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MJMES Volume VIII
Volume VIII 2005-2006 McGill Journal of Middle East Studies Revue d’études du Moyen-Orient de McGill MCGILL JOURNAL OF MIDDLE EAST STUDIES LA REVUE D’ÉTUDES DU MOYEN- ORIENT DE MCGILL A publication of the McGill Middle East Studies Students’ Association Volume VIII, 2005-2006 ISSN 1206-0712 Cover photo by Torie Partridge Copyright © 2006 by the McGill Journal of Middle East Studies A note from the editors: The Mandate of the McGill Journal of Middle East Studies is to demonstrate the dynamic variety and depth of scholarship present within the McGill student community. Staff and contributors come from both the Graduate and Undergraduate Faculties and have backgrounds ranging from Middle East and Islamic Studies to Economics and Political Science. As in previous issues, we have attempted to bring this multifaceted approach to bear on matters pertinent to the region. *** The McGill Journal of Middle East Studies is registered with the National Library of Canada (ISSN 1206-0712). We have regularized the subscription rates as follows: $15.00 Canadian per issue (subject to availability), plus $3.00 Canadian for international shipping. *** Please address all inquiries, comments, and subscription requests to: The McGill Journal of Middle East Studies c/o MESSA Stephen Leacock Building, Room 414 855 Sherbrooke Street West Montreal, Quebec H3A 2T7 Editors-in-chief Aliza Landes Ariana Markowitz Layout Editor Ariana Markowitz Financial Managers Morrissa Golden Avigail Shai Editorial Board Kristian Chartier Laura Etheredge Tamar Gefen Morrissa Golden -
Hostages and the Dangers of Cultural Contact: Two Cases from Umayyad Cordoba*
MARIBEL FIERRO Hostages and the Dangers of Cultural Contact: Two Cases from Umayyad Cordoba* Hostages are captives of a peculiar sort. Rather than having been captured during war, they are in the hands of the enemy as free persons who have temporarily lost their freedom, either because they were given and kept as a pledge (for example, for the fulfilment of a treaty) or in order to act as a substitute for someone who has been taken prisoner1. The prisoner, usually an important person, can regain his or her freedom under certain conditions, usually by the payment of a ransom. When those conditions are fulfilled, the hostage is released. In the medieval period, the taking of hostages was linked to conquest, the establishment of treaties, and the submission of rebels. The Spanish word for »hostage« (rehén, pl. rehenes) derives from the Arabic root r.h.n (which produces, in Classical Arabic, rāhin, pl. rahāʾin)2, and this origin attests to the fact that the practice of taking hostages was widespread in medieval Iberia and more generally in the Mediterranean3. The Muslims had not, however, invented it4. We lack specific studies dealing with hostages in Islamic lands and the procedures related to their taking and release, as well as their life as hostages, in spite of the fact that medieval historical and, more generally, literary sources are full of references to this widespread, persistent, and accepted practice which had advantages for both par- * This paper was undertaken as part of the project »Knowledge, heresy and political culture in the Islamic West (second/eighth–ninth/fifteenth centuries) = KOHEPOCU«, F03049 Advanced Research Grant, European Research Council (2009–2014). -
Medieval Spain
1 MEDIEVAL SPAIN 6 Which photos show legacies from the Visigothic period? LET’S BEGIN 1 Do you recognise the building in the large photo? Does the architectural style look the same or different to buildings in your town? 2 Which of these periods came before the Middle Ages? Which one came after? the Modern Age • Ancient History 3 What are some of the legacies of the Roman Empire that we can find in Spain today? 4 Which groups of people do you think lived in the Iberian Peninsula during the Middle Ages? What do you know? Let’s find out! Useful language I think … came before / after the Middle Ages. 7 Reflect 1 Look at the timeline and match the sentences in your notebook. 218 BC AD 711 1492 Roman rule Moorish rule Christian rule 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1500 ANCIENT HISTORY MIDDLE AGES AD 476 Visigothic rule a The Visigoths ruled in the Iberian Peninsula … 1 … in Ancient History. b The Visigoths and the Moors ruled … 2 … in the Iberian Peninsula in the Middle Ages. c The Romans ruled in the Iberian Peninsula … 3 … around 1,000 years. d The Middle Ages in Spain lasted for … 4 … after the fall of the Western Roman Empire. 2 Say what each photo is. Order the photos from oldest to newest. a b c 3 What is the centre of your town like? a Are the streets narrow or wide? b Does the centre of your town look the same as it does in the suburbs? How are they different? c Think of two famous monuments in your town. -
