of al-Andalus was made up of three main religious groups: Muslims, Christians, and Jews. The Muslims, although united on the religious level, had several ethnic divisions, the main being the distinction between the Arabs and the

Berbers Berbers, or the Berber peoples, also known as Amazigh or Imazighen, are a diverse grouping of distinct ethnic groups indigenous to North Africa who predate the arrival of Arab migrations to the Maghreb, Arabs in the Maghreb. Their main connec ...

. The Arab elite regarded non-Arab Muslims as second-class citizens; and they were particularly scornful of the Berbers. The ethnic structure of al-Andalus consisted of Arabs at the top of the social scale followed by, in descending order, Berbers, Muladies, Mozarabes, and Jews. Each of these communities inhabited distinct neighborhoods in the cities. In the 10th century a massive conversion of Christians took place, and ''muladies'' formed the majority of Muslims. The Muwalladun had spoken in the local Romance dialects of Latin collectively called

Andalusi Romance Andalusi Romance, also called Mozarabic, refers to the varieties of Ibero-Romance that were spoken in Al-Andalus, the parts of the medieval Iberian Peninsula under Islamic control. Romance, or vernacular Late Latin, was the common tongue for th ...

or ''Mozarabic'' while increasingly adopting the Arabic language, which eventually evolved into the

Andalusi Arabic Andalusi Arabic or Andalusian Arabic () was a variety or varieties of Arabic spoken mainly from the 8th to the 15th century in Al-Andalus, the regions of the Iberian Peninsula under the Muslim rule. Arabic spread gradually over the centuries ...

in which Muslims, Jews, and Christians became monolingual in the last surviving Muslim state in the Iberian Peninsula, the Emirate of Granada (1230–1492). Muladies, together with other Muslims, comprised eighty per cent of the population of al-Andalus by 1100.

Mozarab The Mozarabs (from ), or more precisely Andalusi Christians, were the Christians of al-Andalus, or the territories of Iberia under Muslim rule from 711 to 1492. Following the Umayyad conquest of the Visigothic Kingdom in Hispania, the Christian ...

s were Christians who had long lived under Muslim and Arab rule, adopting many Arab customs, art and architecture, and words, while still maintaining their Christian and Latin rituals and their own

Romance languages The Romance languages, also known as the Latin or Neo-Latin languages, are the languages that are Language family, directly descended from Vulgar Latin. They are the only extant subgroup of the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-E ...

The Jewish population worked mainly as tax collectors, in

trade Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. Traders generally negotiate through a medium of cr ...

, or as doctors or ambassadors. At the end of the 15th century there were about 50,000

Jews Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

in Granada and roughly 100,000 in the whole of Islamic Iberia. Non-Muslims were given the status of '' ahl al-dhimma'' (people under protection), with adult men paying a "

Jizya Jizya (), or jizyah, is a type of taxation levied on non-Muslim subjects of a state governed by Sharia, Islamic law. The Quran and hadiths mention jizya without specifying its rate or amount,Sabet, Amr (2006), ''The American Journal of Islamic Soc ...

" tax equal to one dinar per year with exemptions for the elderly and the disabled. Those who were neither Christians nor Jews, such as pagans, were given the status of ''

Majus ''Majūs'' () or ''Magūs'' () was originally a term meaning Zoroastrianism, Zoroastrians, specifically priests. It was a technical term for the magi, and like its synonym ''gabr'' (of uncertain etymology) originally had no pejorative implicatio ...

''. The treatment of non-Muslims in the Caliphate has been a subject of considerable debate among scholars and commentators, especially those interested in drawing parallels to the co-existence of Muslims and non-Muslims in the modern world.

constituted more than five per cent of the population. Al-Andalus was a key centre of Jewish life during the early

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

, produced important scholars and was one of the most stable and wealthy Jewish communities. Andalus cantor

The longest period of relative tolerance began after 912, with the reign of

Abd-ar-Rahman III ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn al-Ḥakam al-Rabdī ibn Hishām ibn Abd al-Rahman I, ʿAbd al-Raḥmān al-Dākhil (; 890–961), or simply ʿAbd al-Raḥmān III, was the Umayyad dyna ...

and his son,

Al-Hakam II Al-Hakam II, also known as Abū al-ʿĀṣ al-Mustanṣir bi-Llāh al-Hakam b. ʿAbd al-Raḥmān (; 13 January 915 – 1 October 976), was the Caliph of Córdoba. He was the second Umayyad Caliph of Córdoba in Al-Andalus, and son of Abd-al-R ...

, and the Jews of al-Andalus prospered by devoting themselves to the service of the

, the study of the sciences, and to commerce and industry, especially by trading in

silk Silk is a natural fiber, natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be weaving, woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is most commonly produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoon (silk), c ...

and

slaves Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...

, which thus promoted the prosperity of the country. Southern Iberia became an asylum for the oppressed Jews of other countries. Under the

and the

, there may have been intermittent persecution of Jews, but sources are extremely scarce and do not give a clear picture though the situation appears to have deteriorated after 1160. Muslim

pogroms A pogrom is a violent riot incited with the aim of massacring or expelling an ethnic or religious group, particularly Jews. The term entered the English language from Russian to describe late 19th- and early 20th-century attacks on Jews i ...

against Jews in al-Andalus occurred in Córdoba (1011) and in Granada (1066).Schweitzer, Frederick M.; Marvin Perry. ''Anti-Semitism: myth and hate from antiquity to the present'', Palgrave Macmillan, 2002, , pp. 267–268. However, massacres of ''

dhimmis ' ( ', , collectively ''/'' "the people of the covenant") or () is a historical term for non-Muslims living in an Islamic state with legal protection. The word literally means "protected person", referring to the state's obligation under ''s ...

'' are believed to be rare in

Islamic history The history of Islam is believed, by most historians, to have originated with Muhammad's mission in Mecca and Medina at the start of the 7th century CE, although Muslims regard this time as a return to the original faith passed down by the Abra ...

