Judaeo-Portuguese , Jewish-Portuguese or Judaeo-Lusitanic , is an extinct Jewish language or a dialect of Galician-Portuguese written in the Hebrew alphabet that was used by the Jews of Portugal .
150-759: It was the vernacular of Sephardi Jews in Portugal before the 16th century and also in many places of the Portuguese Jewish diaspora. Its texts were written in the Hebrew script ( aljamiado português ) or the Latin alphabet . As Portuguese Jews intermarried with other expelled Sephardim, the language influenced the nearby Judeo-Spanish . Close similarity to Standard Portuguese made Judeo-Portuguese go extinct in Portugal, having survived in everyday usage in
300-726: A Jewish diaspora population associated with the Iberian Peninsula ( Spain and Portugal ). The term, which is derived from the Hebrew Sepharad ( lit. ' Spain ' ), can also refer to the Jews of the Middle East and North Africa , who were also heavily influenced by Sephardic law and customs . Many Iberian Jewish exiled families also later sought refuge in those Jewish communities, resulting in ethnic and cultural integration with those communities over
450-579: A Biblical location. The location of the Biblical Sepharad points to the Iberian peninsula, then the westernmost outpost of Phoenician maritime trade. Jewish presence in Iberia is believed to have started during the reign of King Solomon , whose excise imposed taxes on Iberian exiles. Although the first date of arrival of Jews in Iberia is the subject of ongoing archaeological research, there
600-622: A conduit for cultural and scientific exchange between the Islamic and Christian worlds. For much of its history, al-Andalus existed in conflict with Christian kingdoms to the north. After the fall of the Umayyad caliphate, al-Andalus was fragmented into taifa states and principalities, some of which (such as the Taifa of Toledo , the Taifa of Zaragoza , the Taifa of Seville and the Taifa of Badajoz ) reached considerable territorial extent. After
750-594: A decisive victory over King Roderic at the Battle of Guadalete on July 19, 711, Tariq, accompanied by his mawla , governor Musa ibn Nusayr of Ifriqiya , brought most of the Visigothic Kingdom under Muslim rule in a seven-year campaign. They crossed the Pyrenees and occupied Visigothic Septimania in southern France. Most of the Iberian peninsula became part of the expanding Umayyad Empire , under
900-668: A detachment of some 10,000 Arab troops across the straits . The Arab governor of al-Andalus, joined by this force, crushed the Berber rebels in a series of ferocious battles in 742. However, a quarrel immediately erupted between the Syrian commanders and the Andalusi, the so-called "original Arabs" of the earlier contingents. The Syrians defeated them at the hard-fought Battle of Aqua Portora in August 742 but were too few to impose themselves on
1050-603: A few years. The Jewish community in Portugal was perhaps then some 15% of that country's population. They were declared Christians by Royal decree unless they left, but the King hindered their departure, needing their artisanship and working population for Portugal's overseas enterprises and territories. Later Sephardic Jews settled in many trade areas controlled by the Empire of Philip II and others. With various countries in Europe also
1200-499: A lot of Dutch influence. This same exodus would cause the language to spread to the Turkish Jewish community. It would go extinct in the early 19th century, though since then has only been used liturgically. The oldest text containing Judeo-Portuguese is a manuscript from 1262 about illuminating manuscripts called O livro de como se fazem as cores .During the 15th century several texts including one about medical astrology and
1350-571: A major influence on the intellectual life of medieval Europe. Muslims and non-Muslims often came from abroad to study at the libraries and universities of al-Andalus, and after the reconquest of Toledo, several translation institutions such as the Toledo School of Translators were established for translating books and texts from Arabic into Latin. The most noted figures in this being Gerard of Cremona and Michael Scot , who took these works to Italy. The transmission of ideas significantly affected
1500-614: A misunderstanding of the initials ס"ט "Samekh Tet" traditionally used with some proper names (which stand for sofo tov , "may his end be good" or "sin v'tin", "mire and mud" has in recent times been used in some quarters to distinguish Sephardim proper, "who trace their lineage back to the Iberian/Spanish population", from Sephardim in the broader religious sense. This distinction has also been made in reference to 21st-century genetic findings in research on 'Pure Sephardim', in contrast to other communities of Jews today who are part of
1650-620: A notary public in Spain. In the case of Portugal, the nationality law was modified in 2022 with very stringent requirements for new Sephardic applicants, effectively ending the possibility of successful applications without evidence of a personal travel history to Portugal —which is tantamount to prior permanent residence— or ownership of inherited property or concerns on Portuguese soil. The name Sephardi means "Spanish" or "Hispanic", derived from Sepharad ( Hebrew : סְפָרַד , Modern : Sfarád , Tiberian : Səp̄āráḏ ),
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#17327729980921800-533: A powerful and well-established state that had become one of the most powerful in the Mediterranean. Abd al Rahman was succeeded by Muhammad I of Córdoba , who according to legend had to wear women's clothing to sneak into the imperial palace and be crowned, since he was not the heir apparent. His reign marked a decline in the emirate, which was ended by Abd al-Rahman III . His reign was marked by multiple rebellions, which were dealt with poorly and weakened
1950-429: A prayer book. Even until today is it still used liturgically but only by a very small number of people. The decline of Judeo-Portuguese would begin with the introduction of public schooling. Eventually declining to home use before finally only being used liturgically. There existed several dialects of Judeo-Portuguese divided into 2 categories referred to as Peninsular Judeo-Portuguese and Emigre Judeo-Portuguese, though
2100-649: A punitive expedition against Seville that reached all the way to Tarifa at the southern tip of al-Andalus. In 1085, he annexed Toledo , a turning point which galvanized the remaining taifa leaders into seeking outside help. After the fall of Toledo, most of the major taifa rulers agreed to request the intervention of the Almoravids, a Berber empire based in Marrakesh that had conquered much of northwest Africa. The Almoravid leader, Yusuf Ibn Tashfin , led several campaigns into al-Andalus, initially in defense of
2250-500: A stifling effect, the disintegration of the caliphate expanded the opportunities to Jewish and other professionals. The services of Jewish scientists, doctors, traders, poets, and scholars were generally valued by Christian and Muslim rulers of regional centers, especially as order was restored in recently conquered towns. Rabbi Samuel ha-Nagid (ibn Naghrela) was the Vizier of Granada . He was succeeded by his son Joseph ibn Naghrela who
2400-675: A synagogue, a mikveh and a yeshiva as well. However, during the time he was a rabbi in Pernambuco, the Portuguese re-occupied the place again in 1654, after a struggle of nine years. Aboab da Fonseca managed to return to Amsterdam after the occupation of the Portuguese. Members of his community immigrated to North America and were among the founders of New York City , but some Jews took refuge in Seridó . The Sephardic kehilla in Zamość in
2550-461: A tradition passed down by Rabbi Berekiah and Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai , quoting second-century tanna Rabbi Meir , states: "Do not fear, O Israel, for I help you from remote lands, and your seed from the land of their captivity, from Gaul , from Spain, and from their neighbors." Medieval legends often traced the arrival of Jews in Spain to the First Temple period , with some associating
2700-416: A truce that would have allowed Abd al-Rahman to marry al-Fihri's daughter. After decisively defeating Yūsuf al-Fihri's army, Abd al-Rahman was able to conquer Córdoba, where he proclaimed himself emir in 756. The rest of Iberia was easily conquered, and Abd al-Rahman soon had control of all of Iberia. Abd al Rahman's rule was stable in the years after his conquest – he built major public works, most famously
