understanding spain through history & art midterm

Los Millares eye-decorated pottery [3200-2300 BC]

El Argar burials [2200-1550 BC]
→ Social stratification

The Lady of Elche [5th-4th century BC]
→ Greek and eastern influences on Iberian sculpture

Bicha of Balazote [6th century BC]
→ Greek and Phoenician influences on Iberian sculpture; Greek river god Achelous (protection)

Visigothic votive crowns (Guarrazar) [7th century AD]
→ Symbolized political & religious alliance between Visigothic monarchy and Catholic Church, given as gifts to church

Reccared among the bishops in the Codex Vigilanus [early Middle Ages]
→ Symbolized King Reccared I’s conversion to Catholicisim in Third Council of Toledo

Great Mosque of Cordoba [785-786 AD]
→ Started by Abd al-Rahman I, finished by successors; symbolized establishment of a new, independent Umayyad power in al-Andalus

Mozarabic art; Horseshoe arches at Santiago de Penalba [late 10th century]
→ Symbolize cultural/artistic synthesis between N Christian traditions & Islamic al-Andalus/Visigothic heritage

Franco as Crusader (Reque) [1946]
→ Legitimization of his dictatorship through National Catholicism

Rodrigo at Guadalete (Blanco) [1871]
→ Battle [711] symbolized end of Christian, unified Spain under Visigoths

Roman Hispania [218 BC-5th century]
Baetica: S
Lusitania: W
Tarraconensis: E & N

Visigothic kingdom [418-721]
Suevic kingdom: NW
Byzantine province: S

Expansion of Islam from Arabia → Iberia [711-1492]

Al-Andalus and the Christian North [~1000]
*3 frontier marches

Taifa kingdoms [after 1031]
→ 30-50 independent Muslim principalities

The Christian advance [1085, 1212, 1492]
→ fall of Toledo [1085] = Christian restoration of Visigothic capital

(Strabo and Diodorus) Greek conquerors on the Iberians: fierce, frugal, divided, born bandits.

(Pericot) Homo hispanicus, and the 1941 schoolbook on “lean, short, chivalrous” Iberians and “tall, blond” Celts.

Praise of Spain

(Isidore of Seville)
→ Spain as a bride, handed from Rome to the Goths; presents Goths as legitimate rulers, not simply foreign invaders
→ Associated with 4th council of Toledo [633]

Chronicle of 754 (anonymous Christian writer under Muslim rule)
→ Highlights Gothic disunity, describes treaties and Christian defeat

King Recceswinth, 8th Council of Toledo [654]
→ Presents religious uniformity as necessary for the unity of the kingdom and treats Judaism as a threat

Treaty of Tudmir [713]
→ Lives, churches and property kept in exchange for tribute (between Umayyad Muslim forces + local Visigoth population)

Alvarus of Cordoba [854]
→ Complains about young Christians who write better Arabic than Latin

Description of Abd al-Rahman III & the account of the embassy to his court
→ Shows wealth & authority of court

The Astur Chronicles

Nation

A community sharing a common identity and history.

Nation-state

A sovereign state associated with a national identity.

National identity

A sense of belonging to a nation.

Imagined community

A nation whose members feel connected without knowing one another (modern theory).

Invented tradition

A created or adapted tradition presented as ancient (modern nationalism).

1492

Conquest of Granada and a key date in Spanish national history.

1714

Fall of Barcelona and Bourbon centralization of Spain.

Prehistory

Earliest human history before written records.

Palaeolithic

Old Stone Age; hunter-gatherers and cave art.

Neolithic

New Stone Age; farming and permanent settlements.

Age of Metals

Copper, bronze and iron tools; growing social inequality.

Altamira

Cave in northern Spain famous for prehistoric paintings.

Los Millares

Fortified Copper Age settlement in southeastern Iberia.

El Argar

Bronze Age society with strong social hierarchies.

Iberians

Ancient peoples of eastern and southern Iberia.

Celts

Ancient peoples who inhabited parts of northern and western Iberia.

Proto-Basques

Ancient populations associated with the ancestors of the Basques.

Homo hispanicus

Non-scientific label used in nationalist interpretations of prehistoric Iberian humans.

Pericot

Archaeologist associated with nationalist interpretations of Spanish prehistory.

Santa-Olalla

Wrote 1941 schoolbook generalizing Celts & Iberians.

Almagro

Archaeologist who emphasized Spain's ancient unity under Franco.

Romanisation

Spread of Roman language, laws and culture in Hispania (218 BC onward).