. The Almohads, who had taken control of the Almoravids' Maghribi and Andalusi territories by 1147,"Islamic world". (2007). ''Encyclopædia Britannica''.
''Encyclopædia Britannica Online''. Retrieved September 2, 2007. far surpassed the Almoravides in fundamentalist outlook, and treated the non-Muslims harshly. Faced with the choice of either death or conversion, many Jews and Christians emigrated.Frank and Leaman, 2003, pp. 137–138. Some, such as the family of

Maimonides Moses ben Maimon (1138–1204), commonly known as Maimonides (, ) and also referred to by the Hebrew acronym Rambam (), was a Sephardic rabbi and Jewish philosophy, philosopher who became one of the most prolific and influential Torah schola ...

, fled east to more tolerant Muslim lands. Many ethnicities and religions co-existed in al-Andalus, each of which contributed to its intellectual prosperity. Literacy in Islamic Iberia was far more widespread than in many other nations in the West of the time. Though the number of the early inhabitants of al-Andalus after the 7th-century conquest was small, many native Iberian inhabitants converted to Islam, known as '' Muwalladun'' in Arabic or ''Muladíes'' in Spanish. By 1000, according to

Ronald Segal Ronald Michael Segal (14 July 1932 – 23 February 2008) was a South African activist, writer and editor, founder of the anti-apartheid magazine '' Africa South'' and the Penguin African Library. Life Ronald Segal was born on 14 July 1932, int ...

, some 5,000,000 of Iberia's 7,000,000 inhabitants, most of them descended from indigenous Iberian converts, were Muslim. There were also Sub-Saharan Africans who had been absorbed into al-Andalus to be used as soldiers and

. The Berber and Sub-Saharan African soldiers were known as "tangerines" because they were imported through

Tangier Tangier ( ; , , ) is a city in northwestern Morocco, on the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. The city is the capital city, capital of the Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima region, as well as the Tangier-Assilah Prefecture of Moroc ...

. In the 11th century, the Hindu-Arabic numeral system (base 10) had reached Europe via Al-Andalus through Spanish Muslims, together with knowledge of astronomy and instruments like the

astrolabe An astrolabe (; ; ) is an astronomy, astronomical list of astronomical instruments, instrument dating to ancient times. It serves as a star chart and Model#Physical model, physical model of the visible celestial sphere, half-dome of the sky. It ...

, which was first imported by Gerbert of Aurillac. For that reason, the numerals came to be known in Europe as

Arabic numerals The ten Arabic numerals (0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9) are the most commonly used symbols for writing numbers. The term often also implies a positional notation number with a decimal base, in particular when contrasted with Roman numera ...

despite their origins in India. From the earliest days, the Umayyads wanted to be seen as intellectual rivals to the Abbasids and for Córdoba to have libraries and educational institutions to that of their rival,

Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...

. Although there was a clear rivalry between the two powers, there was freedom to travel between the two caliphates, which helped spread new ideas and innovations over time.

Language

Multilingualism Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. When the languages are just two, it is usually called bilingualism. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolin ...

language contact Language contact occurs when speakers of two or more languages or varieties interact with and influence each other. The study of language contact is called contact linguistics. Language contact can occur at language borders, between adstratum ...

, and

code-switching In linguistics, code-switching or language alternation occurs when a speaker alternates between two or more languages, or language varieties, in the context of a single conversation or situation. These alternations are generally intended to ...

were important features of the shifting linguistic landscape in al-Andalus, which included

, in vernacular

and formal

Classical Arabic Classical Arabic or Quranic Arabic () is the standardized literary form of Arabic used from the 7th century and throughout the Middle Ages, most notably in Umayyad Caliphate, Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphate, Abbasid literary texts such as poetry, e ...

registers, vernacular

and formal

Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...

, and or

. Multilingual households were an attested phenomenon. Initially, most of the population spoke Romance dialects. The dialects of Iberian Romance that were spoken in al-Andalus are collectively referred to as

or Mozarabic. What is hypothesized about these dialects is based on sparse evidence, including Romance topographical and personal names and the '' kharjas'' of some ' poetry. Arabic arrived with the

Umayyad conquest of Hispania The Muslim conquest of the Iberian Peninsula (; 711–720s), also known as the Arab conquest of Spain, was the Umayyad Caliphate, Umayyad conquest of the Visigothic Kingdom, Visigothic Kingdom of Hispania in the early 8th century. The conquest re ...

in 711 and spread gradually over the following centuries, primarily through

conversion to Islam Reversion to Islam, also known within Islam as reversion, is adopting Islam as a religion or faith. Conversion requires a formal statement of the '' shahādah'', the credo of Islam, whereby the prospective convert must state that "there is none w ...

. Arabic in al-Andalus became the language of administration and of literature and a "vehicle for a higher culture, a literate and literary civilization." It was widely adopted by the end of the 9th century, even among Andalusi Christians and Jews, who wrote Arabic in Hebrew but did not have a distinct dialect. The

vernacular Vernacular is the ordinary, informal, spoken language, spoken form of language, particularly when perceptual dialectology, perceived as having lower social status or less Prestige (sociolinguistics), prestige than standard language, which is mor ...

varieties of Arabic spoken in al-Andalus, referred to as

, were

Maghrebi Arabic Maghrebi Arabic, often known as ''ad-Dārija'' to differentiate it from Literary Arabic, is a vernacular Arabic dialect continuum spoken in the Maghreb. It includes the Moroccan, Algerian, Tunisian, Libyan, Hassaniya and Saharan Arabic di ...

dialects influenced by their contact with Romance, just as Arabic influenced Spanish. By about 1260, following the

period, most Christians had migrated to the north and Muslim territories in Iberia were reduced to the

, in which more than 90% of the population had converted to Islam and Arabic-Romance bilingualism seems to have largely disappeared. ''Cited in'' The literary traditions of Hebrew—which was used for prayer and ceremonial writings, but not for oral communication—experienced a revolution through contact with Arabic and its literary traditions. Consuelo López Morillas writes that Jews in al-Andalus "wrote Hebrew poetry using Arabic prosodic models and adopted nearly the entire range of Arabic poetic genres and stylistic devices in Hebrew," looking to

Biblical Hebrew Biblical Hebrew ( or ), also called Classical Hebrew, is an archaic form of the Hebrew language, a language in the Canaanite languages, Canaanitic branch of the Semitic languages spoken by the Israelites in the area known as the Land of Isra ...

as a source for literary expression as Muslims looked to Quranic Arabic.

