Moors Part 1

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

YOU ARE NOW ROCKING WITH THE BEST


MOORS IN ANTIQUITY -THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK

THE DIVINE MOVEMENTWednesday, July 25, 2012

THE MOORISH EMPIRE


I S L A M


THIS WAS HIS HISTORIC MOORISH MYSTERY HISTORY SPEECH IN CAIRO

EGYPT

PAVING THE WAY FOR EUROPES RENAISSANCE AND ENLIGHTMENT

ISLAM


MICHELLE OBAMA IN MOORISH SPAIN

AL ANDULUS

ALHAMBRA

ISLAM MOORS


MUSULMANTHE BLACKAMOORSTHE LIGHT BEARERS

THE NOBLESTHE ILLUMINATED ONES

THE DARK KNIGHTSTHE FRUIT OF ISLAM

THE SOVEREIGNSTHE SWORD OF ISLAM

THE SORCERERSTHE SARACENS

THE MOORSTHE BERBERS

THE NORTH AFRICANSTHE MOSLEMSTHE INDIANSTHE GYPSIES


With a total population of nearly 3.5 million, the Moors are scattered throughout much of West Africa. Although most of them live in Morocco, Moors can also be found in Mali, Mauritania, Senegal, Niger, and Gambia. They are almost entirely Muslim, as they have been for many centuries. Formerly nomads, large numbers of Moors have settled in urban areas due to recent years of drought. Still, they remain nomadic in spirit.

Beside its usage in historical context, Moor and Moorish (Italian and Spanish: moro, French: maure, Portuguese: mouro, Romanian: maur) is used to designate an ethnic group speaking the Hassaniya Arabic dialect. They inhabit Mauritania and parts of Algeria, Western Sahara, Tunisia, Morocco, Niger and Mali. In Niger and Mali, these peoples are also known as the Azawagh Arabs, after the Azawagh region of the Sahara.


TAUREG MOORS


ZENAGA/SANHAJA MOORS


TAUREG MOORS


ZENAGA/SANHAJA MOORS


MOORISH BERBERSNORTH AFRICA


The Moors of the host wore silks and colourful clothes which they had taken as booty their horses reins were like fire, their faces as black as pitch, the handsomest among them was black as a cooking pot and their eyes blazed like fire; their horses as swift as leopards, their horsemen more cruel than the wolf that comes to a sheepfold in the nightOh luckless Spain! description of the Moors written in the 1200s A.D. and cited in, An Introduction to African Civilizations, by Willis N. Huggins and John J. Jackson, New York, 1937, and in Colin Smiths, Christians and Moors in Spain vol. 1 2nd edition p. 97.

Red, in the speech of the people from the Hijaz, means fair-complexioned and this color is rare amongst the Arabs. This is the meaning of the saying, a red man as if he is one of the slaves. The speaker meant that his color is like that of the slaves who were captured from the Christians of Syria, Rome and Persia. From Al Dhahabi of Damascus Syria, in Seyar Alam al-Nubalaa, (Biography of Eminent Nobles) cited on p. 55, The Unknown Arabs, 2002, by Tariq Berry.

As for the black sheep, they are the Arabs. They will accept Islam and become many. The white sheep are the non-Arab Persians and the like. They will accept Islam and become so many that the Arabs will not be noticed amongst them. From the 15th c. writer, El-Suyuti of Egypt, in Taarikh in El Khulafaa quoting Abu Bakr a companion of the Prophets interpreting his dream. Cited on p. 80, in The Unknown Arabs, 2002.

ABORIGINAL COLOR OF MOORS


THE IBERIAN PENINSULA WAS GREATLY ENRICHED BY THE LABORS OF THE MOORS. THEY ESTABLISHED THE SILK INDUSTRY;THEY WERE HIGHLY SKILLED AGRICULTURISTS,INTRODUCING COTTON,RICE,SUGAR CANE,DATES,LEMONS,AND STRAWBERRIES INTO THE COUNTRY.ABU ZACERIA AND IBN ALAMAM WROTE AUTHORITATIVE REMARKS ON MOORISH ANIMAL HUSBANDRY AND AGRICULTURE.IBN KHALDUN, A MOORISH AGRICULTURIST,WROTE A TREATISE ON FARMING AND WORKED OUT A THEORY OF PRICES AND THE NATURE OF CAPITAL.(HE HAS BEEN CALLED THE KARL MARX OF THE MIDDLE AGES.) CALIPH ABD ER RAHMAN OF CORDOVA ORDERED THE CONSTRUCTION OF AN AQUEDUCT,WHICH CONVEYED PURE WATER FROM THE MOUNTAINS TO THE CITY. EXTNSIVE IRRIGATION SYSTEMS WERE CONTRUCTED BY MOORISH ENGINEERS,WHO ALSO BUILT LARGE UNDERGROUND SILOS FOR STORING GRAIN. THE MINERAL WEALTH OF THE LAND WAS NOT DISREGARDED. COPPER,GOLD,SILVER,TIN,LEAD,IRON,QUICKSILVER, AND ALUM WERE EXTENSIVELY MINED.


COTTONSUGARCANE


In his work, The Moor: Light of Europes Dark Age, Wayne B. Chandler offers the following definition of the Moors: Although the term Moor has been put to diverse use, its roots are still traceable. Circa 46 B. C., the Roman army entered West Africa where they encountered black Africans whom they called Maures from the Greek adjective mauros, meaning dark or black. Traditionally, the Moors were the African people who occupied northwest Africa, or present-day Morocco and Mauritania. These same African people became converts to Islam in the seventh century and have since been mistakenly identified by western European scholars as Arabs, Mohammedans, Saracens, etc. W. E. B Dubois in his work, The World and Africa, wrote on this subject, The Arabs brought the new religion of Mohammed into North Africa. During the seventh century, they did not migrate in great numbers. Spain was conquered not by Arabs, but by armies of Berbers and Negroids led by Arabs. The truth is that the conquest of the Iberian Peninsula, Spain and Portugal, was an African not an Arab conquest. The conquest of Spain and Portugal in the eighth century, and later the greater part of western Europe, was orchestrated by the Arabs who conquered North Africa; but the actual conquest was carried out by African adherents of Islam.

The fact that people of African descent, or specifically the Moors were in western Europe from 710 AD until the late 1400's is indisputable. It is noteworthy that these Moors were in Europe as conquerors and served as a civilizing force, as opposed to being enslaved by the Europeans. The Moors had a tremendously positive impact on European cultural, socio-economic and political institutions


MOORS INVADED & CONQUERED SPAIN 711-1492


By the end of the 7th century AD, the Islamic Jihad had swept through the Arabian peninsular and North Africa. It was the Moorish general Tarik-bin-Ziad who was given the task of spreading Moorish holdings northward into the Iberian peninsular. The catalyst for this action was the request by the Greek governor of Ceuta for help in emancipaton from the tyrany of the visigoth king Roderick who then ruled Spain.


VANDALSVISIGOTHS


The Visigoths (Latin: Visigothi, Wisigothi, Vesi, Visi, Wesi, or Wisi) were one of two main branches of the Goths, an East Germanic tribe; the Ostrogoths being the other. Together these tribes were among the barbarians who disturbed the late Roman Empire during the Migration Period. The romanized Visigoths first emerged as a distinct people during the 4th century, initially in the Balkans, where they participated in several wars with Rome. A Visigothic army under Alaric I eventually moved into Italy and famously sacked Rome in 410.

A Visigothic nobleman, Pelayo, is credited with beginning the Christian Reconquista of Iberia in 718, when he defeated the Umayyads in battle and established the Kingdom of Asturias in the northern part of the peninsula. Other Visigoths, refusing to adopt the Muslim faith or live under their rule, fled north to the kingdom of the Franks, and Visigoths played key roles in the empire of Charlemagne a few generations later.

VANDALSALANSSUEVI


Moorish Control of Spain

from 711 to 1492Gothic dominance lasted until 711, when Muslim armies crossed the Straight of Gibraltar and defeated Roderic, the last Visigoth king.

.They conquered the whole peninsula rapidly except for a small enclave in the North which would become the initial springboard for the Reconquest, which took eight centuries to achieve. They were defeated for the first time by Visigoth King Pelayo at Covadonga in northern Spain, 722.

The period of Muslim sway is divided into three periods: the Emirate (711 to 756), the Caliphate (756-1031) and the Reinos de Taifas (small independent kingdoms) (1031 to 1492).

Muslim Spain became politically independent of the Arabian empire, and in 10th century Abderraman III. made Al-Andalus his own caliphate. At this time it could be said that Cordoba was the cultural centre of Spain..

Decadence, the curse of all empires, started in 11th century, when the various Arabian noble families started to fight among themselves, and al-Andalus broke into numerous small caliphates.

The Christian kingdoms in the north started gradually to reconquer Spain. In 1212 a decisive Christian victory at battle of Navas de Tolosa spelt the beginning of the end of Moorish rule in Spain. Cordoba was taken from the moors in 1236, and in 1248 Ferdinand conquered Seville.