Arianism

Christian belief that Christ was subordinate to God the Father; followed by the Visigoths before 589.

Ulfilas

Bishop who spread Arian Christianity among Germanic peoples in the fourth century.

Kingdom of Toledo

Visigothic kingdom that ruled much of Iberia from the sixth to eighth centuries.

Leovigild

Visigothic king who expanded royal power in the sixth century.

Reccared

Visigothic king who converted to Catholicism in 589.

Morbus Gothorum

Term for the repeated political instability and violent succession struggles of Visigothic kings.

Councils of Toledo

Assemblies of bishops and nobles that helped govern the Visigothic kingdom.

Liber Iudiciorum

Visigothic law code that established a common legal system for the kingdom.

Isidore of Seville

Seventh-century scholar who praised the unity and greatness of Hispania.

Francoist Gothicism

Francoist interpretation of the Visigoths as symbols of Spanish unity, Catholicism and military strength.

Fitna

Civil war or political rebellion in the Islamic world; notably the conflict of 1009–1031 in Al-Andalus.

Sunni

The largest branch of Islam, historically associated with the legitimacy of the early caliphs.

Shia

Branch of Islam that supports Ali and his descendants as rightful leaders.

Umayyads

Dynasty that ruled the Islamic Caliphate (661–750) and later Al-Andalus.

Abbasids

Dynasty that overthrew the Umayyads in 750 and established its capital in Baghdad.

Emir

Political ruler, such as the independent ruler of Córdoba from 756.

Caliph

Leader claiming authority over the Muslim community.

Break of 756

Abd al-Rahman I established an independent Umayyad emirate in Córdoba.

Claim of 929

Abd al-Rahman III declared himself caliph of Córdoba.

Dhimmi

Protected non-Muslim, especially Christian or Jewish, living under Islamic rule.

Jizya

Tax traditionally imposed on non-Muslim protected subjects.

Kharaj

Land tax in Islamic states.

Treaty of Tudmir

Agreement in 713 that allowed a local ruler in southeastern Iberia to retain authority in exchange for tribute.

Berber revolt

Eighth-century uprising against Arab privilege and unequal treatment in the Islamic Empire.

Syrian junds

Military regiments from Syria settled in Al-Andalus in the eighth century.

Qays and Yemen

Rival Arab tribal groupings whose conflicts affected Al-Andalus.

Muwallad (muladi)

Local Iberian convert to Islam.

Mozarab

Christian living under Muslim rule in Al-Andalus.

Saqaliba

Enslaved or formerly enslaved people of European origin who served in Al-Andalus.

Martyrs of Córdoba

Christians executed in Córdoba in 850–859 for publicly denouncing Islam.

Alvarus

Ninth-century Christian writer who defended the martyrs of Córdoba.

Ibn Hafsun

Rebel leader who challenged the emirate of Córdoba in the ninth and tenth centuries.

Madinat al-Zahra

Palace-city built near Córdoba by Abd al-Rahman III in the tenth century.

Al-Mansur

Powerful military ruler who dominated Córdoba in the late tenth century.

Fitna of 1009–1031

Civil war that destroyed the Córdoba Caliphate.

Taifas

Independent Muslim kingdoms formed after the Caliphate's collapse in 1031.

Parias

Tribute paid by Muslim taifa kingdoms to Christian rulers.

Almoravids

North African Muslim dynasty that controlled Al-Andalus from the late eleventh century.

Almohads

North African Muslim dynasty that ruled much of Al-Andalus in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries.

Asturias

Northern Christian kingdom that emerged after the Islamic conquest of 711.

Pelayo

Leader traditionally credited with founding the Asturian kingdom.

Covadonga

Battle traditionally dated to 722, associated with Pelayo's resistance to Muslim rule.

Neo-Gothicism

Idea that northern Christian kingdoms inherited the legitimacy and traditions of the Visigoths.

León

Christian kingdom that developed from Asturias in the Middle Ages.

Castile

Frontier county that grew into a major Christian kingdom.

Navarre

Christian kingdom in the western Pyrenees during the Middle Ages.

Aragon

Pyrenean county that developed into a Christian kingdom.

Catalan counties

Counties in northeastern Iberia that gradually developed autonomy from Frankish rule.

Santiago de Compostela

Christian pilgrimage destination associated with the apostle James.

Pilgrim road

Medieval routes that brought pilgrims from across Europe to Santiago de Compostela.

Frontier settlement

Occupation and organization of conquered borderlands by Christian rulers.

Property

Land and privileges used to reward settlers and strengthen control of frontier territories.