Some Overlooked Realities of Jewish Life Under Islamic Rule in Medieval Spain
Comparative Civilizations Review Volume 68 Number 68 Spring 2013 Article 4 4-1-2013 Some Overlooked Realities of Jewish Life under Islamic Rule in Medieval Spain Dario Fernandez-Morera Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/ccr Recommended Citation Fernandez-Morera, Dario (2013) "Some Overlooked Realities of Jewish Life under Islamic Rule in Medieval Spain," Comparative Civilizations Review: Vol. 68 : No. 68 , Article 4. Available at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/ccr/vol68/iss68/4 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Journals at BYU ScholarsArchive. It has been accepted for inclusion in Comparative Civilizations Review by an authorized editor of BYU ScholarsArchive. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. Fernandez-Morera: Some Overlooked Realities of Jewish Life under Islamic Rule in Me Comparative Civilizations Review 21 Some Overlooked Realities of Jewish Life under Islamic Rule in Medieval Spain Dario Fernandez-Morera [email protected] It is widely accepted that under Islam the Jewish community of Spain briefly enjoyed a “Golden Age.” However, it is far less widely understood that Muslim, Christian, and Jewish legal and historical sources indicate that favorable treatment violated medieval Islamic law and also that even under the best circumstances, Jews remained subject to the vicissitudes of their condition as dhimmis (“protected” non-Muslims). If there was brief good treatment, it was because of tactical needs of particular Muslim rulers, not legal considerations. Marginalized groups who side with a successful invader normally see their status rise with a change in the political fortunes.1 The Jewish community of Spain was no exception. -
COURSE INFORMATION History of Al-Andalus Code Number
COURSE INFORMATION History of al-Andalus Code number: 101010308 Degree in History Academic Year: 2019-2020 Elective course. 4th year First semester: 3 hours a week, 2 days a week 6 credits TEACHING STAFF Prof.: Alejandro García-Sanjuán Department: History, Geography and Anthropology Office: Building 12, high, right Phone: +34 959 219151 E-mail: [email protected] Office hours: First Semester: Thursday and Friday, 9,00-12,00 h PROGRAMME 1. DESCRIPTION Study of the history of al-Andalus, an Arab and Islamic country in Iberia during the Middle Ages, from the Muslim conquest (711) to the fall of Granada (1492). 2. PREREQUISITES History of al-Andalus is an open course, suitable for students with different academic backgrounds and profiles. Especially recommended for students of History, Religious Studies, or Arabic and Islamic Studies. 3. OBJECTIVES/LEARNING OUTCOMES The main subjects will be addressed following the different periods in which the history of al-Andalus is usually divided. These subjects range from historiographical issues (the problematic insertion of al-Andalus into the modern notion of history of Spain) to specific issues of particular significance to each period: the development of Islamization and Arabization, the establishment of the Umayyad State, the Caliphate of Córdoba, the production and transmission of knowledge, the war against the Christians, the urbanization process, the dependence of foreign Islamic powers (Almoravids and Almohads), the affirmation of an Andalusi identity, etc. 4. TEACHING METHODOLOGY Five classes of 1.5 hours (7.5 hours) will be devoted to each one of the five units. The classes are taught through Ppoint presentations aimed at supporting the class explanations, and intended to acquaint the student with historical sources through the use of images (maps, graphics, numismatics, epigraphy) and texts. -