VISI-GOTHIC EMPIREWednesday, July 25, 2012

ROCK OF GIBRALTARPILLARS OF HERCULES


The Rock of Gibraltar is named for the Moor, Tarik ibn Zeyad. In 711 AD, Musa-ibn-Nusair commanded his leading Moorish general, Tarik ibn Zeyad to assemble an army of seven thousand men and ordered them to conquer Spain in the name of Islam. In that same year, General Tarik ibn Zeyad and his men, most of whom were Moors and Berbers, landed at the edge of an escarpment known then as Mons Calpe. Since King Roderick and most of his military forces were engaged in a battle with the Basques in the north of Spain, Tarik ibn Zeyad and his army had little opposition as they conquered all the small towns in close proximity to Mons Calpe. When King Roderick heard of the invasion of Spain by the Moors, he amassed an army six times that of Tarik ibn Zeyads and moved south to defend his kingdom. The two forces met in a fierce battle that lasted for an entire week. Greatly outnumbered, the Moors began to lose faith, but their leader, Tarik ibn Zeyad, was resolute and ordered them forward. King Roderick and his forces were routed and Roderick was killed in the fierce fighting. J. C. deGraft-Johnson describes the fight in his work, African Glory:


The Jews of Spain had been utterly embittered and alienated by Catholic rule by the time of the Muslim invasion. To them, the Moors were perceived as, and indeed were, a liberating force (Stillman, p. 53). Wherever they went, the Muslims were greeted by Jews eager to aid them in administering the country. In many conquered towns the garrison was left in the hands of the Jews before the Muslims proceeded further north. Thus was initiated the period that became known as the "Golden Age" for Spanish Jews.


With the victory of Tariq ibn Ziyad in 711, the lives of the Sephardim changed dramatically. In spite of the stigma attached to being dhimmis (non-Muslim members of monotheistic faiths) under Muslim rule, the coming of the Moors was by-and-large welcomed by the Jews of Iberia.

Both Muslim and Christian sources tell us that Jews provided valuable aid to the invaders . Once captured, the defense of Cordoba was left in the hands of Jews, and Granada, Mlaga, Seville, and Toledo were left to a mixed army of Jews and Moors. The Chronicle of Lucas de Tuy records that "when the Christians left Toledo on Sunday before Easter to go to the Church of the Holy Laodicea to listen to the divine sermon, the Jews acted treacherously and informed the Saracens. Then they closed the gates of the city before the Christians and opened them for the Moors." (Although, in contradiction to de Tuy's account, Rodrigo of Toledo's Historia de rebus Hispaniae maintains that Toledo was "almost of completely empty from its inhabitants," not because of Jewish treachery, but because "many had fled to Amiara, others to Asturias and some to the mountains," following which the city was fortified by a militia of Arabs and Jews (3.24). Although in the cases of some towns the behavior of the Jews may have been conducive to Muslim success, such was of limited impact overall. The claims of the fall of Iberia as being due in large part to Jewish perfidy are no doubt exaggerated (Assis, pp. 44-45).

In spite of the restrictions placed upon the Jews as dhimmis, life under Muslim rule was one of great opportunity in comparison to that under prior Christian Visigoths, as testified by the influx of Jews from abroad. To Jews throughout the Christian and Muslim worlds, Iberia was seen as a land of relative tolerance and opportunity. Following initial Arab victories, and especially with the establishment of Umayyad rule by Abd-ar-Rahman I in 755, the native Jewish community was joined by Jews from the rest of Europe, as well as from Arab territories, from Morocco to Babylon (Assis, p. 12; Sarna, p. 324). Thus the Sephardim found themselves enriched culturally, intellectually, and religiously by the commingling of diverse Jewish traditions. Contacts with Middle Eastern communities were strengthened, and it was during this time that the influence of the Babylonian academies of Sura and Pumbedita was at its greatest. As a result, until the mid-tenth century, much of Sephardic scholarship focused on Halakhah. Although not as influential, Palestinian traditions were also made manifest in an increased interest in Hebrew language and biblical studies (Sarna, pp. 325-326).

Arabic culture, of course, also made a lasting impact on Sephardic cultural development. General re-evaluation of scripture was prompted by Muslim anti-Jewish polemics and the spread of rationalism, as well as the anti-Rabbanite polemics of Karaite sectarianism (which was inspired by various Muslim schismatic movements). In adopting the Arabic language, as had the Babylonian geonim (the heads of Babylonian rabbinic academies), not only were the cultural and intellectual achievements of Arabic culture opened up to the educated Jew, but much of the scientific and philosophical speculation of Greek culture, which had been best preserved by Arab scholars, were as well. The meticulous regard which the Arabs had for grammar and style also had the effect of stimulating an interest among Jews in philological matters in general (Sarna, pp. 327-328). Arabic came to be the main language of Sephardic science, philosophy, and everyday business. From the second half of the ninth century, most Jewish prose, including many non-halakhic religious works, were in Arabic. The thorough adoption of Arabic greatly facilitated the assimilation of Jews into Arabic culture (Dan, p. 115; Halkin, pp. 324-325).


MUFDI JUSTICE


Moors In Antiquity


"For nearly eight centuries, under the Mohamedan rule, Spain set all Europe a shining example of a civilized and enlightened state. Her fertile provinces rendered doubly prolific, by the industrious engineering skill of the conquerors bore fruit a hundredfold, cities innumerable sprang up in the rich valleys in the Guadalquivir and the Guadiana whose names, and names only commemorate the vanished glories of their past."...To Cordoba belong all the beauty and ornaments that delight the eye or dazzle the sight. Her long line of Sultans form her crown of glory; her necklace is strung with the pearls which her poets have gathered from the ocean of language; her dress is of the banners of learning, well-knit together by her men of science; and the masters of every art and industry are the hem of her garments."Art, literature and science prospered as they then prospered nowhere else in Europe..."Mathematics, astronomy, botany, history, philosophy and jurisprudence were to be mastered in Spain, and Spain alone. Whatever makes a kingdom great and prosperous, whatever tends to refinement and civilization, was found in Muslim Spain..."With Granada fell all Spain's greatness. For a brief while, indeed, the reflection of the Moorish splendour cast a borrowed light upon the history of the land which it had once warmed with its sunny radiance. The great epoch of Isabella, Charles V and Philip II, of Columbus, Cortes and Pizarro, shed a last halo about the dying monuments of a mighty state. When followed the abomination of dissolution, the rule of inquisition and the blackness of darkness in which Spain has been plunged ever since."In the land where science was once supreme, the Spanish doctors became noted for nothing but their ignorance and incapacity. The arts of Toledo and Almeria faded into insignificance."The land deprived of skillful irrigation of the Moors, grew improvished and neglected, the richest and most fertile valleys languished and were deserted, and most of the populous cities which had filled every district in Andalusia, fell into ruinous decay; and beggars, friars, and bandits took the place of scholars, merchants and knights. So low fell Spain when she had driven away the Moors. Such is the melancholy contrast offered by her history."-STANLEY LANE POOLE THE MOORS IN SPAIN INTRODUCTIONWednesday, July 25, 2012

MOORISH NOBILITY


WARRIORS & ROYAL GUARDS


"Cordova had 471 mosques, and 300 public baths......and the number of houses of the great and noble were 63,000 and 200, 077 houses of the common people. There were ....upwards of 80,000 shops. Water from the mountains was...distributed through every corner and quarter of the city by means of leaden pipes into basins of different shapes, made of the purst gold, the nest silver or plated brass as well into vast lakes, curious tanks, amazing resevoirs and fountains of Grecian marble." The houses in Cordova were air conditioned in the summer by "ingeniously arranged draughts of fresh air drawn from the garden over beds of owers, chosen for their perfume, warmed in winter by hot air conveyed through pipes bedded in the walls. Bathrooms supplied hot and cold water and there were tables of gold, set with emweralds rubies and pearls. This list of impressve works appears endless; it includes lampposts that lit their streets at night, to grand palaces, such as the one called Azzahra with its 15,000 doors. Rennaissance men like Zaryab."


THE TANNERIES OF CORDOVA AND MOROCCO CITY WERE THE BEST IN THE WORLD.ALMERIA SPECIALIZED IN THE MAKING OF SASHES,FAMED FOR THEIR FINE TEXTURE AND BRILLIANT COLORS. CARPETS WERE MADE IN TEULALA, AND BRIGHT-HUED WOOLENS IN GRANADA AND BAZA. MOORISH ARTISANS ALSO PRODUCED HIGH QUALITY GLASS AND POTTERY,VASES,MOSIACS, AND JEWELRY.

CORDOVA WAS THE MOST WONDERFUL CITY OF THE TENTH CENTURY; THE STREETS WERE WELL PAVED, WITH RAISED SIDEWALKS FOR PEDESTRIANS. AT NIGHT, TEN MILES OF STREETS WERE WELL ILLUMINATED BY LAMPS.(THIS WAS HUNDREDS OF YEARS BEFORE THERE WAS A PAVED STREET IN PARIS OR A STREET LAMP IN LONDON) CORDOVA, WITH A POPULATION OF AT LEAST ONE MILLION, WAS SERVED BY FOUR THOUSAND PUBLIC MARKETS AND FIVE THOUSAND MILLS.PUBLIC BATHS NUMBERED IN THE HUNDREDS. THIS AMENITY WAS PRESENT AT A TIME WHEN CLEANLINESS IN CHRISTIAN EUROPE WAS REGARDED A SIN.

MOORISH MONARCHS DWELT IN SPLENDID PALACES, WHILE THE CROWNED HEADS OF ENGLAND,FRANCE, AND GERMANY LIVED IN BIG BARNS,LACKING BOTH WINDOWS AND CHIMNEYS,WITH ONLY A HOLE IN THE ROOF FOR THE EMISSION OF SMOKE.