2850-560: Is a Romance language derived from Old Spanish that was spoken by the eastern Sephardic Jews who settled in the Eastern Mediterranean after their expulsion from Spain in 1492; Haketia (also known as " Tetuani Ladino " in Algeria), an Arabic -influenced variety of Judaeo-Spanish, was spoken by North African Sephardic Jews who settled in the region after the 1492 Spanish expulsion. In 2015, more than five centuries after
3000-458: Is al-Zahrawi, who is considered by many to be "probably the greatest physician in the entire history of Western Islam." Around the year 1000 C.E, he wrote a book with a title that roughly translates to The Arrangement of Medical Knowledge for One Who is Not Able to Compile a Book for Himself ( Kitab al-tasrif li-man 'ajiza 'an al-ta'alif )—a comprehensive medical encyclopedia with the goal of summarizing all existing medical knowledge and eliminating
3150-715: Is considerable as Samuel Abravanel (or "Abrabanel"—financial councilor to the viceroy of Naples ) or Moses Curiel (or "Jeromino Nunes da Costa"-serving as Agent to the Crown of Portugal in the United Provinces ). Among other names mentioned are those of Belmonte, Nasi , Francisco Pacheco , Blas, Pedro de Herrera , Palache , Pimentel , Azevedo , Sagaste, Salvador , Sasportas , Costa , Curiel , Cansino , Schönenberg , Sapoznik (Zapatero), Toledo , Miranda, Toledano , Pereira , and Teixeira . The Sephardim distinguished themselves as physicians and statesmen, and won
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#17327729980923300-511: Is defined by a liturgical tradition's choice of prayers, order of prayers, text of prayers and melodies used in the singing of prayers. Sephardim traditionally pray using Minhag Sefarad. The term Nusach Sefard or Nusach Sfarad does not refer to the liturgy generally recited by Sephardim proper or even Sephardi in a broader sense, but rather to an alternative Eastern European liturgy used by many Hasidim , who are Ashkenazi . Additionally, Ethiopian Jews , whose branch of practiced Judaism
3450-948: Is evidence of established Jewish communities as early as the 1st century CE . Modern transliteration of Hebrew romanizes the consonant פ ( pe without a dagesh dot placed in its center) as the digraph ph , in order to represent fe or the single phoneme /f/ , the English sound that is voiceless labiodental fricative. In other languages and scripts, "Sephardi" may be translated as plural Hebrew : סְפָרַדִּים , Modern : Sfaraddim , Tiberian : Səp̄āraddîm ; Spanish : Sefardíes ; Portuguese : Sefarditas ; Catalan : Sefardites ; Aragonese : Safardís ; Basque : Sefardiak ; French : Séfarades ; Galician : Sefardís ; Italian : Sefarditi ; Greek : Σεφαρδίτες , Sephardites ; Serbo-Croatian : Сефарди, Sefardi ; Judaeo-Spanish : Sefaradies/Sefaradim ; and Arabic : سفارديون , Safārdiyyūn . In
3600-576: Is known as Haymanot , have been included under the oversight of Israel's already broad Sephardic Chief Rabbinate . The earliest significant Jewish presence in the Iberian Peninsula is typically traced back to the Roman period , during the first centuries CE. Evidence includes an amphora discovered in Ibiza , stamped with two Hebrew letters in relief, indicating possible trade between Judaea and
3750-507: Is most often used in this wider sense. It encompasses most non-Ashkenazi Jews who are not ethnically Sephardi, but are in most instances of West Asian or North African origin. They are classified as Sephardi because they commonly use a Sephardic style of liturgy; this constitutes a majority of Mizrahi Jews in the 21st century. The term Sephardi in the broad sense, describes the nusach ( Hebrew language , "liturgical tradition") used by Sephardi Jews in their Siddur (prayer book). A nusach
3900-458: Is seen as the golden age of al-Andalus. Córdoba under the Caliphate, with a population of more than half a million, eventually overtook Constantinople as the largest and most prosperous city in Europe. Al-Andalus became a centre for the arts, medicine, science, music, literature and philosophy. The work of its most important philosophers and scientists, such as Abulcasis and Averroes , had
4050-628: Is used in modern Hebrew to refer to Spain. This has caused a long misunderstanding, since traditionally the entire Iberian Diaspora has been included in a single group. But the historiographical research reveals that that word, seen as homogeneous, was actually divided into distinct groups: the Sephardim, coming from the countries of the Castilian crown , Castilian language speakers, and the Katalanim [ ca ] / Katalaní, originally from
4200-721: Is usually called amongst Spanish and Portuguese Jews, is the Amsterdam Esnoga —usually considered the "mother synagogue", and the historical center of the Amsterdam minhag . A sizable Sephardic community had settled in Morocco and other Northern African countries, which were colonized by France in the 19th century. Jews in Algeria were given French citizenship in 1870 by the décret Crémieux (previously Jews and Muslims could apply for French citizenship, but had to renounce
4350-647: The Balearics in the first century. Additionally, the Epistle to the Romans records Paul 's intent to visit Spain, hinting at a Jewish community in the region during the mid-first century CE. Josephus writes that Herod Antipas was deposed and exiled to Spain, possibly to Lugdunum Convenarum , in 39 CE. Rabbinic literature from the Amoraic era references Spain as a distant land with a Jewish presence. For example,
4500-536: The Battle of Río Salado in 1340. After this, they ceased to play a major role. The subsequent internal turmoil within Castile, however, helped Nasrid Granada to enjoy a period of relative external peace and internal prosperity until the end of the 14th century, under the reigns of Yusuf I ( r. 1333–1354 ) and Muhammad V ( r. 1354–1359, 1362–1391 ). Important cultural figures, such as Ibn al-Khatib , Ibn Zamrak , and Ibn Khaldun all served in
4650-589: The Book of Foods ( Kitab al-Aghdhiya )—a manual on foods and regimen which contains guidelines for a healthy life; and the Kitab al-Taysir —a book written to act as a compendium to Ibn Rushd's Colliget . In Kitab al-Taysir he provides one of the earliest clinical descriptions of the scabies mite. Three of the most notable Andalusi astronomers were Ibn Tufail (d. 1185), Ibn Rushd (Averroes; d. 1198), and Nur ad-Din al-Bitruji (Alpetragius; d. 1204). All lived around
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4800-588: The Cantabrian highlands, where they carved out a rump state, the Kingdom of Asturias . In the 720s, the al-Andalus governors launched several sa'ifa raids into Aquitaine but were decisively defeated by Duke Odo the Great of Aquitaine at the Battle of Toulouse (721) . However, after crushing Odo's Berber ally Uthman ibn Naissa on the eastern Pyrenees, Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi led an expedition north across
4950-749: The Catholic Monarchs . The toponym al-Andalus is first attested by inscriptions on coins minted in 716 by the new Muslim government of Iberia. These coins, called dinars , were inscribed in both Latin and Arabic . The etymology of the name al-Andalus has traditionally been derived from the name of the Vandals ( vándalos in Spanish, vândalos in Portuguese). Since the 1980s, several alternative etymologies have challenged this tradition. In 1986, Joaquín Vallvé proposed that al-Andalus
5100-639: The County of Barcelona . During the eleventh century several centres of power existed among the taifas, and the political situation shifted rapidly. Before the rise of the Almoravids from Africa or the Christians from the north, the Abbadid -ruled Taifa of Seville succeeded in conquering a dozen lesser kingdoms, becoming the most powerful and renowned of the taifas, such that it could have laid claim to be
5250-477: The Crown of Aragon , Judeo-Catalan speakers. The modern Israeli Hebrew definition of Sephardi is a much broader , religious based, definition that generally excludes ethnic considerations. In its most basic form, this broad religious definition of a Sephardi refers to any Jew, of any ethnic background, who follows the customs and traditions of Sepharad. For religious purposes, and in modern Israel, "Sephardim"