Berber languages The Berber languages, also known as the Amazigh languages or Tamazight, are a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. They comprise a group of closely related but mostly mutually unintelligible languages spoken by Berbers, Berber communities, ...

, referred to in contemporary sources as (, Arabic for 'the western tongue'), were especially present in periods of Berber rule, particularly under the

and

. Under Almohad rule, it was compulsory to deliver the ''khuṭba'' (sermon) at

Friday prayer Friday prayer, or congregational prayer (), is the meeting together of Muslims for communal prayer and service at midday every Friday. In Islam, the day itself is called ''Yawm al-Jum'ah'' (shortened to ''Jum'ah''), which translated from Arabic me ...

in Arabic and .

Literature and poetry

In al-Andalus, there are 11,831 known scholars who were active and 13,730 known works that were written or transmitted from the eighth to fifteenth centuries. Of these scholars, those who are well known and remembered in the West, such as

Ibn Hazm Ibn Hazm (; November 994 – 15 August 1064) was an Andalusian Muslim polymath, historian, traditionist, jurist, philosopher, and theologian, born in the Córdoban Caliphate, present-day Spain. Described as one of the strictest hadith interpre ...

, or

Ibn Arabi Ibn Arabi (July 1165–November 1240) was an Andalusian Sunni Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any successor and that his closest com ...

, are not necessarily the same scholars that are remembered in Islamic culture, such as Abū ʿUmar b. ʿAbd al-Barr, Abū l-Walīd al-Bājī, Ibn ʿAtịyya, Ibn al-ʿArīf, or Abū Isḥāq aš-Šāṭibī. Poetry was considered the prime literary genre in Arabic. Traditional forms of

Arabic poetry Arabic poetry ( ''ash-shi‘r al-‘arabīyy'') is one of the earliest forms of Arabic literature. Pre-Islamic Arabic poetry contains the bulk of the oldest poetic material in Arabic, but Old Arabic inscriptions reveal the art of poetry existe ...

from the

Mashriq The Mashriq (; ), also known as the Arab Mashriq (), sometimes spelled Mashreq or Mashrek, is a term used by Arabs to refer to the eastern part of the Arab world, as opposed to the Maghreb (western) region, and located in West Asia and easter ...

, or Muslim East, especially the

monometer In poetry, a monometer is a line of verse with just one metrical foot. Example Monometer can be exemplified by this portion of Robert Herrick's poem "Upon His Departure Hence":Works of Robert Herrick Vol 1 ed. Alfred Pollard, Lawrence & Bullen 18 ...

monorhyme Monorhyme is a passage, stanza, or entire poem in which all lines have the same end rhyme. The term "monorhyme" describes the use of one (mono) type of repetitious sound (rhyme). This is common in Arabic, Persian, Latin and Welsh work, such as '' Th ...

'' qaṣīda'' and the prosimetric ''maqāma'', were adopted in al-Andalus. The major Andalusi innovation in poetry was the ' rhyme revolution' embodied in the 10th-11th century

strophic Strophic form – also called verse-repeating form, chorus form, AAA song form, or one-part song form – is a song structure in which all verses or stanzas of the text are sung to the same music. Contrasting song forms include through-composed, ...

song form called the '' muwaššaḥ'' ('girdled'; pl. ''muwaššaḥāt''). The ''muwaššaḥ'' features a complex rhyme scheme usually containing five ''aghsān'' ('branches'; sing. ''ghusn''), with uniform rhyme within each strophe, interspersed with ''asmāṭ'' ('threads for stringing pearls'; sing. ''simṭ'') with common rhyme throughout the song, as well as a terminal '' kharja'', the song's final ''simṭ'', which could be in a different language. Andalusi ''

zajal ''Zajal'' () is a traditional form of oral Strophic form, strophic poetry declaimed in a colloquial dialect. The earliest recorded zajal poet was Ibn Quzman of al-Andalus who lived from 1078 to 1160. Most scholars see the Andalusi Arabic ''zajal' ...

'' was strophic poetry in Andalusi vernacular Arabic, usually associated with Ibn Quzman. Andalusi strophic poetry had an impact on poetic expression in Western Europe, especially the Old Occitan/Provençal

lyric Lyric may refer to: * Lyrics, the words, often in verse form, which are sung, usually to a melody, and constitute the semantic content of a song * Lyric poetry is a form of poetry that expresses a subjective, personal point of view * Lyric, from t ...

of the

troubadour A troubadour (, ; ) was a composer and performer of Old Occitan lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages (1100–1350). Since the word ''troubadour'' is etymologically masculine, a female equivalent is usually called a ''trobairitz''. The tr ...

s, and in the wider Muslim world. Hadith Bayad wa Riyad

'' Rithā' al-Andalus'' is considered the most significant of a series of poems that were written in the classical tradition of '' rithā''' (which denotes both lamentation and a literary genre in itself) by Andalusi poets who had taken inspiration from the fall of Andalusi cities and territories. Jewish poetry from Al-Andalus also developed, mostly but not exclusively in

, with significant consonance with Arabic poetry in both theme and form. One specialist of Al-Andalus' intellectual history, Maria Luisa Avila, says that "

biographical dictionaries A biographical dictionary is a type of encyclopedic dictionary limited to biographical information. Many attempt to cover the major personalities of a country (with limitations, such as living persons only, in ''Who's Who'', or deceased people ...

have recorded information about thousands of distinguished people in every period from al-Andalus, who were “cultivators of knowledge”'','' particularly in the legal-religious sciences as well as authors", and that "the exact number of scholars which appears in the biographical sources has not been established yet, but it surely exceeds six thousand." It has been estimated that in the 10th century between 70,000 and 80,000 manuscripts were copied on a yearly basis in Córdoba alone.