The Andalusian horse originates from the rugged hilly areas of the Iberian Peninsula and is one of the most ancient horse breeds. Spanish horses were famous for their use as cavalry mounts by the Ancient Greeks and the Romans and from ancient times onward there are many references to the Iberian or Celtiberian horses and riders of the peninsula by Greek and Roman chroniclers. Homer referred to them in the Iliad and the celebrated Greek cavalry officer Xenophon was full of praise for the gifted Spanish horses and horsemen and greatly admired the equestrian war techniques of Iberian mercenaries who were influential in the victory of Sparta against Athens in the Peloponnesian wars. The Andalusian became the standard by which all warhorses were measured and were prized for their agility, temperament, endurance and strength of character.They continued to be highly regarded as a cavalry horse due to their agility and courage but they became less favoured as a warhorse when knights later became more heavily armoured and required heavier horses to carry them. Amongst cavalries they regained their popularity again with the introduction of firearms when a fast, agile horse was needed again.The development of the Andalusian breed owed a great deal to the Carthusian monks who began breeding them in the late middle Ages. The monks were superb horse breeders and trainers and through careful selective breeding kept the blood of their horses exceptionally pure.It turned out that El Cid was not such a poor judge of horses after all and from a not too promising start Babieca grew into an imposing and exceptional example of the Andalusian breed, obedient and nimble, noble and with great personal courage. He was an outstanding example of a pure bred that has great stamina coupled with its stance, power and the rhythm and grace of its movements. The horse was the perfect companion for El Cid. He soon grew into a formidable charger and a frightening machine of war. He carried his master courageously into all of his battles for thirty years, each time towards victory. His name was legendary as his masters and he was spoken of with awe, reverence and great respect.The Andalusian has a reputation for a proud but cooperative temperament, sensitive and intelligent, able to learn quickly and easily when treated with respect and care. They are strongly-built, compact horses, generally standing 15.2-16.2 hands high and usually white or light grey in colour. They have a lean, medium-length head with a convex profile and large eyes, a long but broad and powerful neck, a long, sloping shoulder, clean legs with good bone, short, strong cannons, and a thick, long, flowing mane and tail and they move with a lofty, elegant action which carries the rider high in the saddle.

ANDALUSIAN HORSE


ANDALUSIAN HORSE


Moorish ROYALTYTHE DYNASTIES OF THE MOORS SPANNED THE SEVEN SEAS

WE HAD A GLOBAL EMPIRE THE COVERED THE PLANETTHE NAVIGATORS THE TRAVELLING MAN


THE 4 MAJOR MOORISH

DYNASTIES


OUT OF THE DARKNESS CAME THE AGE OF ENLIGHTMENT

The so-called "Greek Miracle" was never to have a profound effect on European culture. In fact, the record shows virulent persecution of the major Greek thinkers by their own society for teaching concepts which were entirely foreign to their culture. By the 4th century, the temples and places of learning began to be shut down by the emperors of Byzantium. By the middle ages, Europe had sunk back into barbarism. But from the south - again - would come a new age of enlightenment ushered in by black Africans and black Asians from the Arabian peninsula.

As is the custom, these legendary figures have been whitened by academia and their influence erased. Yet it is clear that the sweeping wave of civilization brought in by these sons of Africa saved Europe from its backwardness and created the scientific and cultural foundation which would result in the European Rennaissance.

Over a period of 700 years, 4 superb Moorish dynasties would rule Spain,

the UmMayad, the Abbasid, the Almoravid and the Almohade.


UMMAYYAD Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Tarik and his black army swept up into Spain and defeated the Visigoths in successive stages - capturing and consolidating Spanish towns from the south includingToledo and Cordoba.

By 715 AD, the Ummayad dynasty had been established.It would rule Spain for over a century until 850 AD although their racial memory hes been erased, the achievements and monuments of the Moors still endure. The great Mosque at Cordoba, the Mezquita is an architectural marvel and is to this day considered one of the most magnificent buildings of the middle ages.

The Ummayad dynasty was followed by the Abbasid an Arab dynasty which usurped the throne in 750 AD. However, in 756 AD, the African Abdurrahmon led an army of African Moors up into the Iberian Penninsula, overthrew the Abbasid and re-established the Ummayad dynasty.


UMAYYADS (7 11-1031 CE)Muhammad, the prophet of Islam, died in 632 CE in Medina. Following his death, several of his close companions succeeded him as caliphs. The term caliph is a transliterated version of the Arabic word for "successor" or "representative." They included Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman and Ali.

During this time, Muslims had extended their rule outside Arabia to include much of todays Middle East and parts of North Africa. Thus, they reduced the size of the Byzantine Empire and brought the Sasanid Empire in Persia to an end.

In 661 CE, opponents of Ali assassinated him. Then-governor of Syria, Muawiya, acquired leadership of the caliphate and moved the capital to Damascus. He was of a member of the elite Meccan tribe of Banu Umayya.

Muawiya designated his son, Yazid, to be his successor. In effect, this designation created the first Muslim dynasty: the Umayyads. During the next century, his descendants expanded Muslim rule northwards into Anatolia and Central Asia, eastwards to the borders of India and westward across North Africa.

In 711, Amazigh (Berber) commander Tariq ibn Ziyad led an Umayyad force across the Mediterranean into Spain. They defeated the army of the Visigothic king, Roderic. The caliph in Damascus appointed an Umayyad governor to rule most of Iberia. The Muslims called this new land Al-Andalus.

In 750 CE, the Abbasid family rallied support among opponents of the Umayyads and overthrew the dynasty. The Abbasids were a noble clan descended from one of Muhammads uncles. They took control of the caliphate and established their new capital at Baghdad.

While many of his relatives were killed, a young Umayyad prince named Abd al-Rahman sought refuge among his Amazigh (Berber) mothers tribe in North Africa. He crossed over to Spain. In 755, he gained control of Crdoba. There, he became amir (ruler) of Al-Andalus, which was independent from the Abbasid caliphate.

Others followed Abd al-Rahman's example, such as Idris -- a descendant of Ali -- who established the Idrisid Dynasty in Morocco around 788.

The Umayyad amirate lasted until 929 CE. An Umayyad descendant named Abd al-Rahman (III), who was not content with the title of amir, declared himself caliph. In doing so, he openly challenged the Abbasids claim. He also countered the Shii Fatimids in North Africa, who had recently taken the title of caliph, as well.

The 10th century Umayyad caliphate in Spain represents the pinnacle of unity, power, wealth, and scientific and artistic achievement in Al-Andalus.

The rise to power of an ambitious palace official, Muhammad Ibn Abi Amir (Al-Mansur), initially enhanced the Muslims military strength in the peninsula. But, Al-Mansurs military regime threatened the internal stability cultivated over several centuries, sowing the seeds for civil war.

In 1013 CE, Amazigh (Berber) troops seized control in Crdoba, killed Caliph Hisham II and sacked the palace city, Madinat al-Zahra. Amid chaos and tragedy, the leading religious authorities in Crdoba dissolved the caliphate. This move opened the way for former governors and city administrators to become local kings of a fragmented Al-Andalus.


The Caliphate of Cordoba

The first period of exceptional prosperity took place under the reign of Abd ar-Rahman III (882-942), the first independent Caliph of Cordoba. The inauguration of the Golden Age is closely identified with the career of his Jewish councillor, Hasdai ibn Shaprut (882-942). Originally a court physician, Shaprut's official duties went on to include the supervision of customs and foreign trade. It was in his capacity as dignitary that he corresponded with the kingdom of the Khazars, who had converted to Judaism in the 8th century (Assis, pp. 13, 47).

Abd al-Rahman III's support for Arabic scholasticism had made Iberia the center of Arabic philological research. It was within this context of cultural patronage that interest in Hebrew studies developed and flourished. With Hasdai as its leading patron, Cordoba became the "Mecca of Jewish scholars who could be assured of a hospitable welcome from Jewish courtiers and men of means" (Sarna, p. 327).

During this period the achievements of Sephardic culture, which were in large measure a synthesis of different Jewish traditions, in turn enriched those other cultures to which it was indebted. Perhaps most notable of Sephardic achievements which occurred during and following Hasdai's time were in the literary and linguistic fields.


A serious rebellion had broken out in 747 against the Umayyad dynasty, who ruled much of what we know now as Middle East from 661 to 750. The main factor which incited this rebellion was that to the outlying peoples of the Caliphate, the Umayyads (based in Damascus) seemed distant, and the governors they appointed to rule were essentially corrupt and obsessed only with their own gain. Equally, the Umayyads could claim no direct descent from Muhammad, however the Abbasids could make such a claim a fact they played upon greatly during the revolution, although not specifying until the revolution had been won that they were in fact descended from Muhammad's uncle (see the Abbasid and Umayyad pages for more details).In 750, the army of the Umayyad caliph Marwan II fought a combined force of Persians, Shi'ite Arabs and Abbasid soldiers at the Zab. Marwan's army was, on paper at least, far larger and more formidable than that of his opponents, as it contained many veterans of the Ummayyads' earlier campaigns against the Byzantine Empire, but its support for the caliph was only lukewarm. It is fair to say their morale had been damaged whereas the Abbasid's armies had been increased by the series of defeats inflicted on the Umayyads earlier in the rebellion.

THEFALLOFTHEUMAYYADDYNASTY


ABBASID DYNASTY

750a.d.-756a.d.