5400-772: The Emirate of Granada . As a political domain, it successively constituted a province of the Umayyad Caliphate , initiated by the Caliph al-Walid I (711–750); the Emirate of Córdoba ( c. 750 –929); the Caliphate of Córdoba (929–1031); the first taifa kingdoms (1009–1110); the Almoravid Empire (1085–1145); the second taifa period (1140–1203); the Almohad Caliphate (1147–1238);
5550-658: The Mosque of Córdoba , and helped urbanize the emirate while defending it from invaders, including the quashing of numerous rebellions, and decisively repelling the invasion by Charlemagne (which would later inspire the epic, Chanson de Roland ). By far the most important of these invasions was the attempted reconquest by the Abbasid Caliphate . In 763 Caliph Al-Mansur of the Abbasids installed al-Ala ibn-Mugith as governor of Africa (whose title gave him dominion over
5700-720: The Rhône valley, reaching as far north as Burgundy . Charles Martel of the Franks, with the assistance of Liutprand of the Lombards , invaded Burgundy and Provence and expelled the raiders by 739. In 740, a Berber Revolt erupted in the Maghreb (North Africa). To put down the rebellion, the Umayyad Caliph Hisham dispatched a large Arab army, composed of regiments ( Junds ) of Bilad Ash-Sham , to North Africa. But
5850-595: The Silk Road . Historically, the vernacular languages of the Sephardic Jews and their descendants have been variants of either Spanish, Portuguese , or Catalan , though they have also adopted and adapted other languages. The historical forms of Spanish that differing Sephardic communities spoke communally were related to the date of their departure from Iberia and their status at that time as either New Christians or Jews. Judaeo-Spanish , also called Ladino ,
6000-471: The Strait of Gibraltar from North Africa and launched a successful military campaign in the Iberian Peninsula. This conquest resulted in the establishment of Muslim rule over much of the region, which they referred to as " Al-Andalus ". The territory would remain under varying degrees of Muslim control for several centuries. The Jewish community, having faced persecution under Visigothic rule, largely welcomed
6150-579: The Visigothic Kingdom , following a period of significant instability caused by Barbarian invasions that led to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire . Initially, the Christian Visigoths practiced Arianism and, while they generally did not engage in the persecution of Jews, they did not extend particular favor to them either. It was not until the reign of Alaric II (484–507) that a Visigothic king concerned himself with
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6300-455: The taifa kingdoms. At the Battle of Sagrajas (or Battle of Zallaqa in Arabic), a Muslim army led by the Almoravids soundly defeated Alfonso VI. By 1090, however, Yusuf ibn Tashfin was disillusioned with the disunity of the taifa leaders and he returned on a campaign to conquer al-Andalus instead. Most of the taifas , except for Zaragoza, were annexed by 1094. Valencia, which had come under
6450-862: The taifas were generally too weak to defend themselves against repeated raids and demands for tribute from the Christian states to the north and west, which were known to the Muslims as "the Galician nations", and which had spread from their initial strongholds in Galicia , Asturias , Cantabria , the Basque country, and the Carolingian Marca Hispanica to become the Kingdoms of Navarre , León , Portugal , Castile and Aragon , and
6600-430: The 1260s. Only the region of Granada remained unconquered. From the mid 13th to the late 15th century, the only remaining domain of al-Andalus was the Emirate of Granada , the last Muslim stronghold in the Iberian Peninsula. The emirate was established by Muhammad ibn al-Ahmar in 1230 and was ruled by the Nasrid dynasty , the longest reigning dynasty in the history of al-Andalus. Although surrounded by Castilian lands,
6750-408: The 15th century in terms of population. The most visible legacy of the Nasrids is the Alhambra , their fortified palace complex, partly preserved today. The independent Nasrid kingdom was also a trade hub between the Atlantic and Mediterranean, and was frequented especially by Genoese merchants. The Marinids intervened in the south of the Iberian Peninsula multiple times up until their defeat at
6900-425: The 16th and 17th centuries was one of its kind in all of Poland at that time. It was an autonomous institution, and until the mid-17th century it was not under the authority of the highest organ of the Jewish self-government in the Republic of Poland - the Council of Four Lands . Al-Andalus Al-Andalus ( Arabic : الأَنْدَلُس ) was the Muslim -ruled area of the Iberian Peninsula . The name describes
7050-470: The 17th century on account of their number, wealth, education, and influence, they established poetical academies after Spanish models; two of these were the Academia de Los Sitibundos and the Academia de Los Floridos . In the same city they also organized the first Jewish educational institution, with graduate classes in which, in addition to Talmudic studies, the instruction was given in the Hebrew language . The most important synagogue, or Esnoga , as it
7200-405: The Abbasid government in North Africa, and declared themselves a caliphate. Inspired by this action, Abd al Rahman joined the rebellion and declared himself caliph in 929. For nearly 100 years under the Córdoban Umayyad period, from the 9th century to the 10th, al-Andalus also extended its presence from Fraxinetum into the Alps with a series of organized raids. The period of the Caliphate
7350-447: The Arabs. The Berber soldiers accompanying Tariq were garrisoned in the centre and the north of the peninsula, as well as in the Pyrenees, while the Berber colonists who followed settled in all parts of the country – north, east, south and west. Visigothic lords who agreed to recognize Muslim suzerainty were allowed to retain their fiefs (notably, in Murcia, Galicia, and the Ebro valley). Resistant Visigoths took refuge in
7500-423: The Castilian kings. Along with this political status, its favorable geographic location, with the Sierra Nevada as a natural barrier, helped to prolong Nasrid rule. Granada also accommodated a large number of Muslim refugees fleeing the Reconquista or expelled from Christian-controlled territories, which grew the city and the emirate's population. The city even became one of the largest in Europe throughout
7650-518: The Christian Reconquista . In 1492, the Alhambra Decree by the Catholic Monarchs expelled Jews from Spain, and in 1496, King Manuel I of Portugal issued a similar edict for Jews and Muslims. These actions led to migrations, mass conversions, and executions. By the late 15th century, Sephardic Jews had been largely expelled and dispersed across North Africa , Western Asia , Southern and Southeastern Europe , settling in established Jewish communities or pioneering new ones along trade routes like
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#17327729980927800-402: The Christian advance captured new cities and fortresses until the last Nasrid ruler, Muhammad XII (known as Boabdil to the Christians), formally surrendered Granada to the Catholic Monarchs on 2 January 1492. By this time Muslims in Castile numbered half a million. After the fall, "100,000 had died or been enslaved, 200,000 emigrated, and 200,000 remained as the residual population. Many of
7950-409: The Christian capture of Toledo in 1085, the Almoravid empire intervened and repelled attacks on the region, then brought al-Andalus under direct Almoravid rule. For the next century and a half, al-Andalus became a province of the Muslim empires of the Almoravids and their successors, the Almohads , both based in Marrakesh . Ultimately, the northern Christian kingdoms overpowered the Muslim states to
8100-425: The Christian kingdoms expanded southward again. From 1146 onward, the Almohads intervened and took control of al-Andalus. One of Abd al-Mu'min's successors, Ya'qub al-Mansur , won a major victory over the Castilian Alfonso VIII at the Battle of Alarcos in 1195. In 1212, a coalition of Christian kings under the leadership of Alfonso VIII defeated the Almohads at the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa . Almohad rule
8250-408: The Dutch and South America. They contributed to the establishment of the Dutch West Indies Company in 1621, and some were members of the directorate. The ambitious schemes of the Dutch for the conquest of Brazil were carried into effect through Francisco Ribeiro, a Portuguese captain, who is said to have had Jewish relations in the Netherlands . Some years afterward, when the Dutch in Brazil appealed to