Music

The music of al-Andalus is part of an influential musical tradition.

Ziryab Abu al-Hasan 'Ali Ibn Nafi (; 789– 857), commonly known as Ziryab, was a singer, oud and lute player, composer, poet, and teacher. He lived and worked in what is now Iraq, Northern Africa and Andalusia during the medieval Islamic period. He ...

, a poet and musician, who came from the

Caliphate and arrived in Córdoba in 822, played a role in Andalusi music as well as other aspects of Andalusi culture. Poetic forms such as the ''

muwashshah ''Muwashshah'' ( ' ' girdled'; plural '; also ' 'girdling,' pl. ') is a strophic poetic form that developed in al-Andalus in the late 10th and early 11th centuries. The ', embodying the Iberian rhyme revolution, was the major Andalusi inno ...

'', the '' kharja'', the ''nawba'', and the ''

'' are prominent in Andalusi music.

Philosophy

Al-Andalus philosophy

The historian Said al-Andalus wrote that Caliph

had collected libraries of books and granted patronage to scholars of

and "ancient sciences". Later, ''al-Mustansir'' (

) went yet further, building a university and libraries in Córdoba. Córdoba became one of the world's leading centres of medicine and philosophical debate. When Al-Hakam's son

Hisham II Hisham II or Abu'l-Walid Hisham II al-Mu'ayyad bi-llah (, Abū'l-Walīd Hishām al-Muʾayyad bi-ʾllāh; 966 – 1044) (son of Al-Hakam II and Subh of Córdoba) was the third Umayyad Caliph of Spain, in Al-Andalus from 976 to 1009, and from 1 ...

took over, real power was ceded to the ''hajib'', al-Mansur Ibn Abi Aamir. Al-Mansur was a distinctly religious man and disapproved of the sciences of astronomy,

, and especially of

astrology Astrology is a range of Divination, divinatory practices, recognized as pseudoscientific since the 18th century, that propose that information about human affairs and terrestrial events may be discerned by studying the apparent positions ...

, so much so that many books on these subjects, which had been preserved and collected at great expense by

, were burned publicly. With Al-Mansur's death in 1002, interest in philosophy revived. Numerous scholars emerged, including Abu Uthman Ibn Fathun, whose masterwork was the philosophical treatise "Tree of Wisdom". Maslamah Ibn Ahmad al-Majriti (died 1008) was an outstanding scholar in astronomy and astrology; he was an intrepid traveller who journeyed all over the Islamic world and beyond and kept in touch with the

Brethren of Purity The Brethren of Purity (; also The Brethren of Sincerity) were a secret society of Muslim philosophers in Basra, Iraq, in the 9th or 10th century CE. The structure of the organization and the identities of its members have never been clear."Ha ...

. He is said to have brought the 51 " Epistles of the Brethren of Purity" to ''al-Andalus'' and added the compendium to this work, although it is quite possible that it was added later by another scholar with the name al-Majriti. Another book attributed to al-Majriti is the '' Ghayat al-Hakim'', "The Aim of the Sage", which explored a synthesis of

Platonism Platonism is the philosophy of Plato and philosophical systems closely derived from it, though contemporary Platonists do not necessarily accept all doctrines of Plato. Platonism has had a profound effect on Western thought. At the most fundam ...

with

Hermetic philosophy Hermeticism, or Hermetism, is a philosophical and religious tradition rooted in the teachings attributed to Hermes Trismegistus, a syncretism, syncretic figure combining elements of the Greek god Hermes and the Egyptian god Thoth. This system e ...

. Its use of incantations led the book to be widely dismissed in later years, although the

Sufi Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...

communities continued to study it. A prominent follower of al-Majriti was the philosopher and geometer

Abu al-Hakam al-Kirmani Abu al-Hakam al-Kirmani (; 970–1066) was a prominent philosopher and scholar from al-Andalus. He was born in Córdoba, Spain, Cordoba but lived most of his life in Saragossa after a journey in the East where he studied in Harran. He was student ...

who was followed, in turn, by Abu Bakr Ibn al-Sayigh, usually known in the Arab world as

Ibn Bajjah Abū Bakr Muḥammad ibn Yaḥyà ibn aṣ-Ṣā’igh at-Tūjībī ibn Bājja (), known simply as Ibn Bajja () or his Latinized name Avempace (; – 1138), was an Arab polymath, whose writings include works regarding astronomy, physi ...

, "

Avempace Abū Bakr Muḥammad ibn Yaḥyà ibn aṣ-Ṣā’igh at-Tūjībī ibn Bājja (), known simply as Ibn Bajja () or his Latinized name Avempace (; – 1138), was an Arab polymath, whose writings include works regarding astronomy, physic ...

". The al-Andalus philosopher

(1126–1198) was the founder of the

Averroism Averroism, also known as Rushdism, was a school of medieval philosophy based on the application of the works of 12th-century Andalusian philosopher Averroes, (Ibn Rushd in Arabic; 1126–1198) a commentator on Aristotle, in 13th-century Latin C ...

school of philosophy, and his works and commentaries influenced medieval thought in Western Europe. Another influential al-Andalus philosopher was

Jewish philosophy and culture

As Jewish thought in Babylonia declined, the tolerance of ''al-Andalus'' made it the new centre of Jewish intellectual endeavours. Poets and commentators like

Judah Halevi Judah haLevi (also Yehuda Halevi or ha-Levi; ; ; c. 1075 – 1141) was a Sephardic Jewish poet, physician and philosopher. Halevi is considered one of the greatest Hebrew poets and is celebrated for his secular and religious poems, many of whic ...

(1086–1145) and Dunash ben Labrat (920–990) contributed to the cultural life of ''al-Andalus'', but the area was even more important to the development of Jewish philosophy. A stream of Jewish philosophers, cross-fertilizing with Muslim philosophers (see joint Jewish and Islamic philosophies), culminated with the widely celebrated Jewish thinker of the Middle Ages,

(1135–1205), though he did not actually do any of his work in ''al-Andalus'', his family having fled persecution by the

around 1159.

