Did you know that Spanish was once the mother-tongue of Muslims in the Iberian Peninsula? and that some even wrote Spanish with the Arabic rather than the Latin alphabet (what we use today)? After Columbus traveled to the Americas and the Christians conquered Muslim Granada in 1492, many Muslims and former Muslims lived a double life, practicing Christianity in public while also keeping Muslim traditions (and the Arabic alphabet) in their homes. This course will introduce the language of these Muslims, a dialect of Castilian Spanish called “Aljamiado" that was usually written in the Arabic alphabet. We will learn about the history of Islam in Spain and will learn the Arabic alphabet in order to read the texts written in Aljamiado. We will also read some texts by Muslim authors written in Latin characters and will introduce some of the main writers, texts, and themes of the period. We will look at manuscripts and editions of aljamiado texts dealing with the life of Muhammad, anti-Christian arguments, the legend of Alexander the Great, stories about the prophets, guidebooks for love and magic, and other topics.

No knowledge of Arabic is necessary (but it won’t hurt). A very strong level of reading ability in Spanish, and an open mind, are essential.

This course counts toward the Spanish major and as literature credit for the Spanish minor.