P e t t y K i n g s / M u l u k a l-Tawa i f ( 1 0 3 1 - 1 0 8 6 C E )

Competition and political intrigue among Arabs, Berbers, and Slavs in the late Umayyad period contributed to the fragmentation of Al-Andalus.With central authority destroyed, local leaders of about 30 cities and surrounding territories declared themselves independent rulers. Historical sources describe these rulers as muluk al-tawaif (petty kings): each represented a faction or party with its own interests and resources.

For example, the chief judge of Seville became the ruler of that city. Thus, he founded the Abbadid dynasty, famed for its poet-kings. The Amazigh (Berber) Zirids founded Granada, after being invited to rule its region by the populace. Meanwhile, Slavs (former slaves of the Umayyads) took control of coastal cities, such as Denia and Almera.

The taifa kings competed with one another, attempting to annex territories and increase their wealth. They often sought Christian allies in their efforts against other Muslim rulers.

Despite the collapse of political unity, Umayyad court culture spread during the taifa period, as each king sought to style himself as a worthy ruler. The petty kings vied to recruit the most famous poets to grace their courts, and the most skilled artisans to adorn their halls.

However, the petty kings' self-absorption ultimately led to their demise. During this time, Christian rulers became increasingly unified and began to consider expanding into the southern peninsula.

Alfonso VI of Len-Castile's success in taking possession of Toledo sent shockwaves through the palaces of the petty kings, prompting them to call on North African warriors for support.


The famous era of the Almoravids begins with The Black Muslim leader Ibn Yasin. Originally brought from Mecca, Yasin's initial base of operations was in the area of Senegal in West Africa. He embarked upon an ambitious effort to convert all of the surrounding area to Islam through force. Over time, the Almoravids (from "Al-Murabitun") conquered a vast area of west and northern Africa. In 1076, they overwhelmed and brought to an end the mighty Empire of Ghana itself . In 1086 AD, Yusuf Ibn Tashibin became aware of events in Spain, where Christians had long been persecuting Arabs and Moors. Yusuf invaded Spain to aid in its liberation. He is unequivocably described in the Moorish work Roudh-el Kartos as a black skinned African. Other matters back home in Africa however prompted him to return before the conquest was complete. He left his army to aid the Spaniards in their battle but was later informed that the local Spanish governers had left the Moors to do most of the fighting.

Yusuf in fury, ordered their replacement with Moorish rulers and there followed a splendid era of African rule which would not end until 1142 AD


Almoravids (1086-1146 CE)


Around 1040 CE, Yahya ibn Ibrahim -- a Amazigh (Berber) chief of the Sanhaja tribe in southern Morocco -- made a pilgrimage to Mecca. On his return journey, he stopped at Qayrawan in Tunisia, where he attended scholarly gatherings. Yahya came to recognize that religious knowledge among his people was lacking. So, he returned home with a preacher named Abd Allah ibn Yasin.

Ibn Yasins puritanical message met with resistance among ibn Ibrahim's people. In response, both men retired to the Sahara and founded a ribat (isolated, fortified retreat) to attract only committed disciples. The followers of Ibn Yasin came to be known as al-murabitun, which is Latinized as the Almoravids.

This highly cohesive and disciplined group soon acquired a military dimension. In 1053, they began spreading their teachings across southern Morocco.

An Almoravid commander named Yusuf ibn Tashufin founded Marrakesh in 1062, which served as a base of operations for northward expansion. Thus, a local religious and political movement grew into a large North African empire.

The petty kings of Al-Andalus appealed to ibn Tashufin to defend them against Alfonso VI. In 1085, the Christian king had conquered the important city of Toledo. Welcoming the opportunity to help defend Muslims, ibn Tashufin crossed the straits to Spain. He then inflicted a severe defeat on the Christians at the Battle of al-Zallaqah.

As ibn Tashufin promised to the petty kings, he returned to Africa. However, a renewed Christian threat obliged the kings to ask for his assistance again. When he returned to Iberia in 1090, the Al-Andalus populace expressed support for Almoravid rule. They hoped he would depose the Muslim kings. These kings taxed the population heavily to support their extravagance and make tribute payments to the Christians. However, not long after the Almoravids came to dominate Al-Andalus, they became the target of popular resistance among native Muslims for their foreign and puritanical ways.

By 1094, Ibn Tashufin removed almost all of the petty kings, reunified a large portion of Al-Andalus, and kept the Christian rulers at bay. His success garnered praise far and wide, leading the Abbasid caliph in Baghdad to grant him the title of Amir al Muslimin (Prince of the Muslims) in 1097 CE.


Abdallah Ibn Yasin (1040-1059)Yusuf ibn Tashfin (10611106)Ali ibn Yusuf (110642)Tashfin ibn Ali (114246)Ibrahim ibn Tashfin (1146)Ishaq ibn Ali (114647)

EMIRS/KALIPHS


Map of the Iberian Peninsula at the time of the Almoravid arrival in the 11th century- Christian Kingdoms included Aragn, Castile, Leon, Navarre, and Portugal


Berbers ,North AfricaWednesday, July 25, 2012

CULTURAL CROSSROADS

MELTING POT

CENTERS OF INTERNATIONAL/GLOBAL TRADE & EDUCATION


MOORISH FLAGS OF ANTIQUITY


Al-Andalus was a very important centre of trade; Spains geography makes it into one of the worlds natural cultural crossroads, much like Yugoslavia, Egypt/the Levant, India, southeast Asia, Malaysia/Indonesia, Louisiana, and Central America, for instance. Such regions are often centres of trade and also multicultural melting-pots and Al-Andalus was no different. This region is where the Moors held sway during the different Islamic dynasties that ruled the region (Moor = Almoravid and Almohad). As a result of its remoteness in the west, tolerant governments, multicultural population without hard class divisions, reliance on international trade and communication, and European/African bias, Al-Andalus developed a shockingly original political profile and as a political entity, Al-Andalus may have been a precursor to the ideas of democracy that have been carried out in the United States, which is built on a similar (albeit non-Islamic) multicultural model.


The Almohade/MUWAHHADIS DYNASTYIn 1145, the last Moorish dynasty came to power. African accomplishment in the penisular

reached its apex. But Christian resolve had strengthened, and as Moorish culture grew more and more passive, Christian forces gained courage and began a campaign which recaptured territories from the blacks over the following centuries.

The Almohade dynasty had deep intellectual concerns and encouraged its thinkers and scholars to engage in great debates and expressions of ideas of both theological and secular nature. It is during the reign of this dynasty that the tower of Seville is constructed. And it is during this time that Abu-Al-Walid Mohamed ibn Mohamed ibgn Rashd, known to the West as Averroes established a peerless intellectual body of work in the arts and sciences which is revered to this day.

Ummayad savants and scholars initiated another intellectual revolution by ushering in and promoting:

Land reforms in Spain. Religious freedom.Support of the Arts & Sciences


In 1075, the Almoravids army of the Sanhaja Empire conquered and absorbed parts of the old Ghana Empire. Ghana declined and degraded into a collection of motley tribal units shortly thereafter. One must note that old Ghana Empire was in the areas of modern day southern Mauritania.The Ghana Empire was a so-called black African Empire. Sanhajal (Senegal) Empire was equally a so-called black African Empire. One defeated and absorbed the other in the never ending struggle for power and primacy among powerful people. Yet, both were so-called Black African Empires.Some ideologically motivated scholars have often lamented the destruction of Ghana Empire (which is tagged a Black Sudanese Empire) by the mythical white Moors/Arabs/Semites or anything but Black group called the Almoravids. This brief historical sketch should leave all in no doubt about the ethnicity of the Almoravids. They are same as the modern day Senegalese who are named after their late Sanhajalese Empire.


The one reason for this attempted obfuscation of cultural ethnicity of the Almoravid Sanhajas is due to the fact that they were the ones who founded the geopolitical entities which later morphed into the present day Senegal, Mauritania, and Morocco as this was the extent of the spread of this African Empire.The other reason for the attempted hijack of the identity of the Black Moors of Senegal is that they conquered, ruled and civilized a huge swat of southern European countries including Portugal, Spain, Corsica, Malta, and Sicily, who were beyond the pale in terms of backwardness and savagery in those days.The Europeans are loath to admit that it was the Moors, the present day so called sub-Saharan Africans living in the present day Senegal, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Chad, Libya, Morocco, and Sudan who brought them this modern phase of civilization.


The Almoravids are a Berber dynasty of Sahara, which lived between the current Senegaland south of the current MoroccoIt is affiliated to the Berbertribe of Sanhadjaand Lemtuna. From the eleventh century to the twelfth century, they ruled the Sahara, part of North Africaand part of the Iberian Peninsula.


ALMOHADES/MUWAHADDIS

(1146-1230 CE)Another group of religious reformers in Morocco, known as al-muwahiddun (those who proclaim Gods Unity), followed on the heels of the Almoravids.

Around 1100 CE, the pious Ibn Tumart journeyed as a young man to Mecca. He was a member of the Masmuda tribe of Amazighs (Berbers) in the Atlas Mountains. He was expelled from the city for being overly critical of others. He reportedly went to Baghdad, where he studied with eminent religious scholars. He formulated a unique theology that was a variation on established Sunni doctrine.

After his return to Morocco, he began publicly preaching and inciting attacks on wine shops and other "objectionable" businesses. In the city of Fes, he castigated the sister of the Almoravid ruler for going about unveiled, but he escaped punishment for such an affront.