Art and architecture

In Córdoba,

Abd ar-Rahman I Abd al-Rahman ibn Mu'awiya ibn Hisham (; 7 March 731 – 30 September 788), commonly known as Abd al-Rahman I, was the founder and first emir of the Emirate of Córdoba, ruling from 756 to 788. He established the Umayyad dynasty in al-Andalus, ...

built the

Great Mosque of Córdoba Great may refer to: Descriptions or measurements * Great, a relative measurement in physical space, see Size * Greatness, being divine, majestic, superior, majestic, or transcendent People * List of people known as "the Great" * Artel Great (bo ...

in 785. It was expanded multiple times up until the 10th century, and after the Reconquista it was converted into a Catholic cathedral. Its key features include a

hypostyle In architecture, a hypostyle () hall has a roof which is supported by columns. Etymology The term ''hypostyle'' comes from the ancient Greek ὑπόστυλος ''hypóstȳlos'' meaning "under columns" (where ὑπό ''hypó'' means below or und ...

hall with marble columns supporting two-tiered arches, a horseshoe-arch

mihrab ''Mihrab'' (, ', pl. ') is a niche in the wall of a mosque that indicates the ''qibla'', the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca towards which Muslims should face when praying. The wall in which a ''mihrab'' appears is thus the "''qibla'' wall". ...

, ribbed domes, a courtyard (''

sahn A ''sahn'' (, '), is a courtyard in Islamic architecture, especially the formal courtyard of a mosque. Most traditional mosques have a large central ''sahn'', which is surrounded by a ''Riwaq (arcade), riwaq'' or arcade (architecture), arcade on ...

'') with gardens, and a

minaret A minaret is a type of tower typically built into or adjacent to mosques. Minarets are generally used to project the Muslim call to prayer (''adhan'') from a muezzin, but they also served as landmarks and symbols of Islam's presence. They can h ...

(later converted into a

bell tower A bell tower is a tower that contains one or more bells, or that is designed to hold bells even if it has none. Such a tower commonly serves as part of a Christian church, and will contain church bells, but there are also many secular bell to ...

). Abd ar-Rahman III, at the height of his power, began construction of Madinat al-Zahra, a luxurious palace-city to serve as a new capital. The Umayyads also reconstructed the Roman-era bridge over the Guadalquivir River in Córdoba, while the Almohads later added the Calahorra Tower to the bridge. The Bab al-Mardum Mosque (later converted to a church) in Toledo is a well-preserved example of a small neighbourhood mosque built at the end of the Caliphate period. The official workshops of the Caliphate, such as those at Madinat al-Zahra, produced luxury goods for use at court or as gifts for guests, allies, and diplomats, which stimulated artistic production. Many objects produced in the caliph's workshops later made their way into the collections of museums and Christian cathedrals in Europe. Among the most famous objects of this period are ivory boxes which are carved with vegetal, figurative, and epigraphic motifs. Notable surviving examples include the Pyxis of al-Mughira, the Pyxis of Zamora, and the Leyre Casket. During the Taifas period, art and culture continued to flourish despite the political fragmentation of Al-Andalus. The Aljaferia Palace of Zaragoza is the most significant palace preserved from this period, featuring complex ornamental arcades and

stucco Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and ...

decoration. In other cities, a number of important palaces or fortresses were begun or expanded by local dynasties such as the Alcazaba of Málaga and the Alcazaba of Almería. Other examples of architecture from around this period include the Bañuelo of Granada, an Islamic bathhouse.In Seville, Almohad rulers built the Great Mosque of Seville (later transformed into the Cathedral of Seville), which consisted of a hypostyle prayer hall, a courtyard (now known as the ''Patio de los Naranjos'' or Court of Oranges), and a massive minaret tower now known as the

Giralda The Giralda ( ) is the bell tower of Seville Cathedral in Seville, Spain. It was built as the minaret for the Great Mosque of Seville in al-Andalus, during the reign of the Almohad dynasty, with a Renaissance-style belfry added by the Catholics ...

. The minaret was later expanded after being converted into a bell tower for the current cathedral. Almohad architecture promoted new forms and decorative designs such as the

multifoil arch A multifoil arch (or polyfoil arch), also known as a cusped arch, polylobed arch, or scalloped arch, is an arch characterized by multiple circular arcs or leaf shapes (called foils, lobes, or cusps) that are cut into its interior profile or intra ...

and the sebka motif, probably influenced by the Caliphate-period architecture of Córdoba. Artists and intellectuals took refuge at Granada after the Christian kingdoms expanded significantly in the 13th century. The palaces of the

and the

Generalife The Generalife (; ) was a summer palace and country estate of the Nasrid rulers of the Emirate of Granada in Al-Andalus. It is located directly east of and uphill from the Alhambra palace complex in Granada, Spain. Etymology The most commonly c ...

in Granada reflect the culture and art of the last centuries of Muslim rule of Al-Andalus. The complex was begun by Ibn al-Ahmar, the first Nasrid emir, and the last major additions were made during the reigns of Yusuf I (1333–1353) and Muhammad V (1353–1391). It integrates buildings and gardens with the natural qualities of the site and is a testament to Andalusi culture and to the skills of the Muslim artisans, craftsmen, and builders of their era. Nasrid architecture continued the earlier traditions of Andalusi architecture while also synthesizing them into its own distinctive style, which had many similarities with contemporary Marinid architecture in North Africa. It is characterized by the use of the

courtyard A courtyard or court is a circumscribed area, often surrounded by a building or complex, that is open to the sky. Courtyards are common elements in both Western and Eastern building patterns and have been used by both ancient and contemporary a ...

as a central space and basic unit around which other halls and rooms were organized. Courtyards typically had water features at their centre, such as a reflective pool or a fountain. Decoration was focused on the inside of buildings and was executed primarily with tile mosaics on lower walls and carved stucco on the upper walls. Geometric patterns, vegetal motifs, and

calligraphy Calligraphy () is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instruments. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "the art of giving form to signs in an e ...

were the main types of decorative motifs. Additionally, "stalactite"-like sculpting, known as

muqarnas Muqarnas (), also known in Iberian architecture as Mocárabe (from ), is a form of three-dimensional decoration in Islamic architecture in which rows or tiers of niche-like elements are projected over others below. It is an archetypal form of I ...

