Albaicín Explained

Albaicín / Albayzín
Settlement Type:District
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name: Spain
Subdivision Type1:Autonomous community
Subdivision Type2:Province
Subdivision Name2:Granada
Subdivision Type3:Municipality
Subdivision Name3:Granada
Pushpin Map:Spain
Coordinates:37.1817°N -3.5983°W
Module:
Child:yes
Part Of:Alhambra, Generalife and Albayzín, Granada
Criteria:(i), (iii), (iv)
Id:314bis-002
Year:1984
Extension:1994

The Albaicín (pronounced as /es/), also spelled Albayzín (from Arabic: ٱلْبَيّازِينْ|translit=al-Bayyāzīn), is a neighbourhood of Granada, Spain. It is centered around a hill on the north side of the Darro River which passes through the city. The neighbourhood is notable for its historic monuments and for largely retaining its medieval street plan dating back to the Nasrid period (13th to 15th centuries), although it nonetheless went through many physical and demographic changes after the end of the Reconquista in 1492. It was declared a World Heritage Site in 1994, as an extension of the historic site of the nearby Alhambra.

Etymology

There are several theories as to the origin of the district's present name, which comes from Arabic (Arabic: ٱلْبَيّازِينْ). One theory is that al-Bayyāzīn was the Arabic plural noun denoting the inhabitants of the city of Baeza (called "Beatia" by the Romans) and that the name was given in reference to the refugees of that city who settled here during the Nasrid period. Another theory is that name comes from Arabic, meaning "district/suburb of the falconers", which is supported by the fact that other neighborhoods with that name exist in other Spanish cities. Another hypothesis is that the name Albaicín derives from Arabic .[1]

History

Early history

The region surrounding what today is Granada has been populated since at least 5500 BC. The most ancient ruins found in the area belong to an oppidum called Ilturir, founded by the Iberian Bastetani tribe around 650 BC.[2] This settlement became later known as Iliberri or Iliberis. In 44 BC Iliberis became a Roman colony and in 27 BC it became a Roman municipium named Florentia Iliberritana ('Flourishing Iliberri'). The historical relation between present-day Granada and the Roman-era Iliberis has long been debated by scholars.[3] [4] Modern archeological digs on the Albaicín hill have uncovered finds demonstrating the presence of a significant Roman town on that site. Little is known, however, about the history of the city in the period between the end of the Roman era and the 11th century.

The Umayyad conquest of Hispania, starting in 711 AD, brought large parts of the Iberian Peninsula under Muslim control, becoming known as al-Andalus. During the early Islamic period, under the rule of the Emirate and Caliphate of Cordoba (8th to 10th centuries), the area of the Albaicin was occupied by a small settlement and fortress (ḥiṣn) named Gharnāṭa, which had a mainly Jewish population and was thus also known as Gharnāṭat al-Yahūd ("Gharnāṭa of the Jews").[5] A larger settlement, Madīnat Ilbīra, was located further northwest, near present-day Atarfe.

Zirid period

At the beginning of the 11th century, the area became dominated by the Zirids, a Sanhaja Berber group and offshoot of the Zirids who ruled parts of North Africa. When the Caliphate of Cordoba collapsed after 1009, the Zirid leader Zawi ben Ziri established an independent kingdom for himself, the Taifa of Granada. Rather than settling at Madīnat Ilbīra, Zawi ben Ziri settled in the more defensible position of Gharnāṭa (Granada) instead. In a short time this town was transformed into one of the most important cities of al-Andalus.The Zirids built their citadel and palace, known as the al-Qaṣaba al-Qadīma ("Old Citadel"), on the hill now occupied by the Albaicín neighborhood.[6] It was connected to two smaller fortresses on the Sabika hill (site of the future Alhambra) and Mauror hill to the south. The city around it grew during the 11th century to include the Albaicín, the Sabika, the Mauror, and a part of the surrounding plains. The city was fortified with walls encompassing an area of approximately 75 hectares. The northern part of these walls, near the Albaicin citadel, have survived to the present day, along with one of its main gates, the Bāb al-Unaydar (now called Puerta Monaita in Spanish). Another smaller gate, Bāb al-Ziyāda (now known as Arco de las Pesas or Puerta Nueva) is located further east along the same wall.