8400-525: The Golden Age. Among the Sephardim were many who were the descendants, or heads, of wealthy families and who, as Marranos , had occupied prominent positions in the countries they had left. Some had been stated officials, others had held positions of dignity within the Church; many had been the heads of large banking-houses and mercantile establishments, and some were physicians or scholars who had officiated as teachers in high schools. Their Spanish or Portuguese
8550-413: The Islamic south. Between this frontier and its heartland in the south, the al-Andalus state had three large march territories ( thughur ): the Lower March (capital initially at Mérida , later Badajoz ), the Middle March (centred at Toledo), and the Upper March (centred at Zaragoza ). These disturbances and disorder also allowed the Franks, now under the leadership of Pepin the Short , to invade
8700-421: The Jews as dhimmis , life under Muslim rule was one of great opportunity and Jews flourished as they did not under the Christian Visigoths. Many Jews came to Iberia, seen as a land of tolerance and opportunity, from the Christian and Muslim worlds. Following initial Arab victories, and especially with the establishment of Umayyad rule by Abd al-Rahman I in 755, the native Jewish community was joined by Jews from
8850-513: The Jews from the Muslim south were not entirely secure in their northward migrations. Old prejudices were compounded by newer ones. Suspicions of complicity with the Muslims were alive and well as Jews immigrated, speaking Arabic. However, many of the newly arrived Jews of the north prospered during the late 11th and early 12th centuries. The majority of Latin documentation regarding Jews during this period refers to their landed property, fields, and vineyards. In many ways life had come full circle for
9000-448: The Jews under Byzantine rule, attesting to the fair treatment of the Christians of al-Andalus , and perhaps indicating that such was contingent on the treatment of Jews abroad. One notable contribution to Christian intellectualism is Ibn Gabirol 's neo-Platonic Fons Vitae ("The Source of Life;" "Mekor Hayyim"). Thought by many to have been written by a Christian, this work was admired by Christians and studied in monasteries throughout
9150-503: The Jews, as evidenced by the publication of the Breviary of Alaric in 506, which incorporated Roman legal precedents into Visigothic law. The situation for Jews in Spain shifted dramatically after the conversion of the Visigothic monarchs to Catholicism under King Reccared in 587. As the Visigoths sought to unify the realm under their new religion, their policies towards Jews evolved from initial marginalization to increasingly aggressive measures aimed at their complete eradication from
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#17327729980929300-426: The Middle Ages, though the work of Solomon Munk in the 19th century proved that the author of Fons Vitae was the Jewish ibn Gabirol. In addition to contributions of original work, the Sephardim were active as translators. Mainly in Toledo , texts were translated between Greek, Arabic, Hebrew, and Latin. In translating the great works of Arabic, Hebrew, and Greek into Latin, Iberian Jews were instrumental in bringing
9450-453: The Moriscos ). The last mass prosecution against Moriscos for crypto-Islamic practices occurred in Granada in 1727, with most of those convicted receiving relatively light sentences. The Morisco community including these final convicts kept their identity alive at least through the late eighteenth century. There was much scientific activity in Al-Andalus, especially in the fields of medicine , astronomy , mathematics , and agronomy . At
9600-427: The Muslim elite, including Muhammad XII, who had been given the area of the Alpujarras mountains as a principality, found life under Christian rule intolerable and passed over into North Africa." Under the conditions of the Capitulations of 1492, the Muslims in Granada were to be allowed to continue to practice their religion. Mass forced conversions of Muslims in 1499 led to a revolt that spread to Alpujarras and
9750-500: The Nasrid court during this period. In 1468, Isabella , the only child of Henry IV of Castile , married Ferdinand , the son of John II of Aragon , and by 1479 they were rulers of a united Castile and Aragon. This development meant that Granada could no longer exploit divisions between the two kingdoms and the new royal couple, also known as the Catholic Monarchs , were united in their intention to conquer it. The final war to conquer Granada began in earnest in 1482. Year by year,
9900-455: The Netherlands for craftsmen of all kinds, many Jews went to Brazil. About 600 Jews left Amsterdam in 1642, accompanied by two distinguished scholars— Isaac Aboab da Fonseca and Moses Raphael de Aguilar . Jews supported the Dutch in the struggle between the Netherlands and Portugal for possession of Brazil. In 1642, Aboab da Fonseca was appointed rabbi at Kahal Zur Israel Synagogue in the Dutch colony of Pernambuco ( Recife ), Brazil. Most of
10050-502: The Ottoman Empire were mostly resettled in and around Thessalonica and to some extent in Constantinople and İzmir . This was followed by a great massacre of Jews in the city of Lisbon in 1506 and the establishment of the Portuguese Inquisition in 1536. This caused the flight of the Portuguese Jewish community, which continued until the extinction of the Courts of Inquisition in 1821; by then there were very few Jews in Portugal. In Amsterdam , where Jews were especially prominent in
10200-426: The Qinnasrin jund in Jaén . The Egypt jund was divided between Beja ( Alentejo ) in the west and Tudmir ( Murcia ) in the east. The arrival of the Syrians substantially increased the Arab element in the Iberian peninsula and helped strengthen the Muslim hold on the south. However, at the same time, unwilling to be governed, the Syrian junds carried on an existence of autonomous feudal anarchy, severely destabilizing
10350-407: The Sephardi Jews established commercial relations. In a letter dated 25 November 1622, King Christian IV of Denmark invites Jews of Amsterdam to settle in Glückstadt , where, among other privileges, the free exercise of their religion would be assured to them. Álvaro Caminha , in Cape Verde islands, who received the land as a grant from the crown, established a colony with Jews forced to stay on
10500-431: The Sephardic families also made them extremely well educated for the times , even well into the European Enlightenment . For a long time, the Sephardim took an active part in Spanish literature ; they wrote in prose and in rhyme, and were the authors of theological, philosophical, belletristic (aesthetic rather than content-based writing), pedagogic (teaching), and mathematical works. The rabbis, who, in common with all
10650-405: The Sephardim of al-Andalus . As conditions became more oppressive during the 12th and 13th centuries, Jews again looked to an outside culture for relief. Christian leaders of reconquered cities granted them extensive autonomy, and Jewish scholarship recovered somewhat and developed as communities grew in size and importance. However, the Reconquista Jews never reached the same heights as had those of
10800-513: The Sephardim, emphasized a pure and euphonious pronunciation of Hebrew, delivered their sermons in Spanish or in Portuguese. Several of these sermons have appeared in print. Their thirst for knowledge, together with the fact that they associated freely with the outer world, led the Sephardim to establish new educational systems. Wherever they settled, they founded schools that used Spanish as the medium of instruction. Theatre in Constantinople
10950-768: The Umayyad Caliphs distracted by the challenge of the Abbasids in the east, the western provinces of the Maghreb and al-Andalus spun out of their control. From around 745, the Fihrids , an illustrious local Arab clan descended from Oqba ibn Nafi al-Fihri , seized power in the western provinces and ruled them almost as a private family empire of their own – Abd al-Rahman ibn Habib al-Fihri in Ifriqiya and Yūsuf al-Fihri in al-Andalus. The Fihrids welcomed
11100-706: The Umayyads in Damascus and were slaughtering members of that family, and then he spent four years in exile in North Africa, assessing the political situation in al-Andalus across the Straits of Gibraltar, before he landed at Almuñécar . News of his arrival spread across al-Andalus, and when word reached its governor, Yūsuf al-Fihri , he was not pleased. During this time, Abd al-Rahman and his supporters quickly conquered Málaga and then Seville , finally besieging