, was used for three-dimensional features like vaulted ceilings, particularly during the reign of Muhammad V and after. Even after Muslim territories were conquered by the Christian kingdoms, Andalusi art and architecture continued to appear for many centuries as a prestigious style under new Christian patrons employing Muslim craftsmen, originating the Mozarabic art in the Kingdom of Leon during the 10th century and becoming what is known as the

Mudéjar style Mudéjar were Muslims who remained in Iberia in the late medieval period following the Christian reconquest. It is also a term for Mudéjar art, which was greatly influenced by Islamic art, but produced typically by Christian craftsmen for Chri ...

(named after the

Mudéjar Mudéjar were Muslims who remained in Iberia in the late medieval period following the Christian reconquest. It is also a term for Mudéjar art, which was greatly influenced by Islamic art, but produced typically by Christian craftsmen for C ...

s or Muslims under Christian rule). Numerous examples are found in the early churches of Toledo (e.g. the Church of San Román, 13th century) and in the cities of Aragon such as Zaragoza and

Teruel Teruel () is a city in Aragon, located in eastern Spain, and is also the capital of Teruel (province), Teruel Province. It had a population of 35,900 as of 2022, making it the least populated provincial capital in Spain. It is noted for its har ...

. Among the most famous examples is the

Alcázar of Seville The Alcázar of Seville, officially called Royal Alcázar of Seville (), is a historic royal palace in Seville, Spain. It was formerly the site of the Al-Andalus, Islamic-era citadel of the city, begun in the 10th century and then developed into ...

, the former Abbadid and Almohad palace redeveloped by Christian rulers such as Peter of Castile, who in 1364 started adding new Moorish-style sections with the help of Muslim craftsmen from Granada and Toledo. Some surviving 13th and 14th-century

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

synagogue A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...

s were also built (or rebuilt) in Mudéjar style under Christian rule, such as the Synagogue of Santa Maria la Blanca in Toledo (rebuilt in its current form circa 1250), the Synagogue of Córdoba (1315), and the Synagogue of El Tránsito (1355–1357).

Food and agriculture

Crops produced using irrigation, along with food imported from the Middle East, provided areas around ''Andalusī'' cities with an agricultural economic sector that was the most advanced in Europe by far, sparking the

Arab Agricultural Revolution The Arab Agricultural Revolution was the transformation in agriculture in the Old World during the Islamic Golden Age (8th to 13th centuries). The agronomic literature of the time, with major books by Ibn Bassal and Ibn al-'Awwam, demonstrates t ...

. A variety of foodstuffs, spices and crops were introduced to Spain and

Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...

during Arab rule, via the commercial networks of the Islamic world. These include sugarcane, rice, cotton, alfalfa, oranges, lemons, apricots, spinach, eggplants, carrots,

saffron Saffron () is a spice derived from the flower of '' Crocus sativus'', commonly known as the "saffron crocus". The vivid crimson stigma and styles, called threads, are collected and dried for use mainly as a seasoning and colouring agent ...

and bananas. The Arabs also continued extensive cultivation and production of olive oil (the Spanish words for 'oil' and 'olive'—''aceite'' and ''aceituna'', respectively—are derived from the Arabic ''al-zait'', meaning 'olive juice'), and pomegranates (the heraldic symbol of Granada) from classical

Greco-Roman The Greco-Roman world , also Greco-Roman civilization, Greco-Roman culture or Greco-Latin culture (spelled Græco-Roman or Graeco-Roman in British English), as understood by modern scholars and writers, includes the geographical regions and co ...

times. Arabic influence still lingers on in Spanish cuisine through these fruits, vegetables, spices and cooking and agricultural techniques. One of the largest palm groves in the world, called the Palmeral of Elche, was established by the Arabs between the 7th–10th centuries to facilitate fruit (including pomegranate and date crops) and vegetable growth underneath the cool shade of palm trees and irrigation channels, and is cited by

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

as an example of the transfer of agricultural practices from one continent (North Africa) to another (Iberian Peninsula of Europe). The period of Arab rule also involved the extension of Roman irrigation channels as well as the introduction of novel irrigation techniques from the

Persianate A Persianate society is a society that is based on or strongly influenced by the Persian language, culture, literature, art and/or identity. The term "Persianate" is a neologism credited to Marshall Hodgson. In his 1974 book, ''The Venture of I ...

world, such as the ''

acequia An acequia () or (, also known as síquia , all from ) is a community-operated watercourse used in Spain and former Spanish colonies in the Americas for irrigation. Acequias are found in parts of Spain, the Andes, northern Mexico, and what i ...

'' (deriving from the classical Arabic ''as-sāqiya'') – subterranean channels used to transport water from highland aquifers to lowland fields in arid environments –first originating in either the Arabian Peninsula or the

Persian Empire The Achaemenid Empire or Achaemenian Empire, also known as the Persian Empire or First Persian Empire (; , , ), was an Iranian empire founded by Cyrus the Great of the Achaemenid dynasty in 550 BC. Based in modern-day Iran, it was the larg ...

(referred to as ''qanat'' or ''karez'' in the Middle East). These structures are still found in Andalusia province, particularly in Granada. The confection ''

alfajor An ''alfajor'' or ''alajú'' (, plural ''alfajores'') is a traditional confection typically made of flour, honey, and nuts. It is found in Argentina, Chile., Paraguay, Bolivia, the Philippines, Southern Brazil, Southern France, Spain, Uruguay, ...

'' (supposedly from ) has its origins in al-Andalus.

Homosexuality and pederasty

The ''

Encyclopedia of Homosexuality The ''Encyclopedia of Homosexuality'' (1990) was edited by Wayne R. Dynes, with the assistance of associate editors William Armstrong Percy III, William A. Percy, Warren Johansson, and Stephen Donaldson (activist), Stephen Donaldson. It was publis ...