The city and its residences were supplied with water through an extensive hydraulic system of underground cisterns and pipes. The Zirid palace was located near the largest medieval cistern of the Albaicin, known in Arabic as al-Jubb al-Qadīm ("the Old Cistern") and in Spanish today as the Aljibe del Rey ("Cistern of the King"), which had a capacity of 300 cubic metres. A now-ruined sluice gate called Bāb al-Difāf ("Gate of the Tambourines") was built across the Darro River and could be closed in order to retain water if needed. The nearby Bañuelo, a former hammam (bathhouse), also likely dates from this period, as does the former minaret of a mosque that is now part of the Church of San José.

Nasrid period

In the 13th century, following the rise and fall of other Muslim dynasties and the military advances of the Christian kingdoms of Castile and Aragon, Ibn al-Ahmar (Muhammad I) established what became the last and longest reigning Muslim dynasty in the Iberian peninsula, the Nasrids, who ruled the Emirate of Granada. However, when Ibn Al-Ahmar established himself in the city he moved the royal palace from the old Zirid citadel on the Albaicín hill to the Sabika hill further south, beginning construction on what became the present Alhambra, a fortified palace complex that still dominates the city today.

The population of the city and the wider Nasrid emirate was swelled by Muslim refugees from the territories newly conquered by Castile and Aragon, resulting in a small yet densely-populated territory which was more uniformly Muslim and Arabic-speaking than before. Granada itself expanded and new neighbourhoods grew around the Albaicín.

A new set of walls was constructed further north of the Albaicín during the 13th–14th centuries, with Bab Ilbirah (present-day Puerta de Elvira) as its western entrance. Among the major monuments built in the Albaicín during this period are the Maristan (hospital), built in 1365–1367 (later demolished in 1843)[7] and the Great Mosque (congregational mosque) of the Albaicín, dating from the 13th century. During this time the commercial heart of the district was what is now known as Panaderos Street (Calle Panaderos). This street ran between the gate called Bab al-Ziyada to the west and the Great Mosque of the Albaicín to the east. Next to Bab al-Ziyada was a public square called Raḥbat al-Ziyāda ("Enlargement Square") also existed, later known in Spanish as El Ensanche ("the Enlargement") and now as Plaza Larga.

Spanish period

In 1492, after years of military campaigns, Granada fell under the control of the Spanish monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella, completing the Christian conquest of Muslim al-Andalus. Muslims were initially granted protections and rights according to the terms of the surrender, but these rights were soon undermined. In December 1499, the Albaicín was the starting point of a Muslim rebellion throughout Granada, triggered by the forced conversion of the Muslim population to Christianity, who then became known as 'Moriscos'.[8] After the Christian conquest, much of the Morisco population of the city was displaced to the Albaicin, where they were joined in the 16th century by emigrants from the surrounding hinterlands of the Vega valley, the Alpujarras, and the Lecrín valley.[9] Mosques were replaced with new parish churches, particularly after 1501.[10] These new churches were often built in a mix of Mudéjar and Renaissance styles. New civic institutions were also built in the area, such as the Royal Chancellery (Real Chancillería), which overlooks Plaza Nueva, a public square expanded during the 16th century.

The Morisco rebellion of 1568, however, resulted in a mass expulsion of Moriscos from the city and left much of neighbourhood abandoned. The old Morisco properties were taken over by the remaining Christian residents, but the neighbourhood continued to have low urban density until the 19th century. It was only towards the end of the 19th century, when the present-day Gran Vía de Colón and its surroundings were created between 1895 and 1908, that many of the inhabitants in the centre of the city were forced to relocate to the Albaicin and the neighbourhood increased in density. Many of the former spacious courtyard homes were subdivided into smaller plots to accommodate multiple families, or rooms from adjacent houses were purchased and joined together to expand available living spaces. These crowded conditions continued until the 1970s, when the standard of living increased and some affluent families began to return to the neighbourhood.