11250-471: The Umayyads, the sons and grandsons of caliphs, had a more legitimate claim to rule than the Fihrids themselves. Rebellious-minded local lords, disenchanted with the autocratic rule of the Fihrids, conspired with the arriving Umayyad exiles. In 755, the exiled Umayyad prince Abd al-Rahman I (also called al-Dākhil , the 'Immigrant') arrived on the coast of Spain. He had fled the Abbasids, who had overthrown
11400-494: The anti- Rabbanite polemics of Karaites . The cultural and intellectual achievements of the Arabs, and much of the scientific and philosophical speculation of Ancient Greek culture , which had been best preserved by Arab scholars, was made available to the educated Jew. The meticulous regard the Arabs had for grammar and style also had the effect of stimulating an interest in philological matters in general among Jews. Arabic became
11550-518: The authority of the governor of al-Andalus. A second significant consequence of the revolt was the expansion of the Kingdom of the Asturias , hitherto confined to enclaves in the Cantabrian highlands. After the rebellious Berber garrisons evacuated the northern frontier fortresses, the Christian king Alfonso I of Asturias set about immediately seizing the empty forts for himself, quickly adding
11700-565: The biblical Tarshish with Tartessus and suggesting Jewish traders were active in Spain during the Phoenician and Carthaginian eras. One such legend from the 16th century claimed that a funeral inscription in Murviedro belonged to Adoniram , a commander of King Solomon , who had supposedly died in Spain while collecting tribute. Another legend spoke of a letter allegedly sent by the Jews of Toledo to Judaea in 30 CE, asking to prevent
11850-507: The breakdown of authority under the Umayyads, the services of Jews were employed by the victorious Christian leaders. Sephardic knowledge of the language and culture of the enemy, their skills as diplomats and professionals, as well as their desire for relief from intolerable conditions — the very same reasons that they had proved useful to the Arabs in the early stages of the Muslim invasion — made their services very valuable. However,
12000-477: The broad classification of Sephardi. Ethnic Sephardic Jews have had a presence in North Africa and various parts of the Mediterranean and Western Asia due to their expulsion from Spain. There have also been Sephardic communities in South America and India. Originally the Jews spoke of Sefarad referring to Al-Andalus and not the entire peninsula, nor as it is understood today, in which the term Sefarad
12150-426: The bureaucracy's loyalty towards him. Around this time several local Arab lords began to revolt, including one Kurayb ibn Khaldun, who was able to conquer Seville. Some loyalists tried to quell the rebellion, but without proper material support, their efforts were in vain. He declared that the next emir would be his grandson Abd al-Rahman III , ignoring the claims of his four living children. Abdullah died in 912, and
12300-451: The capital of al-Andalus, Córdoba . Abd al-Rahman's army was exhausted after their conquest, meanwhile Governor Yūsuf al-Fihri had returned from quashing another rebellion with his army. The siege of Córdoba began, and noticing the starving state of Abd al-Rahman's army, al-Fihri began throwing lavish feasts every day as the siege went on, to tempt Abd al Rahman's supporters to defect to his side. However, Abd al-Rahman persisted, even rejecting
12450-670: The completion of the Christian Reconquista , with the penetration and influence of the Almoravides , and then the Almohads , from North Africa. These more intolerant sects abhorred the liberality of the Islamic culture of al-Andalus , including the position of authority some dhimmis held over Muslims. When the Almohads gave the Jews a choice of either death or conversion to Islam, many Jews emigrated. Some, such as
12600-537: The control of El Cid at the end of its taifa period , was eventually occupied in 1102, after El Cid's death. Zaragoza was annexed in 1110. Modern scholarship has sometimes admitted originality in North African architecture, but according to Yasser Tabbaa, historian of Islamic art and architecture, the Iberocentric viewpoint is anachronistic when considering the political and cultural environment during
12750-469: The country. In many conquered towns the garrison was left in the hands of the Jews before the Muslims proceeded further north. Both Muslim and Christian sources claim that Jews provided valuable aid to the Muslim conquerors. Once captured, the defense of Cordoba was left in the hands of Jews, and Granada , Malaga , Seville , and Toledo were left to a mixed army of Jews and Moors. Although in some towns Jews may have been helpful to Muslim success, because of
12900-455: The crucifixion of Jesus. These legends aimed to establish that Jews had settled in Spain well before the Roman period and to absolve them of any responsibility for the death of Jesus, a charge often leveled at them in later centuries. Rabbi and scholar Abraham ibn Daud wrote in 1161: "A tradition exists with the [Jewish] community of Granada that they are from the inhabitants of Jerusalem, of
13050-405: The descendants of Judah and Benjamin , rather than from the villages, the towns in the outlying districts [of Israel]." Elsewhere, he writes about his maternal grandfather's family and how they came to Spain after Jerusalem's destruction in 70 CE: "When Titus prevailed over Jerusalem , his officer who was appointed over Hispania appeased him, requesting that he send to him captives made-up of
13200-598: The diaspora until the late 18th/early 19th century. Judeo-Portuguese influenced the Papiamento and Saramaccan languages. The earliest known text containing Judeo-Portuguese text is a manuscript from 1262 about illuminating manuscripts called O livro de como se fazem as cores . After the Jewish exodus from Portugal in 1497 many Portuguese Jews would flee to the Dutch Republic and Judeo-Portuguese would intake
13350-745: The differences between them are unclear. Judeo-Portuguese has influenced several languages. These include Balkan dialects of Ladino , and Portuguese. This article related to Jewish history is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This Portugal -related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This article about Romance languages is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Sephardi Jews Sephardic Jews ( Hebrew : יְהוּדֵי סְפָרַד , romanized : Yehudei Sfarad , transl. 'Jews of Spain ' ; Ladino : Djudios Sefaradis ), also known as Sephardi Jews or Sephardim , and rarely as Iberian Peninsular Jews , are
13500-481: The different Muslim states that controlled these territories at various times between 711 and 1492. At its greatest geographical extent, it occupied most of the peninsula as well as Septimania under Umayyad rule. These boundaries changed constantly through a series of conquests Western historiography has traditionally characterized as the Reconquista , eventually shrinking to the south and finally to
13650-509: The embalmed head of al-Ala ibn-Mugith, it is said Al Mansur exclaimed "Praise be to God who has put the sea between me and this devil!". Abd al Rahman I died in 788 after a lengthy and prosperous reign. He was succeeded by his son, Hisham I , who secured power by exiling his brother who had tried to rebel against him. Hisham enjoyed a stable reign of eight years and was succeeded by his son Al-Hakam I . The next few decades were relatively uneventful, with only occasional minor rebellions, and saw
13800-649: The emirate was wealthy through being tightly integrated in Mediterranean trade networks and enjoyed a period of considerable cultural and economic prosperity. Despite internal conflicts, the Nasrids of Granada were able to survive in part by playing the Christian kingdoms of the north against each other, while at other times soliciting aid from the Marinids , a new Berber dynasty ruling in North Africa from their capital in Fez . For much of its existence, Granada paid tribute to
13950-411: The emirate, most disastrously following the rebellion of Umar ibn Hafsun . When Muhammad died, he was succeeded by emir Abdullah ibn Muhammad al-Umawi whose power barely reached outside of the city of Córdoba. As Ibn Hafsun ravaged the south, Abdullah did almost nothing, and slowly became more and more isolated, barely speaking to anyone. Abdullah purged his administration of his brothers, which lessened