'' states that "Al-Andalus had many links to Hellenistic culture, and except for the Almoravid and Almohadic periods (1086–1212), it was hedonistic and tolerant of homosexuality, indeed one of the times in world history in which sensuality of all sorts has been most openly enjoyed. Important rulers such as Abd al-Rahman III, al-Hakam II, Hisham II, and al-Mu-tamid openly chose boys as sexual partners, and kept catamites. Homosexual prostitution was widespread, and its customers came from higher levels of society than those of heterosexual prostitutes." The verses of Ibn Quzman describe an openly bisexual lifestyle. Andalusi anthologies of poetry such as the '' Rāyāt al-mubarrizīn wa-ghāyāt al-mumayyazīn'' are known in part for their homoerotic and "abundant pederastic poetry". Such themes were also found in the Sephardic Jewish poetry of the time. In the book ''Medieval Iberia: An Encyclopedia'', Daniel Eisenberg describes

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or Human sexual activity, sexual behavior between people of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexu ...

as "a key symbolic issue throughout the Middle Ages in Iberia", stating that "in al-Andalus homosexual pleasures were much indulged in by the intellectual and political elite. Evidence includes the behaviour of rulers, such as Abd al-Rahmn III, Al-Hakam II, Hisham II, and Al Mu'tamid, who openly kept male harems; the memoirs of Abdallah ibn Buluggin, last Zirid king of Granada, makes references to male prostitutes, who charged higher fees and had a higher class of clientele than did their female counterparts: the repeated criticisms of Christians; and especially the abundant poetry. Both

pederasty Pederasty or paederasty () is a sexual relationship between an adult man and an adolescent boy. It was a socially acknowledged practice in Ancient Greece and Rome and elsewhere in the world, such as Pre-Meiji Japan. In most countries today, ...

and love between adult males are found. Although homosexual practices were never officially condoned, prohibitions against them were rarely enforced, and usually there was not even a pretense of doing so." Male homosexual relations allowed nonprocreative sexual practices and were not seen as a form of identity. Very little is known about the homosexual behaviour of women.

Slavery

Slavery existed in Muslim al-Andalus as well as in the Christian kingdoms, and both sides of the religious border followed the custom of not enslaving people of their own religion. Consequently, Muslims were enslaved in Christian lands, while Christians and other non-Muslims were enslaved in al-Andalus. The Moors imported white Christian slaves from the 8th century until the end of the

in the late 15th century. The slaves were exported from the Christian section of Spain, as well as Eastern Europe (''

Saqaliba Saqaliba (, singular ) is a term used in medieval Arabic sources to refer to Slavs, and other peoples of Central, Southern, and Eastern Europe. The term originates from the Middle Greek '' slavos/sklavenos'' (Slav), which in Hispano-Ara ...

''). Saqaliba slavery in al-Andalus was especially prominent in the

where white slaves constituted most of the administrative personnel in the courts and palaces. The slaves of the Caliph were often European

saqaliba Saqaliba (, singular ) is a term used in medieval Arabic sources to refer to Slavs, and other peoples of Central, Southern, and Eastern Europe. The term originates from the Middle Greek '' slavos/sklavenos'' (Slav), which in Hispano-Ara ...

slaves trafficked from Northern or Eastern Europe. While male saqaliba could be given work in a number of tasks, such as offices in the kitchen, falconry, mint, textile workshops, the administration or the royal guard (in the case of

harem A harem is a domestic space that is reserved for the women of the house in a Muslim family. A harem may house a man's wife or wives, their pre-pubescent male children, unmarried daughters, female domestic Domestic worker, servants, and other un ...

guards, they were castrated), female saqaliba were placed in the harem. The harem could contain thousands of slave concubines; the harem of

consisted of 6,300 women. They were appreciated for their light skin. The concubines ( jawaris) were educated in accomplishments to please their master, and many became known and respected for their knowledge in a variety of subjects from music to medicine. Jawaris concubines who gave birth to a child attained the status of an ''

umm walad In the Muslim world, the title of ''umm al-walad'' () was given to a Concubinage in Islam, slave-concubine who had given birth to a child acknowledged by her master as his. These women were regarded as property and could be sold by their owners, ...

'', which meant that they could no longer be sold and were to be set free after the death of her master.

Legacy

As Andalusi cities were conquered by Leon, Castile, and other Christian Spanish kingdoms, Christian monarchs such as

Alfonso X of Castile Alfonso X (also known as the Wise, ; 23 November 1221 – 4 April 1284) was King of Castile, Kingdom of León, León and Kingdom of Galicia, Galicia from 1 June 1252 until his death in 1284. During the April 1257 Imperial election, election of 1 ...

started translating the mountainous libraries of al-Andalus into Latin. These libraries contained translations of Ancient Greek texts, as well as new ones made by Muslims in the

Islamic Golden Age The Islamic Golden Age was a period of scientific, economic, and cultural flourishing in the history of Islam, traditionally dated from the 8th century to the 13th century. This period is traditionally understood to have begun during the reign o ...

. That, combined with the interaction with Muslims during the

Crusades The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and at times directed by the Papacy during the Middle Ages. The most prominent of these were the campaigns to the Holy Land aimed at reclaiming Jerusalem and its surrounding t ...

, and the

Fall of Constantinople The Fall of Constantinople, also known as the Conquest of Constantinople, was the capture of Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire by the Ottoman Empire. The city was captured on 29 May 1453 as part of the culmination of a 55-da ...

introducing Greek scholars to the west, helped launch the

. Scientists and philosophers such as

and

Al-Zahrawi Abū al-Qāsim Khalaf ibn al-'Abbās al-Zahrāwī al-Ansari (;‎ c. 936–1013), popularly known as al-Zahrawi (), Latinisation of names, Latinised as Albucasis or Abulcasis (from Arabic ''Abū al-Qāsim''), was an Arabs, Arab physician, su ...

