AFRICAN FACES OF THE WORLD

The Moors

By Lorraine Jones

Descending from the indigenous Berbers of North Africa and the Arabs who migrated there from the East, the Moors were the medieval Muslim inhabitants of al-Andalus, the Maghreb and western Africa. After the North African territory was conquered by the Muslim Arabs in the early 8th century, the inhabitants of that region became known as the Moors.

In 711 CE, a group of these North African Muslims invaded the Iberian Peninsula, now the territory known as Spain and Portugal. The Moor general, Tariq ibn Ziyad, led an army of perhaps 7,000 soldiers with reinforcements of 5,000 to invade that land, which became known as al-Andalus (Andalusia) and was soon established as a center for economic and education advancements as well as a hub for cultural expansion. According to Flash Point History, most of these soldiers were probably converted Muslim Berbers, the indigenous people of North Africa, which the Romans called Mauretania (not to be confused with modern-day Mauritania).

These Arab, Berber and African soldiers were darker skinned than the Visigoths that then populated the Iberian Peninsula, and over time, the terms “Moors” and “Moorish” were increasingly used as descriptors to indicate both the reign of Muslims in Spain and also Europeans of Arab, Berber and African descent for centuries to follow. The word “Moor” derives from the Greek word “mauros,” which means “black” or “very dark.”

In the 16th and 17th centuries, William Shakespeare used Moor and African interchangeably in his plays. The word “Moor” was predominately used in Europe in reference to anyone of Arab or African descent. In Shakespeare’s notorious play The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice, he depicts a hypersexual and untrustworthy Moor who serves as a general in the Venetian army, perpetuating age-old stereotypes of black people. Eventually during medieval times, the term evolved into “Blackamoor” as it became synonymous with “negro” and was often used to describe someone who was lack African or a very dark-skinned person in the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries.

The terms “Moors” and “Moorish” encompass more than a single race and include the people’s conquests, advancements, art and culture. Their advancements in mathematics, education, medicine, art, architecture and agriculture went on to percolate throughout Europe, helping propel Europe out of the Dark Ages and into the culture explosion that was the Renaissance.

Tariq ibn Ziyad, for whom Gibraltar is named.

Portrait of a Moorish Woman, 1550

The Moorish Chief by Eduard Charlemont , 1878

While much of Europe was illiterate, the Moors created a basis for universal education. They established 17 universities in various locations such as Almeria, Cordova, Granada, Jaen, Malaga, Seville and Toledo. While public libraries were unheard of in the 10th and 11th centuries, Moorish Spain proudly established more than 70, with. the library in Cordova alone holding hundreds of thousands of manuscripts. The unprecedented Moorish system of education that was eventually brought to Europe provided a foundation for the European Renaissance. These flourishing people introduced musical instruments from Africa, Asia and Arabia to the rest of the world. They brought the first drums, stringed instruments and horns to these conquered lands, which enabled the development of pianos, trumpets and other musical instruments. Their ascendancy also led to the absorption of more than 4,000 words with Arabic roots into the Spanish language. Additionally, the agricultural techniques and sophisticated irrigation systems that were influenced by the Moors made possible the introduction of new crops and greatly increased food output.

Moorish articulated architecture consists of colors, materials, symmetry, domes and elegant arches. The pueblos blancos (“white villages”)—of Andalusia were inspired by the African heritage of the Moors. These

buildings reflected sunlight and cooled the structures’ interiors. Other examples of the great legacy of Moorish architecture include the Mosque–Cathedral of Córdoba and the Alhambra in Granada.

Despite all its glory, over time, Moorish Andalusia was weakened by corruption, power struggles, internal conflict and divisions in the wider Islamic world. As a result, the nearly eightcenturies-long reign of the Moors concluded as its last bastion, Granada, fell to the Christians in 1492. While the reign of the Moors is long over, their memory and cultural influence persist.

Notable Moors and Their Descendants

Alessandro de Medici

Believed by some historians to be the son of an enslaved black female (possibly a Moor) and a male member of the powerful Medici family that monopolized the cultural and political life in Florence from the 15th to 18th century, de Medici became the Duke of Penne and Duke of Florence in the 16th century. His reign as the powerful Duke of Florence lasted from 1531 to 1537 when he was assassinated by a cousin.

Ibn Battuta

Considered one of the most widely traveled explorers in history and sometimes called “The Islamic Marco Polo,” Ibn Battuta was a 14th century ArabBerber from North Africa. In a 30-year period, he is thought to have visited many regions of the world, including Andalusia, Africa, The Middle East, Central Asia, Southeast Asia and South Asia. He later dictated an account of his travels titled A Gift to Those Who Contemplate the Wonders of Cities and the Marvels of Traveling, or simply The Travels.

Abu Al Qasim Al Zahrawi

Born in 936 CE in Andalusia, Al Zahrawi was a physician best known as “the father of modern surgery.” He devoted 50 years to his field, writing down extensive findings that became the leading textbook in Western medical training for the next 500 years.