Ibn Tumart moved to a ribat at Tinmal in the Atlas mountains. When he died in 1128, his main disciple, Abd al-Mumin, kept his death secret for two years, until his own influence upon the followers was secure.

Abd al-Mumin came forward as the lieutenant of the Mahdi Ibn Tumart, a messianic figure who had come to restore peace and justice. Abd al-Mumins forces steadily eroded Almoravid power, conquered Marrakesh, and extended their reach across northern Africa and into Al-Andalus.

In 1170, the Almohads made Seville their regional capital, signified by the construction of a Great Mosque and the massive minaret known today as the Giralda.

The Almohads emphasis on purity and simplicity is evident in their aesthetic tastes. Unlike the Almoravids, the Almohads resisted the allure of the luxurious, sensual Andalusian lifestyle, preferring to maintain a military posture.

What's more, their policy towards Jews and Christians was in some ways less tolerant than that of earlier rulers. As a result, some members of these communities sought refuge outside Al-Andalus. For example, the family of Moses ibn Maimon (Maimonides) emigrated from Crdoba to Fes, then on to Cairo, where Jews thrived under the reign of Salah al-Din and his successors. In 1195, Abd al-Mumins descendant, Yaqub al-Mansur, defeated Alfonso VIII of Castile in the Battle of Alarcos. However, the Christian states in Iberia were becoming increasingly organized.

At the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa in 1212, the combined forces of five Christian princes representing Castile, Lon, Navarre, and Portugal defeated Almohad ruler Muhammad III.


in the early part of the 12th century another religious reformer, calling himself the Mahdi appeared in Morocco in 1147, He named his followers Almohades (Unitarians). After the conquest of Morocco in

1147, when the last Almoravide king was dethroned and executed, the Almohades seized the reins of government,and then invaded Europe. By 1150 they had defeated the Christian armies of Spain and placed

and Almohade sovereign on the throne of Moorish Spain:and, thus, for the second time a purely African Dynasty ruled over the most civilized portion of the Iberian Peninsula. Under a great line of Almohade kings, the splendor of Moorish Spain was not only maintained but enhanced:

for they erected the Castile of Gilbraltar in 1160 and began the building of the great Mosque of Seville in 1183

in the early part of the 13th century Moorish power in Spain began to decline.Unfortunately the Moslems, due to religious and political

differences, began to split into factions and wage war amongst themselves.At the same time the Christians of Europe, having

absorbed the science and culture of the Moors whuch enabled them to bring to an end the long night of the Dark Ages


CORDOBA MOORISH PARADISE


the dominions of the Alhomades were slowly but surely captured by the Christian armies,and after almost a century of brilliant achievement the ALMOHADE dynasty was ended when

their last reigning sovereign was deprived of his throne in 1230.Moslem Spain declared independence under the rule of of

Ibn Hud, the founder of the Huddite Dynasty. The Christian forces, in the meantime, conquered one great city after another, taking

Valencia in 1238,, Cordova in 1239, and Seville in 1260the Jewish population,numbering about

120,000 maintained good relations with the Christian Kings of Castille. Under the rulers of

the Almohades, the Jews had been repressed,and they responded by helping the

Castilian Kings in their perpetual struggle against the Moors


MARINID DYNASTYThe Marinid dynasty or Benemerine dynasty (Arabic: marniyn or ban marn; Spanish marin/marines/benimerines) was a Zenata Berber dynasty of Morocco. They overtook the Almohads in controlling Morocco in 1244[1], and most of the Maghreb from the mid-14th century to the 15th century, and also supported the Kingdom of Granada, in Al-Andalus in the 13th and 14th centuries. The last Marinid fortress in the Iberian Peninsula fell to Castile in 1344[citation needed]. They were in turn replaced by the Wattasids in 1465.


The Emirate of Granada was established in 1228, after the Almohad dynasty was defeated by the Christians at the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa. The Almohad prince Idris had left Iberia to take the Almohad leadership, then ambitious Ibn al-Ahmar established the longest lasting Muslim dynasty on the Iberian peninsula - the Nasrids.With the Reconquista in full swing after the conquest of Cordoba in 1236, the Nasrids aligned themselves with Ferdinand III of Castile, officially becoming a tributary state in 1238. The state officially became the Kingdom of Granada in 1238. The Nasrid emirs and kings were responsible for building most of the palaces in the Alhambra. The taifa became a vassal state of the Christian kingdom of Castile for the next 250 years. The Nasrid emirs and kings paid tribute to the Christian kings and collaborated with them in their battle against rebellious Muslims under Christian rule.Initially the kingdom of Granada linked the commercial routes from Europe with those of the Maghreb. The kingdom constantly shrank due to repeated Castilian invasions however, and by 1492, Granada controlled only a small territory on the Mediterranean coast. Arabic was the official language, and was the mother tongue of the majority of the population.Granada was held as a vassal to Castile over many decades, and provided trade links to the Muslim world, particularly the gold trade with the southern sub-saharan areas of Africa. The Nasrids provided troops for Castile and was a source of mercenary fighters from North Africa. However, Portugal discovered direct African trade routes by sailing around the coast of West Africa. Thus Granada became less and less important for Castile, and with the union of Castile and Aragon in 1479, those kingdoms set their sights on annexing Granada and Navarre.The Granada War began in 1482. On January 2, 1492, the last Muslim leader, Muhammad XII, known as Boabdil to the Spanish, surrendered complete control of Granada, to Ferdinand and Isabella, Los Reyes Catlicos ("The Catholic Monarchs"), after the city was besieged.

EMIRATE OF GRANADA


Nasrids(1232-1492CE)As Almohad rule in Al-Andalus collapsed in the early 13th century, Muhammad ibn al-Ahmar (or ibn Nasr) gained control of Granada. A horseman of Arab lineage, he founded the last Muslim dynasty in Iberia.

Ibn al-Ahmar sought a truce with Fernando III of Len-Castile. He agreed to assist Fernando in the conquest of Seville. In return, Granada would be allowed to remain a Muslim domain.

Upon returning to Granada, Ibn al-Ahmar proclaimed despondently that there is no victor but God, which became a slogan closely identified with Nasrid rule.

The Nasrids paid annual tribute to Ferdinand III and his successors. Yet, Granada continued to prosper due to the influx of Muslim and Jewish scholars, artisans, merchants, and farmers from territories newly acquired by the Christians. Nasrid ceramics, silks, and other luxury goods, were very popular among the Christian elite in the north, as they could not produce such items themselves.

During the height of their power in the mid-14th century, the Nasrids extended the royal residences. They created the Alhambra, a vast new palace and garden complex, dubbed al-hamra (the red) by the inhabitants of Granada.

By the early 15th century, several factors reduced Nasrid prestige and power. Two main factors were rivalries between the palace wazirs (ministers) and military expansion by the Amazigh (Berber) Marinid Dynasty in Fes.

Then, in 1469, the fateful union of Isabella of Castile and Fernando II of Aragon launched a concerted effort to unify all of Spain under a common religious identity. In 1492, they conquered Granada, raising their banner atop the Alhambras highest tower.


MONGOL INVASION


Key Moors in SpainAl-Mu'tamid ibn Abbad (1091) - MuslimRuler of Seville upon the caliphate's collapse in Crdoba. He was Ibn Abbad's grandfather. Al-Mu'tamid served as a judge (qadi) in Seville before becoming the third and last of the Abbadid rulers of Seville. He gained renown as a poet-king. Styling himself as ruler of the crown of taifa states, Al-Mu'tamid sought to reproduce the famed splendor of Madinat al-Zahra in his court at the Alcazar. He patronized scholars, poets, and artisans, and held lively salons that continued to propagate high Andalusian culture.

However, his rivalries with other petty kings exhausted his military strength and financial resources. Ultimately, it forced him to pay tribute to Alfonso VI of Castile and tax his subjects heavily. Ibn Abbad turned for assistance to Yusuf ibn Tashufin, a Amazigh (Berber) and the Almoravid ruler of North Africa. The Berbers' arrival restored unity to Al-Andalus. But, by that time, Al-Mu'tamid was exiled and impoverished

Hakam II (914-976) - MuslimA king of the Umayyad dynasty. He continued his father Abd al-Rahman III's policies in order to secure the Umayyad caliphate. He negotiated peace with northern Iberia's Christian kingdoms. He also further developed agriculture through construction of new irrigation works.

He amassed a vast library with over 400,000 books from all parts of the Muslim world. He gathered at his court the brightest Jewish, Christian, and Muslim minds. He also patronized translations of Greek works.

What's more, he oversaw the expansion of the Great Mosque of Crdoba. This move reflected the increased conversion to Islam taking place at the time. His young son, Hisham II, succeeded him. Wazir Al-Mansur coddled Hisham II and took control of the government.

Ibn Abd Rabbihi (860-940) - MuslimA renowned poet in Crdoba. He was the descendant from a former slave of the Umayyad ruler Hisham I. He enjoyed a great reputation for learning and eloquence. His most famous work is al-Iqd al-Farid (The Precious Necklace). It is an anthology of the best selections of original, sophisticated, and pleasing Arabic prose, satire, and essays. Each of its 25 sections is named after a precious gem. Such naming illustrates the tendency of Arabic authors to apply witty and creative names to their works.