The Berber Identity: a Double Helix of Islam and War by Alvin Okoreeh
The Berber Identity: A Double Helix of Islam and War By Alvin Okoreeh Mezquita de Córdoba, Interior. Muslim Spain is characterized by a myriad of sophisticated and complex dynamics that invariably draw from a foundation rooted in an ethnically diverse populace made up of Arabs, Berbers, muwalladun, Mozarebs, Jews, and Christians. According to most scholars, the overriding theme for this period in the Iberian Peninsula is an unprecedented level of tolerance. The actual level of tolerance experienced by its inhabitants is debatable and relative to time, however, commensurate with the idea of tolerance is the premise that each of the aforementioned groups was able to leave a distinct mark on the era of Muslim dominance in Spain. The Arabs, with longstanding ties to supremacy in Damascus and Baghdad exercised authority as the conqueror and imbued al-Andalus with culture and learning until the fall of the caliphate in 1031. The Berbers were at times allies with the Arabs and Christians, were often enemies with everyone on the Iberian Peninsula, and in the times of the taifas, Almoravid and Almohad dynasties, were the rulers of al-Andalus. The muwalladun, subjugated by Arab perceptions of a dubious conversion to Islam, were mired in compulsory ineptitude under the pretense that their conversion to Islam would yield a more prosperous life. The Mozarebs and Jews, referred to as “people of the book,” experienced a wide spectrum of societal conditions ranging from prosperity to withering persecution. This paper will argue that the Berbers, by virtue of cultural assimilation and an identity forged by militant aggressiveness and religious zealotry, were the most influential ethno-religious group in Muslim Spain from the time of the initial Muslim conquest of Spain by Berber-led Umayyad forces to the last vestige of Muslim dominance in Spain during the time of the Almohads. -
Table of Contents: Lesson Set for “Cities of Light”
TABLE OF CONTENTS: LESSON SET FOR “CITIES OF LIGHT” BASIC LESSONS ENRICHMENT LESSONS INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES 1: Vocabulary Lesson 7: Map Activities ● Words and definitions by segment ● Al-Andalus in world/regional history ● Introduction to quotes by experts & ● Al-Andalus the Jewel: geographic characteristics context clues of the Iberian Peninsula 2: Viewers Guide 8: Introduction to the Abrahamic Faiths ● Overview of each film chapter ● Background reading and activity MAKING THE POINT OF THE FILM 3: Reading a Historical Map Sequence 9: Material Culture: Achievements of al-Andalus ● Outline maps showing periods in al- ● Material culture in al-Andalus in text and image Andalus history (sciences, arts, technologies, crafts) 4: Timeline Activity 10: Andalusian Literature [Primary Source ● Tracing the chronology of events and Activity]: periods in Andalusian history ● Poetry highlighting aspects of life in al-Andalus, with analysis (technology, reflections on politics, social life) 5: Discussing the Film 11: Story of the Transfer of Knowledge from the ● Questions for each film segment Ancients to Islamic Spain to Europe 12: Legend vs. History: Will the Real El Cid Please Stand Up? CONCLUDING ACTIVITIES 6: Tolerance and Intolerance: 13: Analyzing Secondary Sources: How Do Conditions and Outcomes Modern Historians Assess the Significance of a. Questions, Flow Charts & Keys Muslim Spain? b. Applying the film’s message to our times ● How do historians view the legacy of Spain ● What lessons can we draw from this legacy? SPECIAL FEATURE: Historical Fiction: The Sword CITIES OF LIGHT Film, website, and curriculum lesson plans made possible with support from Unity Productions Foundation, the U.S. Department of Education Title VI grant awarded to Georgetown University, and the United States Institute of Peace. -
Bioclimatic Devices of Nasrid Domestic Buildings