14100-482: The expulsion, both Spain and Portugal enacted laws allowing Sephardic Jews who could prove their ancestral origins in those countries to apply for citizenship. The Spanish law that offered citizenship to descendants of Sephardic Jews expired in 2019, although subsequent extensions were granted by the Spanish government —due to the COVID-19 pandemic — in order to file pending documents and sign delayed declarations before
14250-440: The fall of the Umayyads in the east, in 750, and sought to reach an understanding with the Abbasids , hoping they might be allowed to continue their autonomous existence. But when the Abbasids rejected the offer and demanded submission, the Fihrids declared independence and, probably out of spite, invited the deposed remnants of the Umayyad clan to take refuge in their dominions. It was a fateful decision that they soon regretted, for
14400-495: The family of Maimonides , fled south and east to the more tolerant Muslim lands, while others went northward to settle in the growing Christian kingdoms. Meanwhile, the Reconquista continued in the north throughout the 12th century. As various Arab lands fell to the Christians, conditions for some Jews in the emerging Christian kingdoms became increasingly favorable. As had happened during the reconstruction of towns following
14550-400: The favor of rulers and princes, in both the Christian and the Islamic world. That the Sephardim were selected for prominent positions in every country where they settled was only in part due to the fact that Spanish had become a world-language through the expansion of Spain into the world-spanning Spanish Empire—the cosmopolitan cultural background after long associations with Islamic scholars of
14700-468: The fields of science and philosophy, which formed much of the basis of Renaissance learning, into the rest of Europe. In the early 11th century, centralized authority based at Cordoba broke down following the Berber invasion and the ousting of the Umayyads. In its stead arose the independent taifa principalities under the rule of local Muwallad , Arab, Berber, or Slavonic leaders. Rather than having
14850-564: The first independent Caliph of Cordoba , and in particular with the career of his Jewish councilor, Hasdai ibn Shaprut (882–942). Within this context of cultural patronage , studies in Hebrew, literature, and linguistics flourished. Hasdai benefitted world Jewry not only indirectly by creating a favorable environment for scholarly pursuits within Iberia, but also by using his influence to intervene on behalf of foreign Jews: in his letter to Byzantine Princess Helena , he requested protection for
15000-568: The following centuries, though certain fields and subjects thrived more depending on the period. Scholars often worked in many different and overlapping subjects, so it is difficult to place those discussed here into a single scientific field each. There were many notable surgeons, physicians, and medical scholars from al-Andalus including Ibn al-Baytar (d. 1248), Abu al-Qasim al-Zahrawi (Albucasis; d. 1013), Muhammad al-Shafrah (d. 1360), Abu Marwan 'Abd al-Malik ibn Habib (d. 853), and Abu Marwan ibn Zuhr (Avenzoar; d. 1162). And of particular note
15150-628: The formation of the European Renaissance . The Caliphate of Córdoba also had extensive trade with other parts of the Mediterranean, including Christian parts. Trade goods included luxury items (silk, ceramics, gold), essential foodstuffs (grain, olive oil, wine), and containers (such as ceramics for storing perishables). In the tenth century, Amalfitans were already trading Fatimid and Byzantine silks in Córdoba. Later references to Amalfitan merchants were sometimes used to emphasize
15300-551: The great Umayyad army was crushed by the Berber rebels at the Battle of Bagdoura (in Morocco). Heartened by the victories of their North African brethren, the Berbers of al-Andalus quickly raised their own revolt. Berber garrisons in the north of the Iberian Peninsula mutinied, deposed their Arab commanders, and organized a large rebel army to march against the strongholds of Toledo, Córdoba, and Algeciras. In 741, Balj b. Bishr led
15450-489: The heated correspondences sent between Bodo Eleazar , a former Christian deacon who had converted to Judaism in 838, and the Bishop of Córdoba Paulus Albarus , who had converted from Judaism to Christianity. Each man, using such epithets as "wretched compiler", tried to convince the other to return to his former faith, to no avail. The Golden Age is most closely identified with the reign of Abd al-Rahman III (882–942),
15600-478: The important Book of the Medicine of the Arabs , Ibn Habib also wrote the Book on Stars ( Kirab fi l-nujim ). This book included important "teachings on the lunar mansions, the signs of the zodiac, [and] the division of the seasons." In these teachings, Ibn-Habib calculated the phases of the moon and dates of the annual solstices and equinoxes with relative accuracy. Another important astronomer from al-Andalus
15750-597: The island of São Tomé . Príncipe island was settled in 1500 under a similar arrangement. Attracting settlers proved difficult, however, the Jewish settlement was a success and their descendants settled many parts of Brazil. In 1579 Luis de Carvajal y de la Cueva a Portuguese-born Converso , Spanish-Crown officer, was awarded a large swath of territory in New Spain, known as Nuevo Reino de León . He founded settlements with other conversos that would later become Monterrey . In particular, Jews established relations between
15900-509: The kingdom. Under successive Visigothic kings and under ecclesiastical authority, many orders of expulsion, forced conversion, isolation, enslavement, execution, and other punitive measures were made. By 612–621, the situation for Jews became intolerable and many left Spain for nearby northern Africa. In 711, thousands of Jews from North Africa accompanied the Muslims who invaded Spain, subsuming Catholic Spain and turning much of it into an Arab state, Al-Andalus. In 711 CE, Muslim forces crossed
16050-618: The main language of Sephardic science, philosophy, and everyday business, as had been the case with Babylonian geonim . This thorough adoption of the Arabic language also greatly facilitated the assimilation of Jews into Moorish culture, and Jewish activity in a variety of professions, including medicine, commerce, finance, and agriculture increased. By the ninth century, some members of the Sephardic community felt confident enough to take part in proselytizing amongst Christians. This included
16200-411: The measures were prohibitions on intermarriage between Jews and Christians, communal dining, and the participation of Jews in blessing fields. Despite these efforts, aimed to diminish Jewish influence on Christian communities, evidence indicates that everyday social relations between Jews and Christians continued to be prevalent in various locales. By the mid-5th century, Spain came under the control of
16350-490: The medical uses of over 1400 plants and other types of medicine—and ibn Habib's Book of the Medicine of the Arabs ( Kitab tibb al-'arab )—a historical summary of Arabic medicine until the 9th century. Ibn Habib's work is significant because it is one of the oldest known writings in the field of prophetic medicine , which uses hadiths to create Islamic-based medicinal guidelines. His book is also significant because it uses principles of Galenic medicine , such as humorism and
16500-550: The more Romanized regions of the south and east, such as Toledo , Mérida , Seville , and Tarragona . Additionally, these inscriptions suggest a Jewish presence in other locations, including Elche , Tortosa , Adra , and the Balearic Islands. Around 300 CE, the Synod of Elvira , an ecclesiastical council convened in southern Spain, and enacted several decrees to restrict interactions between Christians and Jews. Among
16650-504: The mountains of Ronda ; after this uprising the capitulations were revoked. In 1502 the Catholic Monarchs decreed the forced conversion of all Muslims living under the rule of the Crown of Castile, although in the kingdoms of Aragon and Valencia (both now part of Spain) the open practice of Islam was allowed until 1526. Descendants of the Muslims were subject to expulsions from Spain between 1609 and 1614 (see Expulsion of