KEY CHRISTIANS IN SPAINIsidore of Seville (circa 560-636) - ChristianEminent bishop of Seville. During the height of Visigothic rule, he played a key role in stamping out Arianism. His most influential work is the Etymologies. This encyclopedia summarizes all of the knowledge of the time. It also preserves portions of Greco-Roman classical writings. In addition, he wrote a valuable history of the Goths, Vandals, and Suevi who had ruled Spain, as well as treatises on theology, language, natural history, and other subjects. He was canonized as a saint in 1598.

Jimenez de Cisneros (1436-1517) - Christian

A Spanish Cardinal and royal official in Spain. Born into a humble household, he ascended the heights of power as a religious reformer, regent of the Spanish throne, Grand Inquisitor, and Crusader in North Africa.

As ambitious as he was, he often lived as an ascetic. He was known for his strictness and rigidity. He lived during the time of Spanish unification and the dynamic rule of Ferdinand and Isabella and their royal successors.

Cisneros is known for having forcibly converted many Muslims of Granada and burning Arabic manuscripts in his zeal. He is also known for funding charities and educational institutions, as well as reforming Spanish clerical orders. He died just as he was preparing to receive Charles V into Spain and serve as regent to the 16-year-old monarch. Historians speculate that he may have been poisoned.

Hroswitha (circa 932-circa 1002) - ChristianA noblewoman and Benedictine nun from a Saxon family of Gandersheim. She distinguished herself as a major poet and composer of dramatic works in Latin. She was well-versed in the Church fathers, as well as Classical writings, which included Virgil, Horace, Ovid, Terence, among others. Her works form part of the Ottonian Renaissance. She traveled to Crdoba during the height of its splendor in the mid-10th century. She was captivated by the bustling citys running water, paved streets, palaces, and industries, characterizing shining Crdoba as the ornament of the world, a description that continues to resonate with visitors today.


Charles Martel (686-741) - Christian

The Franks' Mayor of the Palace and Duke, nicknamed The Hammer. His army routed a small Muslim contingent at the Battle of Tours in 732-33. Muslim rule in Europe had nearly reached its geographic limit. Yet, the battle is often viewed incorrectly as a decisive action saving Europe from becoming part of the fold of Islam.

Charles V (1500-1558) - ChristianCharles V was ruler of the Burgundian territories, King of Spain, King of Naples and Sicily, Archduke of Austria, a King of German territory, and Holy Roman Emperor. As a Habsburg monarch, his territories were spread across much of Europe.

In Spain, he was called Carlos V but was officially Charles I of Spain. He was the grandson of Ferdinand and Isabella, and son of Phillip of Flanders and Joanna the Mad of Castile. He ruled alongside them during his youth. He also was related to other royal houses in Europe, including Emperor Maximilian I Catherine of Aragon, first wife of Henry VIII, and others.

He was among the first imperial monarchs of Europe during the Age of Exploration. He presided over the earliest stirrings of the Reformation in Europe. As such, he attempted to repress Protestants. He did so by supporting the Catholic Church through political and military maneuvering, as well as Inquistion.

He engaged in many entanglements, such as war with the Ottomans, the French and the Dutch Protestants. What's more, his appointment of numerous Flemish officials to his Spanish court angered his subjects.

Under Charles V, the conquests of Cortes and Pizarro over the Aztecs and Incas took place under his reign. These conquests added huge territories and wealth in precious metals. He is said to have introduced slavery to the New World.


Mancebo de Arevalo (died 1550) - Morisco (or cr ypto-Muslim)

Scholar whose writings document the deprivations of life after the Christians' conquest of Islamic Spain. This literature has been called aljamiado. These writings focus mainly on the attempt to pass on Islamic knowledge and heritage under the repressive conditions of forced conversions and the early Spanish Inquisition.

De Arevalo was from the Castilian Arevalo near Madrid. His name means young man of Arevalo. He was forced to pretend to be a convert to Christianity. He did so by indicating that his mother had been a Christian for 25 years.

He traveled extensively around Spain to such places as Alcantara, Astorga, Saragossa, Gandia, Granada, and Segovia. On his travels, he visited with other Morisco, or crypto-Muslim, notables; gathered knowledge; and collected the teachings of his now-forbidden religion.

He transcribed documents and texts he discovered to preserve and pass them on. He recounts people's memories of Nasnd times and of the Christian conquest of Granada.

Little is known about him. However, it is thought that he must have traveled during the end of the 15th century, up to the time of Ferdinands death, as pressure on Muslims was increasing.

The information he collected was written down in three works. The first, El brebe compendio de nuestra santa ley y sunna (The Brief Compendium of Our Holy Law and Sunnah), represents the work of a group of Muslim notables at Aragon, including the alfaqui Bray de Reminjo. Today, it sits in the Cambridge University Library.

The other two, Tafsira and Sumano de la relacion y ejerctcio espintual (Summary of the Account and Spiritual Exercise) also exist in libraries today.

Maslama al-Majriti (died 1007) - MuslimA leading mathematician and astronomer from the frontier town of Madrid (al-Majra) in central Spain. At the Umayyad court of al-Hakam II, he produced an improved translation of Ptolemys astronomical work Almagest. He circulated al-Khwarizmis astronomical tables (zij). He also demonstrated the use of algebra for business transactions and taxation. And, he introduced techniques of surveying and triangulation.

Joannes Hispalensis later translated his treatise on the astrolabe into Latin. Al-Majriti most likely authored an important compendium on chemistry, called the Rutbat al-Hakeem (The Footsteps of the Sage).


Muhammad ibn Nasr (died 127 3) - MuslimKing of Granada from 1235 CE and founder of the Nasrid Dynasty. The Nasrids ruled the Kingdom of Granada from 1238, until Ferdinand and Isabella conquered it in 1492. They were the last Muslim dynasty on the Iberian Peninsula.

The Nasrids originated the most monumental, sophisticated and lavish period within Spanish Islamic art. As a result, Granada became the artistic center of North Africa and the Iberian Christian kingdoms. The best example of Nasrid art is the royal residence of the Alhambra.

Muhammad ibn Tumar t (c.1080-1130) - MuslimLeader of the Almohad movement (Muwahhidun). He was born around 1080 in Morocco of Amazigh (Berber) ancestry. He acquired a reputation for personal piety and charisma as a preacher. He also was known for controversial positions in debates. His opinions led the Almoravid rulers to perceive him as a political threat.

Refusing arrest, he soon after declared himself Mahdi, or "The Guided One." Thus, he became associated with the rise of the Almohads in North Africa. He died after a battle in 1130 CE. His death was concealed long enough for Abd al-Mumin to be proclaimed Almohad leader.

Umar ibn Hafsun (circa 840-917) - Muslim/ChristianLeader of anti-Umayyad Dynasty rebel forces in southern Spain. He was a muwallad in his youth. He joined a group of brigands and caused trouble for local Umayyad governors. In 883, he became a leader of rebels based at the castle of Bobastro near Ronda. This move expanded his control over nearby lands.

He initially gained support by rallying disaffected muwallads to his cause. However, when he renounced belief in Islam, many of his followers abandoned him. The Umayyad ruler, Abd-ar-Rahman III, began annual offensives against him. He eventually conquered Ibn Hafsuns fortress and ended the rebellion.


An astrolabe (Greek: astrolabon 'star-taker')[1] is an historical astronomical instrument used by astronomers, navigators, and astrologers. Its many uses include locating and predicting the positions of the Sun, Moon, planets, and stars; determining local time (given local latitude) and vice-versa; surveying; triangulation; and to cast horoscopes. They were used in Classical Antiquity and through the medieval Islamic world and the European Middle Ages and Renaissance for all these purposes. In the Islamic world, they were also used to calculate the Qibla and to find the times for Salah prayers.There is often confusion between the astrolabe and the mariner's astrolabe. While the astrolabe could be useful for determining latitude on land, it was an awkward instrument for use on the heaving deck of a ship or in wind. The mariner's astrolabe was developed to address these issues.


holy quran


Al Andulus


Basic descriptive informationThe autonomous community of Andaluca, with a population of 7,975,672, covers an area of 87,597 square kilometres, and is divided into eight provinces: Almera, Cdiz, Crdoba, Granada, Huelva, Jan, Mlaga, and Sevilla. This last is the regional capital and the seat of the regional government, the Junta de Andaluca.

including such major cities as Sevilla, Cdiz, Granada, Crdoba, Jan and Mlaga.It is the largest of Spains seventeen autonomous communities in terms of population and the second largest in terms of land area, behind Castilla y Len. Its land area represents 17.3% of Spanish territory. Situated at the far south west of the European Union, the region looks onto the meeting point of two seas and two continents: the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean, with Africa just 15 kilometres away across the Strait of Gibraltar.

The Sierra Morena acts as a natural boundary for the regions northern borders with Extremadura and Castilla-La Mancha. Portugal lies to the West and the Murcia Region to the East. Cdiz provinces shares a land border with Gibraltar. Maritime boundaries are the Mediterranean in the East and South, the Strait of Gibraltar and the Atlantic at the regions south western border, and the Atlantic in the West, making up a total of 917 kilometres of coastline.

We will be bringing more information on the region of Andalucia and its points of interest shortly as this page is currently being expanded. In the meantime, however, we provide you with some useful links.


