Europe Features

Spain marks anniversary of Muslim exodus with "discomfort" (Feature)

Apr 7, 2009, 11:02 GMT

Madrid - Spain is marking the 400th anniversary of the expulsion of some 300,000 Moriscos - Muslim converts to Christianity - in what is being described as an early precedent for European operations of ethnic cleansing. The anniversary on Thursday of the expulsion order, which was signed on April 9, 1609, follows a meeting in Istanbul of the United Nations' Alliance of Civilizations project, a brainchild of the Spanish and Turkish prime ministers, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero and Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Official commemorations expressing regret for the expulsion of the Moriscos would be in line with the Alliance of Civilizations, which seeks to increase understanding between the West and the Muslim world, novelist Jose Manuel Fajardo wrote recently. Some events, including conferences, exhibitions and book launches, are indeed being organized. On the whole, however, 'official and academic Spain has withdrawn into the fortress of a cautious silence, which reveals its obvious discomfort,' novelist Juan Goytisolo observed. Spain's Muslim history began in the 8th century with the arrival of conquerors, who became known as Moors, from North Africa and Arabia. The Moors ruled parts of the Iberian Peninsula for eight centuries, bringing cultural advances and living in a relative peace with the local Christians and Jews for much of the time. The so-called Christian reconquest of Spain was in fact a kind of civil war, because many of the Muslims of al-Andalus - as Moorish Spain was known - were by then of local origin, Moroccan expert Said Jedidi pointed out. The reconquest was completed in 1492, when the last Moorish bastion, Granada, fell to Catholic monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella. That same year, Jews who refused to convert to Christianity were ordered to leave Spain, but the agreed conditions of Granada's surrender initially guaranteed Muslims the practice of their faith and customs. However, forced conversions to Christianity soon followed around the country, along with orders to abandon the Arab language, names or dress. Many of the nominal Christians nevertheless persisted in their Muslim ways, defying attempts to create a homogenous state. There were doubts about their loyalty to the crown, and the Inquisition persecuted them. In 1609, at a moment when a politically and economically weakened Philip III needed a victory over an internal enemy, his regime decided to expel the Moriscos from the kingdom. From September onwards, the Spaniards of Muslim origin began to be shipped to North Africa in a well-oiled operation. The expulsion, which lasted from 1609 to 1614, was 'the first European precedent of the... ethnic cleansings of the last century,' Goytisolo writes. It took place in 'brutal conditions,' including killings of people who did not want to leave, explained the renowned Spanish novelist, who lives in the Moroccan city of Marrakech. The majority of the Moriscos settled in Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia, where their descendants still take pride in their 'Andalusian' heritage. Traces of the common heritage are visible not only in North Africa, but also in Spain, from architecture and music to cooking and crafts. The Spanish language has thousands of words of Arab origin. However, an 'official one-dimensional version' of the Spanish identity was 'imposed' for centuries, equating Spanishness with being Catholic and conservative, Fajardo wrote. Today, Spain's Moorish past is often used for ideological purposes, ranging from al-Qaeda calls for a Muslim reconquest of al- Andalus to visions of Moorish Spain as an idyllic paradise of multiculturalism. A movement involving some Moroccan historians, Spanish and international Muslim groups wants to Spain to apologize for the expulsion of the Moriscos, and to make some gesture of compensation. Many historians now concede that the forced conversions and the expulsion signified a major cultural and economic loss for Spain. An official recognition of that loss is, however, not on the government's agenda.

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Mr MeltdownApr 7th, 2009 - 15:27:47

With the Earth's population aproaching 7 billion, food production faultering and the Earth only capable of supporting 10 billion max, this could be the future as well as the past.

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The Moors or Arab Conquerors - were from Syria !!Apr 7th, 2009 - 16:04:42

The Islamic conquerors of the 8th century were actually - Syrian.

Tariq of Gibraltar was a Syrian.

In fact much of the Holy Koran - is written in the the Syrian language - the old Koranic text - some of which existed before Muhammad - was largely unreadable - we know Muhammad was illiterate.

Spain and North Africa were originally conquered under the Syrian Umayyad Dynasty - an area previously controlled by the Byzantines - hated arch enemies and rivals of the Syrians of the time - to erase all evidence of their former conquest in these areas - they decreed that all the coins and language spokes should be in Arabic - or old Syrian - as a growing number like to think.

The original Koran - according to the Encyclopaedia Britannica was written in old Arabic - an ancient language - not commonly used - so in order to introduce Islam to these fallen lands - the Syrian Umayyad organized the written text - to form the modern day Koran - the five pillars of Islam were also invented at this time according to En. Britannica - only then could then could they present a respectable looking holy book - to try and entice others to join.

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As for Arab or Islamic achievements in Spain - Syria was already a modern state - so strategic it fell under Alexander the Great - who also took Egypt but bypassed Arabia - which remained largely undeveloped.

It was under the Umayyad that so-called Arab calligraphy and Islamic architecture were developed. The were already advance for the time.

Damascus appears in the Bible - it was never called Arabia - interesting to know how the Syrians become 'Arabs'.

All this shows that the people of North Africa can't be Arabs - the CIA factbook says they are Berber - but identify with the Arab culture. And these Islamic conquerors ruled them for significantly less time then they ruled the Spanish - no more than 150 years (off and on) - until they threw then out for good. The Moroccans were always second class citizens to the Syrians in Spain. When they finally regained control of their territory in N. African - a lot of the N. Africans returned home - from Spain.

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One surprising thing to come out of the re-translation or the more accurate translations from the original old Arabic text and not the Syrian layover - is that 72 virgins - translates to 72 grapes - i.e. martyrs of Islam will receive a bunch of grapes - on death by suicide.
On the documentary covering this - the scholar concealed his identity.

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Julio César MartínezApr 7th, 2009 - 16:28:54

What many don't know is that Spaniards are generally rather nazi-like. Which is rather weird really. Spain is obsessed about belonging to Europe as if it really wasn't. Spaniards never really in centuries have fathomed the idea that they ARE Europeans. They just don't want to believe. The consequences of this obsession of proving that they are Europeans spills into ethnic cleansing. They are the most psychologically damaged low self steemed race I have ever seen. They make Hitler, Milosevic and other ethnic cleansers blush because they did not come up with that idea first. Personally I dislike the bastards, am Mexican you see.

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Martínez on SpainApr 7th, 2009 - 17:45:00

No one likes what the Spaniards did in South America in their quest for gold and riches.

But to say this is the way all Spanish people are is not right.

Next you'll be telling us you joined Islam (the other conquerors) - to free yourself from the Spanish.

What are you Mexicans doing down there?

Why can't you get your economy together?

It might be time to stop blaming Spain - and start taking responsibility for your own futures - get organized in other words!

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MarkApr 15th, 2009 - 02:22:52

I guess I'm lost. The Moors invade a country, conquer its indigenous people, and when the indigenous people revolt and overthrow the Moors, the indigenous people are supposed to apologize to those who claim some affiliation via religion, extinct nations, or ancient bloodlines to the Moors?
Would there have been any reason for Spain to apologize if the Moors had respected international law, and not committed an illegal, unilateral, invasion and occupation of Spain?
And the same leftists who wring their hands about 'indigenous peoples', and 'illegal wars' are the ones who think Spain should apologize to the long lost cousins of the Moors. I wonder if these leftists think the Colombians should apologize to Spain for overthrowing them?

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