16800-470: The name of al-Andalus . It was organized as a province subordinate to Ifriqiya , so, for the first few decades, the governors of al-Andalus were appointed by the emir of Kairouan , rather than the Caliph in Damascus . The regional capital was set at Córdoba , and the first influx of Muslim settlers was widely distributed. Following the Muslim conquest of Spain, al-Andalus, then at its greatest extent,
16950-496: The narrower ethnic definition, a Sephardi Jew is one descended from the Jews who lived in the Iberian Peninsula in the late 15th century, immediately prior to the issuance of the Alhambra Decree of 1492 by order of the Catholic Monarchs in Spain, and the decree of 1496 in Portugal by order of King Manuel I . In Hebrew, the term "Sephardim Tehorim" ( ספרדים טהורים , literally "Pure Sephardim"), derived from
17100-427: The need for students and practitioners to rely on multiple medical texts. The book is renowned for its chapter on surgery which included important illustrations of surgical instruments, as well as sections "on cauterization , on incisions, venesection and wounds, and on bone-setting." For hundreds of years after its publication it was one of the most widely used medical texts for students and medical practitioners and
17250-441: The new Muslim rulers who offered greater religious tolerance. Under Islamic rule, Jews, like Christians, were designated as dhimmis —protected but second-class monotheists—permitted to practice their religion with relative autonomy in exchange for paying a special tax . To the Jews, Moors was perceived as, and indeed were, a liberating force. Wherever they went, the Muslims were greeted by Jews eager to aid them in administering
17400-495: The nobles of Jerusalem, and so he sent a few of them to him, and there were amongst them those who made curtains and who were knowledgeable in the work of silk, and [one] whose name was Baruch, and they remained in Mérida ." Archaeological evidence of a Jewish presence in Spain prior to the third century CE is limited. However, from the third to sixth centuries, inscriptions confirm the existence of Jewish communities, particularly in
17550-584: The northwestern provinces of Galicia and León to his fledgling kingdom. The Asturians evacuated the Christian populations from the towns and villages of the Galician-Leonese lowlands, creating an empty buffer zone in the Douro River valley (the " Desert of the Duero "). This newly emptied frontier remained roughly in place for the next few centuries as the boundary between the Christian north and
17700-463: The number of Jews in Portugal grew with those running from Spain. This changed with the marriage of D. Manuel I of Portugal with the daughter of the Catholic Monarchs of the newly born Spain. In 1497 the Decree ordering the expulsion or forced conversion of all the Jews was passed, and the Sephardim either fled or went into secrecy under the guise of "Cristãos Novos", i.e. New Christians (this Decree
17850-460: The powerful vizier was plotting to kill the weak-minded and drunk King Badis ibn Habus . According to the 1906 Jewish Encyclopedia, "More than 1,500 Jewish families, numbering 4,000 persons, fell in one day, a number contested by some historians who deem it to be an example of "the usual hyperbole in numerical estimates, with which history abounds." The decline of the Golden Age began before
18000-437: The previous golden age of Córdoba. Fatimid Egypt was a supplier of many luxury goods, including elephant tusks, and raw or carved crystals. The Fatimids were traditionally thought to be the only supplier of such goods, and control over these trade routes would be a cause for conflict between the Umayyads and Fatimids. The Caliphate of Córdoba effectively collapsed during a ruinous civil war between 1009 and 1013, although it
18150-525: The province of al-Andalus). He planned to invade and destroy the Emirate of Córdoba, so in response Abd al Rahman fortified himself within the fortress of Carmona with a tenth as many soldiers as al-Ala ibn-Mugith. After a long siege, it appeared that Abd al Rahman would be defeated, but in a last stand Abd al Rahman with his outnumbered forces opened the gates of the fortress and charged at the resting Abbasid army, and decisively defeated them. After being sent
18300-846: The province. The quarrel was settled in 743 when Abū l-Khaṭṭār al-Ḥusām , the new governor of al-Andalus, assigned the Syrians to regimental fiefs across al-Andalus – the Damascus jund was established in Elvira ( Granada ), the Jordan jund in Rayyu ( Málaga and Archidona ), the Jund Filastin in Medina-Sidonia and Jerez , the Emesa (Hims) jund in Seville and Niebla , and
18450-426: The rest of Europe, as well as from Arab lands, from Morocco to Babylon . Jewish communities were enriched culturally, intellectually, and religiously by the commingling of these diverse Jewish traditions. 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
18600-615: The rise of the emirate. In 822 Al Hakam died and was succeeded by Abd al-Rahman II , the first great emir of Córdoba. He rose to power with no opposition and sought to reform the emirate. He quickly reorganized the bureaucracy to be more efficient and built many mosques across the emirate. During his reign science and art flourished, as many scholars fled the Abbasid caliphate due to the disastrous Fourth Fitna . The scholar Abbas ibn Firnas made an attempt to fly, though accounts vary on his success. In 852 Abd al Rahman II died, leaving behind him
18750-456: The rule of the Almoravid dynasty. The rise and fall of the Almoravids is sometimes seen as an expression of Ibn Khaldun 's asabiyyah paradigm. By 1147, the Almoravids were overthrown in North Africa by the Almohads , another Berber dynasty, under the leadership of Abd al-Mu'min . As Almoravid rule collapsed, another brief period of taifa kingdoms followed in al-Andalus, during which
18900-466: The same time and focused their astronomical works on critiquing and revising Ptolemaic astronomy and the problem of the equant in his astronomical model. Instead, they accepted Aristotle 's model and promoted the theory of homocentric spheres. Al-Bitruji is believed to have studied under Ibn Tufail and Bitruji's Book on Cosmology ( Kitab fi al-hay'a ) built on Ibn Tufail's work, as well as that of Ibn Rushd, Ibn Bajja, and Maimonides. The book's goal
19050-401: The same time, Andalusi scholars were also highly active in philosophy (see below), especially in the field of logic . The earliest evidence of such activities in al-Andalus dates to the reign of Abd ar-Rahman II ( r. 822–852 ), when developments were spurred by exposure to older works translated from, Greek, Persian and other languages. Scientific studies continued to be pursued in
19200-487: The small numbers they were of limited impact. The Golden Age of Sephardic Jewry flourished during this period, particularly in cities like Cordoba, Granada and Toledo. Jewish scholars, poets, philosophers and scientists thrived, contributing to the broader intellectual life of Al-Andalus. Jews in Muslim Spain played significant roles in trade, finance, diplomacy, and medicine. In spite of the restrictions placed upon
19350-494: The south. In the 13th century, most of the south quickly fell under Christian rule, with Gharb al-Andalus , the Guadalquivir Valley and Eastern al-Andalus [ es ] falling to Portuguese, Castilian, and Aragonese conquests. This left the Emirate of Granada, that was to become a tributary state of the Crown of Castile, as the remaining Muslim state on the Iberian Peninsula, and was surrendered in 1492 to
19500-657: The span of many centuries. The majority of Sephardim live in Israel . The earliest documented Jewish presence in the Iberian Peninsula is often traced to the Roman period , during the first centuries CE. After enduring hardship under the Visigoths , Jewish communities thrived for centuries under Muslim rule in Al-Andalus following the Umayyad conquest , which ushered in a golden age . However, their fortunes declined with
19650-544: The strategic strip of Septimania in 752, hoping to deprive al-Andalus of an easy launching pad for raids into Francia . After a lengthy siege, the last Arab stronghold, the citadel of Narbonne , finally fell to the Franks in 759 . Al-Andalus was sealed off at the Pyrenees. The third consequence of the Berber revolt was the collapse of the authority of the Damascus Caliphate over the western provinces. With