Al-Andalus is remembered on another level as the one area that was once - but is no longer - part of the Muslim world. Until the middle of this century, Muslims have withstood Mongols, Crusaders, empire-builders and settlers and still emerged with their Islamic identity intact - except in Spain. Even the Communist regimes of present-day China and the former Soviet Union failed to root out Islam, failed to deracinate their Muslim populations, despite vast expenditures of time, of treasure and of blood in attempts to build "the new socialist man" (See Aramco World, January-February 1990). The fact that the rest of the Muslim world has retained its religious identity over some fourteen centuries rife with political, social, cultural and technological change makes the exception of Spain that much more painful to Muslims.


On the other hand, Islamic Spain was an immensely fertile ground for learning, producing a long series of intellectual, esthetic and scientific advances attributable to Muslim, Christian and Jewish thinkers and the atmosphere they created. This blossoming was due in part to the spirit of tolerance that prevailed for much, though not all, of the history of Al-Andalus - a tolerance extended not only just to other religious groups but operative within Muslim society as well.Despite the passage of 500 years, Al-Andalus continues to cast its spell. As the birthplace of some of the world's outstanding scholars and artisans, home of dazzling architectural masterpieces, and setting of a brilliant society notable for both the height of its achievements and the depths of its decadence, Al-Andalus retains its emotional impact and its privileged place in Muslim historical memory.


ZIRYAB THE BLACKBIRD

The cornerstone of Spanish Musical artFashionable arbiter of taste in the 9th century

Kings and great people took him for a pattern of manners and education


If you eat asparagus, or if you start your meal with soup and end with dessert, or if you use toothpaste, or if you wear your hair in bangs, you owe a lot to one of the greatest musicians in history.

He was known as Ziryab, a colloquial Arabic term that translates as "blackbird." He lived in Medieval Spain more than a thousand years ago. He was a freed slave who made good, charming the royal court at Crdoba with his songs. He founded a music school whose fame survived more than 500 years after his death. Ibn Hayyan of Crdoba, one of Arab Spain's greatest historians, says in his monumental Al-Muqtabas (The Citation) that Ziryab knew thousands of songs by heart and revolutionized the design of the musical instrument that became the lute. He spread a new musical style around the Mediterranean, influencing troubadours and minstrels and affecting the course of European music.He was also his generation's arbiter of taste and style and manners, and he exerted enormous influence on Medieval European society. How people dressed, what and how they ate, how they groomed themselves, what music they enjoyed -- all were influenced by Ziryab.

If you've never heard of this remarkable artist, it's not surprising. With the twists and turns of history, his name has dropped from public memory in the western world. But the changes he brought to Europe are very much a part of the reality we know today.

One reason Ziryab is unknown to us is that he spoke Arabic, and was part of the royal court of the Arab empire in Spain. Muslims from Arabia and North Africa ruled part of Spain from AD 711 until 1492. The last remnant of Arab rule in the Iberian Peninsula, the Kingdom of Granada, was conquered by the armies of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella in the same year that Columbus sailed for the New World.

The Arabs called their Iberian domain Al-Andalus -- a direct reference to the Vandals, who occupied the peninsula in the fifth century and whose legacy was still pervasive when Muslim forces arrived in the eighth -- and that name survives today in the name of Spain's southern province, Andalusia. At its peak, Al-Andalus experienced a golden age of civilization that was the envy of all Europe, and which set the stage for the European Renaissance that followed. Muslims, Christians and Jews interacted in a convivencia -- a "living-together" -- of tolerance and cooperation unparalleled in its time. Influences from Arab Spain spread to France and throughout Europe, and from there to the Americas. It was in this context that the achievements of Ziryab became part of western culture.

Ziryab's achievements were not forgotten in the Arab world, and it is from historians there that we know of his life and accomplishments. As the 17th-century Arab historian al-Maqqari says in his Nafb al-Tib (Fragrant Breeze), "There never was, either before or after him, a man of his profession who was more generally beloved and admired."


The staying power of Blackbird's reputation is such that even today in Algeria, where Andalusi influence continues to echo, the sweet orange Arab pastry known as zalabia -- here it takes the form of a spiral of fried batter soaked in saffron syrup -- is believed by many Algerians to derive its name from Ziryab's, a claim impossible to confirm or refute. An Indian version of zalabia, the jalebi, can be traced back to the 15th century within India but no earlier, and could be a borrowing from the Arabs and ultimately from Ziryab.

With the emir's blessing, Ziryab decreed that palace dinners would be served in courses -- that is, according to a fixed sequence, starting with soups or broths, continuing with fish, fowl or meats, and concluding with fruits, sweet desserts and bowls of pistachios and other nuts. This presentation style, unheard of even in Baghdad or Damascus, steadily gained in popularity, spreading through the upper and merchant classes, then among Christians and Jews, and even to the peasantry. Eventually the custom became the rule throughout Europe. The English expression "from soup to nuts," indicating a lavish, multi-course meal, can be traced back to Ziryab's innovations at the Andalusi table.

Dressing up the plain wooden dinner table, Ziryab taught local craftsmen how to produce tooled and fitted leather table coverings. He replaced the heavy gold and silver drinking goblets of the upper classes -- a holdover from the Goths and Romans -- with delicate, finely crafted crystal. He redesigned the bulky wooden soupspoon, substituting a trimmer, lighter-weight model.

Ziryab also turned his attention to personal grooming and fashion. He developed Europe's first toothpaste (though what exactly its

ingredients were, we cannot say). He popularized shaving among men and set new haircut trends. Before Ziryab, royalty and nobles washed their clothes with rose water; to improve the cleaning process, he introduced the use of salt.

For women, Blackbird opened a "beauty parlor/cosmetology school" not far from the Alcazar, the emir's palace. He created hairstyles that were daring for the time. The women of Spain traditionally wore their hair parted in the middle, covering their ears, with a long braid down the back. Ziryab introduced a shorter, shaped cut, with bangs on the forehead and the ears uncovered. He taught the shaping of eyebrows and the use of depilatories for removing body hair. He introduced new perfumes and cosmetics. Some of Ziryab's fashion tips he borrowed from the elite social circles of Baghdad, then the world's most cosmopolitan city. Others were twists on local Andalusi custom. Most became widespread simply because Ziryab advocated them: He was a celebrity, and people gained status simply by emulating him.

As an arbiter of courtly dress, he decreed Spain's first seasonal fashion calendar. In springtime, men and women were to wear bright colors in their cotton and linen tunics, shirts, blouses and gowns. Ziryab introduced colorful silk clothing to supplement traditional fabrics. In summer, white clothing was the rule. When the weather turned cold, Ziryab recommended long cloaks trimmed with fur, which became all the rage in Al-Andalus.

Ziryab exercised great clout at the emir's court, even in political and administrative decision-making. 'Abd al-Rahman II has been credited with organizing the "norms of the state" in Al-Andalus, transforming it from a Roman-Visigothic model to one set up along Abbasid lines, and Ziryab is said to have played a significant role in this process.


Ziryab exercised great clout at the emir's court, even in political and administrative decision-making. 'Abd al-Rahman II has been credited with organizing the "norms of the state" in Al-Andalus, transforming it from a Roman-Visigothic model to one set up along Abbasid lines, and Ziryab is said to have played a significant role in this process.

Ziryab brought in astrologers from India and Jewish doctors from North Africa and Iraq. The astrologers were grounded in astronomy, and Ziryab encouraged the spread of this knowledge. The Indians also knew how to play chess, and Ziryab had them teach the game to members of the royal court, and from there it spread throughout the peninsula.

Not surprisingly, Ziryab's all-encompassing influence incurred the jealousy and resentment of other courtiers in Crdoba. Two celebrated poets of the day, Ibn Habib and al-Ghazzal, wrote scathing verses attacking him. Al-Ghazzal, a prominent Andalusi satirist, probably viewed the Baghdadi Ziryab as a high-toned interloper. Ziryab maintained the friendship and support of the emir, however, and that was all that mattered.

But 'Abd al-Rahman II died in about 852, and his remarkable innovator Ziryab is believed to have followed about five years later. Ziryab's children kept alive his musical inventions, assuring their spread throughout Europe. Each of his eight sons and two daughters eventually pursued a musical career, though not all became celebrities. The most popular singer was Ziryab's son 'Ubayd Allah, though his brother Qasim was said to have a better voice. Next in talent was 'Abd al-Rahman, the first of the children to take over the music school after their father's death -- though arrogance was said to be his downfall, for he ended up alienating everyone, according to Ibn Hayyan.

Ziryab's daughters were skilled musicians. The better artist was Hamduna, whose fame translated into marriage with the vizier of the realm. The better teacher was her sister 'Ulaiya, the last surviving of Ziryab's children, who went on to inherit most of her father's musical clients.

As 'Abd al-Rahman II and Ziryab departed the stage, Crdoba was coming into its own as a cultural capital and seat of learning. By the time another 'Abd al-Rahman -- the third -- took power in 912, the city had become the intellectual center of Europe. As historian James Cleugh said of Crdoba in Spain in the Modern World, "there was nothing like it, at that epoch, in the rest of Europe. The best minds in that continent looked to Spain for everything which most clearly differentiates a human being from a tiger."


Moorish Nobility


(THE IMAGE ABOVE IS A PAINTING OF ONE OF THE MOST RESPECTED BLACK MEN IN THE ANNALS OF EUROPEAN HISTORY. HISNAME IS CHEVALIER DE SAINT GEORGES AND HE WAS WELL RESPECTED AS ANEQUESTRIAN, SWORDSMAN, VIOLINIST, COMPOSER, AND A GREAT INTELLECT. HEWAS KNOWN AS THE "BLACK MOZART" OR THE "BLACK VOLTAIRE" OF MUSIC AND HEWAS HIGHLY SOUGHT AFTER FOR HIS TALENTS IN FRANCE AND OTHER PARTS OFEUROPE AS WELL.) ....


