Church, Synagogue, & Mosque - Vocab

Abbasid

The third familial dynasty that ruled the Muslim world between 750 and 1258 from theircapital in Baghdad

Al-Andalus

Name used by Arabic speakers during the middle ages to refer to portions of the Iberian Peninsula that were governed by Muslims

Almohad

A fundamentalist Muslim Berber dynasty from the Maghreb that overthrew the Almoravid dynasty and ruled North Africa and parts of the Iberian Peninsula between 1147 and 1172 when it was defeated by the Christian Kingdoms of Castile Aragon and Navarre at the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa

Almoravid

A Muslim Berber dynasty from the Maghreb that ruled north Africa and parts of the Iberian Aragon and Navarre at the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa

Andalusi

Inhabitants of Al-Andalus during the period of Muslim rule in the Iberian Peninsula

Andalusian:

Of or from the modern-day Spanish province of Andalusia

Caliphate

A system of government (both religious and civil) ruled by a successor of Muhammad who holds supreme power over territory occupied by Muslims

Converso

Literally, refer to Jews that converted to Christianity (either by choice or by force) in order to continue living in Spain after the expulsion of the Jews in 1492

Dhimmi

Literally “the people of the covenant (or the book)” A concept based in the Quran that affords special protections to non-Muslims of other Abrahamic faiths (especially Judaism and Christianity) living in territories governed by Muslims

Hispania

The name given by the Romans to the colonies they established on the Iberian Peninsula

The Maghrib

The region of North Africa between Egypt and the Atlantic Ocean that comprises modern day Morocco Algeria and Tunisia

Mihrab

In a mosque, a niche hollowed out of the wall that faces Mecca

Minaret

A tall, slender tower with projecting balconies, close to a mosque, used by the muezzin to call the faithful to prayer

Moor/Moorish

Originally used in reference to Berbers who lived in the Roman province of Mauretania (modern-day Morocco); in European discourse, often used to refer to dark-skinned people

Morisco

A Muslim who had converted to Christianity (either by choice or by force), residing in Spain after 1492

Moro

A derogatory term used by Spanish-speakers to refer to dark-skinned people

Mozarabic/Mozarab

An Arabized Christian living under Muslim rule in the Iberian Peninsula who was afforded certain privileges to continue practicing Christianity and who often celebrated the Catholic Mass in Arabic; or a language derived from vulgar Latin fused with elements extracted from Arabic.

Mudejar

A Muslim living in the Iberian Peninsula under Christian rule before 1492

Muqarnas

A type of geometrically ornamented vault or dome used frequently in Islamic architecture

Muslim

A person who follows Islam; in correct usage this word does not refer to inanimate objects, styles or ideas

Nasrid

The familial dynasty that ruled the Emirate of Granada between 1230 and 1492

Qibla

In a mosque, the wall that faces Mecca

Sepharad

The name Jews gave to the homeland they established in the Iberian Peninsula from the later years of the Roman Empire until 1492

Spain

A geographic term that defines the territory presently occupied by the Spanish state; related to the Arabic word Isbaniyya

Taifa

One of the many Muslim kingdoms in the Iberian Peninsula after the fall of the Umayyad Caliphate

Umayyad

The second familial dynasty that ruled the entire Muslim world in the seventh and eighth centuries and eventually established an independent Caliphate in the Iberian Peninsula

Visigoth/Visigothic

Of or from the culture of Germanic people that helped precipitate the demise of the Roman Empire and settled in the Iberian Peninsula