Bioclimatic Devices of Nasrid Domestic Buildings Luis José GARCÍA-PULIDO studies in ARCHITECTURE, HISTORY & CULTURE papers by the 2011-2012 AKPIA@MIT visiting fellows AKPIA@MIT 2 The Aga Khan Program for Islamic Architecture at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology 3 2011-2012 CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTION 6.1.A.1. Control of Spaces and Natural Light 6.1.A.2. Reflecting Surfaces 2. CLIMATIC CHANGES IN THE PAST AND THEIR INFLUENCES 6.1.A.3. North-South Orientation 6.1.A.4. Microclimate Provided by Courtyards IN SOCIETIES 6.1.A.5. Spatial Dispositions around the Courtyard. The 2.1. The Roman Climatic Optimum Sequence Patio-Portico-Qubba/Tower 2.2. The Early Medieval Pessimum 6.1.B. Indirect Methods of Passive Refrigeration (Heat 2.3. The Medieval Warm Period Dissipation) 2.4. The Little Ice Age 6.1.B.1. Ventilation 6.1.B.2. Radiation 6.1.B.3. Evaporation and Evapotranspiration 3. BUILDING AGAINST A HARSH CLIMATE IN THE ISLAMIC WORLD 7. BIOCLIMATIC DEVICES IN OTHER ISLAMIC REGIONS 3.1. Orientation and Flexibility WITH COMPARABLE CLIMATOLOGY TO THE SOUTHEAST 3.2. Shading IBERIAN PENINSULA 3.3. Ventilation 7.1 The North West of Maghreb 7.1.1. The Courtyard House in the Medinas of North Maghreb 4. COURTYARD HOUSES 7.2 The Anatolian Peninsula 4.1. The Sequence from the Outside to the Courtyard 7.2.1. Mediterranean Continental Climate 4.2. Taming the Climate 7.2.2. Mediterranean Marine Climate 7.2.3. Mediterranean Mountainous Climate 5. NASRID HOUSE TYPOLOGY 7.2.4. Dry and Hot Climate 7.2.5. -
The Monastic Rules of Visigothic Iberia: a Study of Their Text and Language
THE MONASTIC RULES OF VISIGOTHIC IBERIA: A STUDY OF THEIR TEXT AND LANGUAGE By NEIL ALLIES A thesis submitted to The University of Birmingham for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Department of Theology and Religion College of Arts and Law The University of Birmingham July 2009 University of Birmingham Research Archive e-theses repository This unpublished thesis/dissertation is copyright of the author and/or third parties. The intellectual property rights of the author or third parties in respect of this work are as defined by The Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988 or as modified by any successor legislation. Any use made of information contained in this thesis/dissertation must be in accordance with that legislation and must be properly acknowledged. Further distribution or reproduction in any format is prohibited without the permission of the copyright holder. Abstract This thesis is concerned with the monastic rules that were written in seventh century Iberia and the relationship that existed between them and their intended, contemporary, audience. It aims to investigate this relationship from three distinct, yet related, perspectives: physical, literary and philological. After establishing the historical and historiographical background of the texts, the thesis investigates firstly the presence of a monastic rule as a physical text and its role in a monastery and its relationship with issues of early medieval literacy. It then turns to look at the use of literary techniques and structures in the texts and their relationship with literary culture more generally at the time. Finally, the thesis turns to issues of the language that the monastic rules were written in and the relationship between the spoken and written registers not only of their authors, but also of their audiences. -
Bartolomé De Las Casas, Soldiers of Fortune, And
HONOR AND CARITAS: BARTOLOMÉ DE LAS CASAS, SOLDIERS OF FORTUNE, AND THE CONQUEST OF THE AMERICAS Dissertation Submitted To The College of Arts and Sciences of the UNIVERSITY OF DAYTON In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for The Degree Doctor of Philosophy in Theology By Damian Matthew Costello UNIVERSITY OF DAYTON Dayton, Ohio August 2013 HONOR AND CARITAS: BARTOLOMÉ DE LAS CASAS, SOLDIERS OF FORTUNE, AND THE CONQUEST OF THE AMERICAS Name: Costello, Damian Matthew APPROVED BY: ____________________________ Dr. William L. Portier, Ph.D. Committee Chair ____________________________ Dr. Sandra Yocum, Ph.D. Committee Member ____________________________ Dr. Kelly S. Johnson, Ph.D. Committee Member ____________________________ Dr. Anthony B. Smith, Ph.D. Committee Member _____________________________ Dr. Roberto S. Goizueta, Ph.D. Committee Member ii ABSTRACT HONOR AND CARITAS: BARTOLOMÉ DE LAS CASAS, SOLDIERS OF FORTUNE, AND THE CONQUEST OF THE AMERICAS Name: Costello, Damian Matthew University of Dayton Advisor: Dr. William L. Portier This dissertation - a postcolonial re-examination of Bartolomé de las Casas, the 16th century Spanish priest often called “The Protector of the Indians” - is a conversation between three primary components: a biography of Las Casas, an interdisciplinary history of the conquest of the Americas and early Latin America, and an analysis of the Spanish debate over the morality of Spanish colonialism. The work adds two new theses to the scholarship of Las Casas: a reassessment of the process of Spanish expansion and the nature of Las Casas’s opposition to it. The first thesis challenges the dominant paradigm of 16th century Spanish colonialism, which tends to explain conquest as the result of perceived religious and racial difference; that is, Spanish conquistadors turned to military force as a means of imposing Spanish civilization and Christianity on heathen Indians. -
Islam in Spain 1 Islam in Spain
Islam in Spain 1 Islam in Spain Islam in Spain has had a fundamental presence in the culture and history of the nation. The religion was present in modern Spanish soil from 711 until 1492 under the rule of the Arabs and Moors of al-Andalus. For key historical dates, see Timeline of the Muslim presence in the Iberian peninsula. As of 2007, an estimated over 1 million Muslims live in Spain,[1] most of them recent immigrants from North Africa, Middle East, and South Asia; although there are also some Spanish converts, estimated at around 20,000.[2] The first Mosque after the Moors were expelled in 1492, in modern Spain, was built after approximately 500 years in 1982.[3] History Conquest Hispania was the Latin name given to the whole Iberian Peninsula (covering the territories of present day Spain and Portugal), and after the fall of the Western Roman Empire (476 AD) the Teutonic tribe of Visigoths ended up ruling the whole peninsula until the Islamic conquest (during that time they pushed another Teutonic tribe out—the Vandals – and conquered another one—the Suevi). It is frequently stated in historical sources that Spain was one of the former Roman provinces where the Latin language and culture The Great Mosque of Córdoba turned church after the Reconquista. grew deep roots. After the fall of the Empire the Visigoths continued the tradition by becoming probably the most Romanized of all Teutonic tribes. On April 30 of 711, Berber leader Tariq ibn-Ziyad landed at Gibraltar and by the end of the campaign most of the Iberian Peninsula (except for small areas in the north-west such as Asturias and the Basque territory) were brought under Islamic rule. -
RECONQUEST and REPOPULATION Ence Close to the Church of a Spring Enclosed by Ma- from North Africa Who Overthrew the Visigothic King- Sonry of the Same Period
RECONQUEST AND REPOPULATION ence close to the church of a spring enclosed by ma- from North Africa who overthrew the Visigothic king- sonry of the same period. It is likely that the site was dom in 711. Modern historians have questioned the part of a royal estate. validity of this traditional concept, but Derek Lomax ROGER COLLINS pointed out that the Reconquest was “an ideal invented by Spanish Christians soon after 711” and developed Bibliography in the ninth-century kingdom of Asturias. Given the failure of the Muslims to occupy the Collins, R., Early Medieval Spain: Unity in Diversity, entire Iberian Peninsula, several tiny, independent 400–1000. London, 1983, 108–45. kingdoms and counties emerged in the foothills of the Navascue´s, J. M. de. La dedicacio´n de San Juan de Ban˜os. Palencia, 1961. Cantabrian and Pyrenees mountains, namely, Asturias, Thompson, E. A. The Goths in Spain. Oxford, 1969, Leo´n, Castile, Navarre, Arago´n, and Catalonia. The 199–210. idea of reconquest originated in Asturias, where King Pelayo (718–737), the leader of a hardy band of moun- taineers, proclaimed his intention to achieve the salus RECEMUND Spanie—the “salvation of Spain”—and the restoration Bishop of Elvira and caliphal secretary (mid-tenth cen- of the Gothic people. His victory over the Muslims at tury). Known to the Arabs as Rabi ibn Sid al-Usquf, Covadonga in 722 is traditionally taken as the begin- the Christian Recemund served as a secretary under ning of the Reconquest. A ninth-century chronicler af- the caliph Abd al-Rah.ma¯n III (929–961).