Occult Legacy of the Moors


CHAPTER XII:TALES OF SPANISH MAGIC & SORCERY AKA MOORISH

SCIENCESPAIN seems to have been regarded by the other countries of Western Europe as the special abode of superstition, sorcery, and magic,

probably because of the notoriety given to the discoveries of the Moorish alchemists, the first scientists in Europe. But with the coming of the Inquisition a marked and natural falling off is noticeable in the prevalence of occult belief, for anything which in the least tended to heresy was repressed in the most rigid manner by that illiberal Institution. In this way much of the folk-lore and peasant belief of Spain, many fascinating legends, and many a curious custom have been lost, never to be recovered. The Brothers, in their zeal for the purity of their Church, banished not only the witch, the sorcerer, and the demon from Spain, but also the innocent fairy, the spirits of wood and wold, and those household familiars which harm no one, but assist the housewife and the


After discussing the terminology of talismanic magic (or necromancy) and its position in divisions of science in the Middle Ages, this book traces the history of talismanic texts from the Classical period through the Arabic world to the Latin Middle Ages. The principal authorities are Hermes and Aristotle, and the search for the secret knowledge of these ancient sages is shown to have been a catalyst for the translating activity from Arabic into Latin in 12th-century Spain. The second half of the volume is devoted to examples of the kinds of divination prevalent in Arabic and Latin-reading societies: chiromancy, onomancy, scapulimancy, geomancy and fortune-telling. The book ends with advice on when to practice alchemy and a prophetic letter of supposed Arabic provenance, warning of the coming of the Mongols. Several editions of previously unedited texts are included, with translations.

Contents: Introduction; Talismans: magic as science? Necromancy among the Seven Liberal Arts; Adelard, Ergaphalau and the science of the stars; Arabic, Greek and Latin works on astrological magic attributed to Aristotle; The translating activity in medieval Spain; The legend of the three Hermes and Abu Mashars Kitab al-Uluf in the Latin Middle Ages; Hermann of Carinthia and the kitab al-Istamatis: further evidence for the transmission of Hermetic magic; The kitab al-Istamatis and a manuscript of astrological and astronomical works from Barcelona (Biblioteca de Catalunya, 634); Scandinavian runes in a Latin magical treatise; The Conte de Sarzana magical manuscript; The earliest chiromancy in the West; Chiromancy: supplement. The principal Latin texts on chiromancy extant in the Middle Ages; The Eadwine Psalter and the western tradition of the onomancy in Pseudo-Aristotle's Secret of Secrets; Scapulimancy (divination by the shoulder blades of sheep); Arabic divinatory texts and Celtic folklore: a comment on the theory and practice of scapulimancy in Western Europe; Divination from sheep's shoulder blades: a reflection on Andalusian society; An Islamic divinatory technique in medieval Spain; The scapulimancy of Giorgio Anselmi's Divinum opus de magia disciplina; What is the Experimentarius of Bernardus Silvestris? A preliminary survey of the material; A note on two fortune-telling tables; The astrologers assay of the alchemist: early references to alchemy in Arabic and Latin texts; An apocryphal letter from the Arabic philosopher al-Kindi to Theodore, Frederick II's astrologer, concerning Gog and Magog, the enclosed nations and the scourge of the Mongols; Index.


Moorish MagicBy no race was the practice of the occult arts studied with such perseverance as by the Moors of Spain, and it is strange indeed that only fragmentary notices of their works in this respect remain to us. The statement that they were famous for magical and alchemical studies is reiterated by numerous European historians, but the majority of these have refrained from any description of their methods, and the Moors themselves have left so few undoubted memorials of their labours in this direction that we remain in considerable ignorance of the trend of their efforts, so that if we desire any knowledge upon this most recondite subject we must perforce collect it painfully from the fragmentary notices of it in con temporary European and Arabic literature.The first name of importance which we encounter in the broken annals of Moorish occultism is a great one-that of the famous Geber, who flourished about 720-750, and who is reported to have penned upward of five hundred works upon the philosopher's stone and the elixir of life. In common with his fellow-alchemists, he appears to have failed signally in his search for those marvellous elements, but if he was unable to point way to immortal life and boundless wealth, he is to have given mankind the nitrate of silver, corrossive sublimate, and nitric acid. He believed that a preparation of gold would heal all diseases in both animals plants, as well as in human beings, and that all men were in a condition of chronic sickness in so far that they had departed from their natural and original state of gold. His works, all of which are in Latin, are not considered authentic, but his Summa Perfectionis manual for the alchemical student, has frequently been translated. The Moorish alchemists taught that all metals are composed of varying proportions of mercury and sulphur. They laboured strenuously to multiply drugs out of the various mixtures and reactions of the few chemicals their disposal, but although they believed in the theory of transmutation of metals they did not strive to effect. It belonged to their creed rather than to the practice. They were a school of scientific artisans and experimentalists, first and last. They probably owe their alchemical knowledge to Byzantium, which in turn had received it from Egypt; or it may be that the Arab drew their scientific inspiration at first hand from the land of the Nile, where the great art of alchemy undoubtedly had its birth.Wednesday, July 25, 2012

SPAIN seems to have been regarded by the other countries of Western Europe as the special abode of superstition, sorcery, and magic, probably because of the notoriety given to the discoveries of the Moorish alchemists, the first scientists in Europe. But with the coming of the Inquisition a marked and natural falling off is noticeable in the prevalence of occult belief, for anything which in the least tended to heresy was repressed in the most rigid manner by that illiberal Institution. In this way much of the folk-lore and peasant belief of Spain, many fascinating legends, and many a curious custom have been lost, never to be recovered. The Brothers, in their zeal for the purity of their Church, banished not only the witch, the sorcerer, and the demon from Spain, but also the innocent fairy, the spirits of wood and wold, and those household familiars which harm no one, but assist the housewife and the dairymaid.


The first information we receive that the authorities intended a campaign against the whole demonhood, good and evil, of Spain is contained in a work by Alfonso de Speria, a Castilian Franciscan, who wrote, about 1458 or 1460, a work specially directed against heretics and unbelievers, in which he gives a chapter on those popular beliefs which were derived from ancient pagan practices. The belief in witches, whom he calls xurguine (jurguja) or bruxe, seems to have been imported from Dauphin or Gascony, where, he tells us, they abounded. They were, he says, wont to assemble at night in great numbers on a high tableland, carrying candles with them, for the purpose of worshipped Satan, who appeared to them in the form of a boar rather than in that of the he-goat in which he so frequently manifested himself in other localities.Liorente, in his History of the Inquisition in Sp states that the first auto-de-f against sorcery was at Calabarra in 1507, when thirty women charged with witchcraft by the Inquisition were burnt. In the first treatise on Spanish sorcery, that of Martin de Castanaga, a Franciscan monk (i 529), we learn that Navarre was regarded as the motherland of Spanish witchcraft, and that that province sent many 'missionaries' to Aragon to convert its women to sorcery. But we find that the Spanish theologians of the sixteenth century were so much more enlightened than those of other countries that they admitted that witchcraft was merely a delusion, and the punishment they meted out to those who believed in it was inflicted in respect that the belief, erroneous though it was, was contrary to the tenets of the Church.


Spain had not in the sixteenth century ceased to be celebrated for its magicians, who still retained a modicum of the occult philosophy of the Moorish doctors of Toledo and Granada. Perhaps the most celebrated of these comparatively modern masters of magic was Doctor Eugenio Torralva, physician to the family of the Admiral of Castile. Educated at Rome, he early became a pronounced sceptic, and formed an intimacy with a certain Master Alfonso, a man who, after changing his Jewish faith for Islam, and that again for Christianity, had at last become a free-thinker. Another evil companion was a Dominican monk called Brother Pietro, who told Torralva that he had in his service a good angel called Zequid, who had no equal in the spiritual world as a seer, and was besides of such a disinterested temperament that he served only those who had complete confidence in him and deserved his attachment.All this excited Torralva's curiosity to an unbounded degree. He was one of those people, fortunate or otherwise, in whom the love of mystery has been deeply implanted, and when Pietro generously proposed to resign his familiar spirit to his friend's keeping he eagerly accepted the offer. Nor did Zequid himself offer any opposition to this change of master, and appearing at the summons of Pietro, assured Torralvo that he would follow his service as long as he lived, and wherever he was obliged to go. There was nothing very startling in the appearance of the spirit, who was dressed in a flesh-coloured habit and black cloak, and had the appearance of a young man with an abundance of fair hair.From this time onward Zequiel appeared to Torralva at every change of the moon, and as often as the physician required his services, which was generally for the purpose of transporting him An a short space of time to distant places. Sometimes the spirit assumed the appearance of a hermit, at others that of a traveller and even accompanied his master to church, from which circumstance Torralva concluded that he was a beneficent and Christian-minded spirit. But, alas! Dr Torralva was to find, like many another, that attendance at the sacred edifice is not necessarily a guarantee of piety.


About the end of the tenth century the learned men of Europe began to resort to Spain for the purpose of studying the arts, occult and otherwise. Among the first to do so was Gerbert, afterward Pope Sylvester II, who spent several years in Cordova, and who introduced i

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