19800-445: The theory of four temperaments , as the basis of its medical recommendations. The ibn Zuhr family played a very important role in the production of Andalusi medical knowledge, as they produced five generations of medical experts, particularly in the fields of dietary sciences and medicaments . Abu Marwan ibn Zuhr (d. 1162) is particularly notable, as he wrote the Book of Moderation ( Kitab al-Iqtisad )—a treatise on general therapy;
19950-702: The third taifa period (1232–1287); and ultimately the Nasrid Emirate of Granada (1238–1492). Under the Caliphate of Córdoba, the city of Córdoba became one of the leading cultural and economic centres throughout the Mediterranean Basin , Europe, and the Islamic world. Achievements that advanced Islamic and Western science came from al-Andalus, including major advances in trigonometry ( Jabir ibn Aflah ), astronomy ( Al-Zarqali ), surgery ( Al-Zahrawi ), pharmacology ( Ibn Zuhr ), and agronomy ( Ibn Bassal and Abū l-Khayr al-Ishbīlī ). Al-Andalus became
20100-457: The throne passed to Abd al Rahman III. Through force of arms and diplomacy, he put down the rebellions that had disrupted his grandfather's reign, obliterating Ibn Hafsun and hunting down his sons. After this he led several sieges against the Christians, sacking the city of Pamplona , and restoring some prestige to the emirate. Meanwhile, across the sea the Fatimids had risen up in force, ousted
20250-510: The true heir to the Caliphate of Córdoba. The taifas were vulnerable and divided but had immense wealth. During its prominence the Taifa of Seville produced technically complex lusterware and exerted significant influence on ceramic production across al-Andalus. In the 1080s, the taifa kingdoms began to face an existential threat from the Christian kingdoms to the north, as Alfonso VI of Castile escalated attacks against them. In 1083, he led
20400-459: The use of traditional religious courts and laws, which many did not want to do). When France withdrew from Algeria in 1962, the local Jewish communities largely relocated to France. There are some tensions between some of those communities and the earlier French Jewish population (who were mostly Ashkenazi Jews ), and with Arabic-Muslim communities. The largest part of Spanish Jews expelled in 1492 fled to Portugal, where they eluded persecution for
20550-565: The western Pyrenees and defeated the Aquitanian duke, who in turn appealed to the Frankish leader Charles Martel for assistance, offering to place himself under Carolingian sovereignty. At the Battle of Poitiers in 732, the al-Andalus raiding army was defeated by Charles Martel and Al Ghafiqi was killed. In 734, the Andalusi launched raids to the east, capturing Avignon and Arles and overran much of Provence . In 737, they traveled up
20700-659: The white inhabitants of the town were Sephardic Jews from Portugal who had been banned by the Portuguese Inquisition to this town at the other side of the Atlantic Ocean. In 1624, the colony had been occupied by the Dutch. By becoming the rabbi of the community, Aboab da Fonseca was the first appointed rabbi of the Americas. The name of his congregation was Kahal Zur Israel Synagogue and the community had
20850-437: Was Maslama al-Majriti (d. 1007), who played a role in translating and writing about Ptolemy's Planisphaerium and Almagest . He built on the work of older astronomers, like Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi , whose astronomical tables he wrote a discussion on and subsequently improved. Abu Ishaq Ibrahim al-Zarqali (d. 1087) had many influential astronomical successes, as shown by Copernicus 's recognition of him in his On
21000-461: Was "to overcome the physical difficulties inherent in the geometrical models of Ptolemy 's Almagest and to describe the cosmos in agreement with Aristotelian or Neoplatonic physics," which it succeeded in doing to an extent. Bitruji's book set a precedent of criticizing the Almagest in future works in the field of astronomy. Although Ibn Rushd originally trained and practiced as a jurist, he
21150-537: Was a lingua franca that enabled Sephardim from different countries to engage in commerce and diplomacy. With their social equals they associated freely, without regard to religion and more likely with regard to equivalent or comparative education, for they were generally well read, which became a tradition and expectation. They were received at the courts of sultans, kings, and princes, and often were employed as ambassadors, envoys, or agents. The number of Sephardim who have rendered important services to different countries
21300-489: Was a corruption of the name Atlantis . Heinz Halm in 1989 derived the name from a Gothic term, *landahlauts , and in 2002, Georg Bossong suggested its derivation from a pre-Roman substrate. During the caliphate of the Umayyad Caliph Al-Walid I , the commander Tariq ibn-Ziyad led an army of 7,000 that landed at Gibraltar on April 30, 711, ostensibly to intervene in a Visigothic civil war. After
21450-468: Was diminished in prestige and in 1228 the Almohad caliph al-Ma'mun withdrew from al-Andalus altogether. In this political vacuum, a new wave of taifa kingdoms emerged, which were progressively conquered by Portugal, Castile, and Aragon. Córdoba was conquered in 1236 and Seville was conquered in 1248 . Some Muslim city-states, such as Murcia and Niebla , survived as vassal kingdoms of Castile until
21600-538: Was divided into five administrative units, corresponding roughly to: modern Andalusia ; Castile and León ; Navarre , Aragon , and Catalonia ; Portugal and Galicia ; and the Languedoc-Roussillon area of Occitania . The small army Tariq led in the initial conquest consisted mostly of Berbers, while Musa's largely Arab force of over 12,000 soldiers was accompanied by a group of mawālī (Arabic, موالي), that is, non-Arab Muslims, who were clients of
21750-462: Was exposed to astronomy—possibly through Ibn Tufail—and became a renowned scientist in the field. His most popular work was his Summary of the Almagest , but he also published shorter works discussing Aristotle's planetary theories . Ibn Rushd published writings on philosophy, theology, and medicine throughout his life too, including commentaries on the works of Ibn Sina. In addition to writing
21900-595: Was in Judæo-Spanish since it was forbidden to Muslims. In Portugal, the Sephardim were given important roles in the sociopolitical sphere and enjoyed a certain amount of protection from the Crown (e.g. Yahia Ben Yahia , first "Rabino Maior" of Portugal and supervisor of the public revenue of the first King of Portugal, D. Afonso Henriques ). Even with the increasing pressure from the Catholic Church, this state of affairs remained more or less constant and
22050-445: Was not finally abolished until 1031 when al-Andalus broke up into a number of mostly independent mini-states and principalities called taifas . In 1013, invading Berbers sacked Córdoba , massacring its inhabitants, pillaging the city, and burning the palace complex to the ground. The largest of the taifas to emerge were Badajoz ( Batalyaws ), Toledo ( Ṭulayṭulah ), Zaragoza ( Saraqusta ), and Granada ( Ġarnāṭah ). After 1031,
22200-533: Was slain by an incited mob along with most of the Jewish community. The remnant fled to Lucena . The first major and most violent persecution in Islamic Spain was the 1066 Granada massacre , which occurred on 30 December, when a Muslim mob stormed the royal palace in Granada , crucified Jewish vizier Joseph ibn Naghrela and massacred most of the Jewish population of the city after rumors spread that
22350-629: Was symbolically revoked in 1996 by the Portuguese Parliament ). Those who fled to Genoa were only allowed to land provided they received baptism. Those who were fortunate enough to reach the Ottoman Empire had a better fate: the Sultan Bayezid II sarcastically sent his thanks to Ferdinand for sending him some of his best subjects, thus "impoverishing his own lands while enriching his (Bayezid's)". Jews arriving in
22500-485: Was translated into Hebrew, Latin, and Castilian. This encyclopedia is also significant for its inclusion of al-Zahrawi's personal experiences as a surgeon, which provided important case studies for aspiring surgeons. This distinguishes it from other strictly factual medical works of the time, most notably Ibn Sina's Canon of Medicine . Other important medical texts include al-Baytar's Comprehensive Book on Simple Drugs and Foodstuffs —an encyclopedia with descriptions of
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