(fathers of rationalism and surgery, respectively) heavily inspired the Renaissance, and their ideas are still world renowned to this day. Al Andalus has also left art and architecture and has some of the best preserved

architecture in the world, with examples including the Cathedral of Córdoba, the

, the

and many more. As a result of the Reconquista and fall of many important Andalusi cities, substantial numbers of Andalusi migrated to the Maghreb where they found place at the courts of Maghrebi rulers. Many of the elite Andalusi immigrants were Arabs. For a variety of reasons, "Andalusi" came to be almost synonymous with "Arab" in the Maghreb. In the Iberian Peninsula, some Muslims converted to Christianity and remained permanently after the end of the ''Reconquista''. This is indicated by a "high mean proportion of ancestry from North African (10.6%)" that "attests to a high level of religious conversion (whether voluntary or enforced), driven by historical episodes of social and religious intolerance, that ultimately led to the integration of descendants."Elena Bosch, "The religious conversions of Jews and Muslims have had a profound impact on the population of the Iberian Peninsula"
, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, 2008, Quote: "The study shows that religious conversions and the subsequent marriages between people of different lineage had a relevant impact on modern populations both in Spain, especially in the Balearic Islands, and in Portugal."

Notes

References

Bibliography

* Alfonso, Esperanza, 2007. ''Islamic Culture Through Jewish Eyes: al-Andalus from the Tenth to Twelfth Century''. NY: Routledge. * Al-Djazairi, Salah Eddine 2005. ''The Hidden Debt to Islamic Civilisation''. Manchester: Bayt Al-Hikma Press. * * * Bossong, Georg. 2002. "Der Name ''Al-Andalus'': Neue Überlegungen zu einem alten Problem", ''Sounds and Systems: Studies in Structure and Change. A Festschrift for Theo Vennemann'', eds. David Restle & Dietmar Zaefferer. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter, pp. 149–164. (In German) Also availabl
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* Calderwood, Eric. 2018. ''Colonial al-Andalus : Spain and the making of modern Moroccan culture''. Harvard University Press * * Cohen, Mark. 1994. ''Under Crescent and Cross: The Jews in the Middle Ages''. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. * Collins, Roger. 1989. ''The Arab Conquest of Spain, 710–797'', Oxford: Blackwell. * * Fernandez-Morera, Dario. 2016. ''The Myth of the Andalusian Paradise: Muslims, Christians, and Jews under Islamic Rule in Medieval Spain''. NY: Intercollegiate Studies Institute. * Frank, Daniel H. & Leaman, Oliver. 2003. ''The Cambridge Companion to Medieval Jewish Philosophy''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. * Gerli, E. Michael, ed., 2003. ''Medieval Iberia: An Encyclopedia''. NY: Routledge. * * Halm, Heinz. 1989. "Al-Andalus und Gothica Sors",

' 66:252–263. * Hamilton, Michelle M., Sarah J. Portnoy, and David A. Wacks, eds. 2004. ''Wine, Women, and Song: Hebrew and Arabic Literature in Medieval Iberia''. Newark, Del.: Juan de la Cuesta Hispanic Monographs. * * Harzig, Christiane, Dirk Hoerder, and Adrian Shubert. 2003. ''The Historical Practice in Diversity''. Berghahn Books. * Jayyusi, Salma Khadra. 1992. ''The Legacy of Muslim Spain'', 2 vols. Leiden–NY–Cologne: Brill hief consultant to the editor, Manuela Marín * * Kraemer, Joel. 1997. "Comparing Crescent and Cross (book review)", ''The Journal of Religion'' 77, no. 3 (1997): 449–454. * Kraemer, Joel. 2005. "Moses Maimonides: An Intellectual Portrait", ''The Cambridge Companion to Maimonides'', ed. Kenneth Seeskin. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. * Kraemer, Joel. 2008. ''Maimonides: the Life and World of One of Civilization's Greatest Minds''. NY: Doubleday. * Lafuente y Alcántara, Emilio, trans. 1867. '' Ajbar Machmua (colección de tradiciones): crónica anónima del siglo XI, dada a luz por primera vez, traducida y anotada''. Madrid: Real Academia de la Historia y Geografía. In Spanish and Arabic. Also available in the public domain online, see External Links. * Luscombe, David and Jonathan Riley-Smith, eds. 2004. ''The New Cambridge Medieval History: Volume 4, c. 1024 c. 1198, Part 1''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. * Marcus, Ivan G., "Beyond the Sephardic mystique", ''Orim'', vol. 1 (1985): 35–53. * Marín, Manuela, ed. 1998. ''The Formation of Al-Andalus'', vol. 1: ''History and Society''. Aldershot: Ashgate. * Menocal, Maria Rosa. 2002. ''Ornament of the World: How Muslims, Jews, and Christians Created a Culture of Tolerance in Medieval Spain''. Boston: Little, Brown and Company; London: Back Bay Books. * Monroe, James T. 1970. ''Islam and the Arabs in Spanish scholarship: (Sixteenth century to the present)''. Leiden: Brill. * Monroe, James T. 1974. ''Hispano-Arabic Poetry: A Student Anthology''. Berkeley, Cal.: University of California Press. * Netanyahu, Benzion. 1995. ''The Origins Of The Inquisition in Fifteenth Century Spain''. NY: Random House * O'Callaghan, Joseph F. 1975. ''A History of Medieval Spain''. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press. * Omaar, Rageh. 2005.
An Islamic History of Europe
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External links

Photocopy of the Ajbar Machmu'a, translated by Lafuente 1867

The routes of al-Andalus
(from the

web site)
The Library of Iberian Resources Online

by Kenneth Baxter Wolf
"Cities of Light: The Rise and Fall of Islamic Spain"
(documentary film)
Al-Andalus: the art of Islamic Spain
Scholarly essays and exhibition catalog from the Metropolitan Museum of Art (fully available online as PDF or on Google Books) * Patricia, Countess Jellicoe, 1992

''Saudi Aramco World''
History of the Spanish Muslims
by

Reinhart Dozy Reinhart Pieter Anne Dozy (Leiden, Netherlands, 21 February 1820 – Leiden, 29 April 1883) was a Dutch scholar of French (Huguenot) origin, who was born in Leiden. He was an Orientalist scholar of Arabic language, history and literature. Biogr ...

, in French
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