In 1994, the Albaicín was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO as an extension of the monuments of the Alhambra and the Generalife.[11]

Historic houses (carmens)

The traditional type of house is the carmen, consisting of a freestanding house with typically whitewashed walls and including a small orchard or garden.[12] [13] The Spanish term carmen is derived from the Arabic word karm (meaning 'vineyard').[14] This term originally referred to a type of "periurban" house built on the hillsides on the outskirts of the city. Following the Morisco rebellion of 1568 much of the Morisco population of the city was expelled, which left many of the houses in the Albaicin empty. The remaining Christian residents then added the abandoned properties to their own and converted them into orchards and gardens, thus importing the periurban house type into this central neighbourhood of the city. All houses were provided with water through a network of pipes which distributed water from the many cisterns in the area. At least twenty underground cisterns still exist in the neighbourhood today.

Among the oldest and most important preserved historic houses in the neighbourhood are the Casa de Zafra and the Dar al-Horra, both dating from the Nasrid period. The Casa de Zafra was built in the 14th to 15th century and is named after Hernando de Zafra, the Secretary of Ferdinand and Isabella. The Dar al-Horra was a Nasrid palace built in the 15th century. Both mansions include large rectangular courtyards oriented in a north-south direction. The main rooms of the houses were located behind porticos on the north and south sides of the courtyard. Traditionally, the northern rooms were larger, allowing them to take advantage of the northern winds and the midday sun.

Traditional house architecture evolved over the 15th and 16th centuries. Previously, the ground floors of residences were more important and more heavily decorated. Over this period, however, it became more common to build an upper story and this upper story often became more richly-decorated than the ground floor. The "doubling" of rooms on both the ground and upper floors likely reflected their seasonal use: the upper floors, which were warmer, were used in colder months while the ground floors were used in warmer months. In the 16th century, Castilian Gothic and Renaissance motifs also began to appear among the decorative motifs and the upper floor galleries were extended around all four sides of the courtyard (rather than just the north and south sides).

Places of interest

In the Albaicín there are numerous monuments from different periods, mainly the Nasrid period and the Renaissance.

Museums

City walls and gates

Medieval gate at the beginning of Calle Elvira, formerly known as Bāb Ilbīra in Arabic. It was originally part of the 11th-century Zirid walls, but in the 14th century it was rebuilt into a heavily-fortified structure in order to be incorporated into the new Nasrid extension of the walls. Only a part of the gate remains today. A large Muslim cemetery, known as the Ibn Malik Cemetery, formerly existed outside this gate. The present-day Royal Hospital (Hospital Real) stands over a part of this former cemetery.[19]

Islamic-era monuments

Churches

A church located at Plaza del Salvador (off Cuesta del Chapiz), on the site of the neighbourhood's former main mosque. The original mosque was consecrated as a church in 1499 by Cardinal Cisneros, in violation of the city's terms of surrender, and became a parish church in 1501. A new church building was constructed by the Catholic Monarchs in the 16th century.[26] The church was severely damaged by riots in 1936.[27]

Church in the small square of San Miguel Bajo. The church was built in the 16th century with some Gothic elements, a Mudéjar-style ceiling, and Renaissance-style exterior portals. It was closed in 1842 and has since lost many of its historical furnishings.[30] A 13th-century cistern, belonging to a former mosque on the same site, is still present and its arched opening is visible on the church's exterior.[31]

Historic houses and palaces

A 15th-century Nasrid palace, now open as a historic monument.[37]

Cisterns (aljibes)

A network of numerous cisterns, dating from as far back as the 11th century, are still extant throughout the neighbourhood. The openings to some of the cisterns are visible at street level. Among the most notable examples are:

Other

Sources

External links

Notes and References

  1. Book: Arab World. 8–14. 23. 1962.
  2. Book: Drayson, Elizabeth . Lost Paradise: The Story of Granada . Head of Zeus Ltd . 2021 . 978-1-78854-744-4 . en.
  3. Book: García-Arenal, Mercedes . Encyclopaedia of Islam, Three . Brill . 2014 . Fleet . Kate . 1873-9830 . Krämer . Gudrun . Matringe . Denis . Nawas . John . Rowson . Everett.
  4. Book: Carvajal López, José C. . The Routledge Handbook of Muslim Iberia . Routledge . 2020 . 978-1-317-23354-1 . Fierro . Maribel . 490, 505 (see note 18) . en . Material culture . https://books.google.com/books?id=MureDwAAQBAJ&dq=%22Medina+Elvira%22&pg=PT526.
  5. Book: García-Arenal, Mercedes . Encyclopaedia of Islam, Three . Brill . 2014 . Fleet . Kate . Granada . 1873-9830 . Krämer . Gudrun . Matringe . Denis . Nawas . John . Rowson . Everett.
  6. Book: The Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture . Oxford University Press . 2009 . 9780195309911 . M. Bloom . Jonathan . Granada . S. Blair . Sheila.
  7. Web site: Qantara - Maristan of Granada/ Foundation Stone/ Fountain heads in the shape of lions . 2021-11-13 . www.qantara-med.org.
  8. Book: Carr, Matthew. Blood and Faith: The Purging of Muslim Spain. 2009. New Press. 978-1-59558-361-1. 58–59.
  9. Book: Orihuela, Antonio . Revisiting Al-Andalus: Perspectives on the Material Culture of Islamic Iberia and Beyond . Brill . 2007 . 978-90-04-16227-3 . Anderson . Glaire D. . 169–191 . en . The Andalusi House in Granada (Thirteenth to Sixteenth Centuries) . Rosser-Owen . Mariam.
  10. Web site: 2021-06-07 . Iglesia de San Cristóbal ⋆ Agencia Albaicín . 2022-06-06 . Agencia Albaicín . es-ES.
  11. Web site: Alhambra, Generalife and Albayzín, Granada. UNESCO Culture Sector. 2013-02-09.
  12. Book: A Companion to Islamic Granada . Brill . 2021 . 978-90-04-42581-1 . Boloix-Gallardo . Bárbara . en. 6.
  13. Book: Castro, Francisco Vidal . From al-Andalus to Khurasan: Documents from the Medieval Muslim World . 2006 . 978-90-04-15567-1 . Sijpesteijn . Petra . 39–58 . en . Water And Farm Estates In The Arabic Documents Of The Naṣrid Kingdom Of Granada. BRILL .
  14. Book: Murray, John . The Handbook for Travellers in Spain . 1892 . en.
  15. Web site: Archeological and Ethnographic Museum of Granada in Granada . 2022-06-04 . Spain.info . en.
  16. Web site: Carmen de los Geranios, Centro Cultural Max Morea. Agenda Cultural de Andalucía. es. 12 May 2024.
  17. Web site: Flamenco Los Olvidados Granada, Spain Entertainment . 2021-11-13 . Lonely Planet . en.
  18. Book: Bush, Olga . Encyclopaedia of Islam, Three . Brill . 2013 . 9789004161658 . Fleet . Kate . Granada art and architecture . Krämer . Gudrun . Matringe . Denis . Nawas . John . Rowson . Everett.
  19. Book: Vincent, Bernard . A Companion to Islamic Granada . Brill . 2021 . 978-90-04-42581-1 . Boloix-Gallardo . Bárbara . 177 . en . 1492: From Islamic to Christian Granada.
  20. http://image.slidesharecdn.com/unavisitaagranada-elalbayznpuertasymurallas-091016180956-phpapp01/95/slide-2-728.jpg?cb=1255734765 Plano árabe de Granada de Luis Seco de Luna
  21. Gallego y Burín, Antonio (1946). Guía artística e histórica de la ciudad de Granada, p. 781. Edición: Guía de Granada.
  22. Web site: Puerta de las Pesas :: AGENCIA albaicín GRANADA. Granada. Ele Medios, Álvaro de Bazán 9 3º Derecha, 18010. www.albaicin-granada.com. es. 2018-02-22.
  23. Web site: El Bañuelo . 2020-10-05 . Patronato de la Alhambra y Generalife . en-US.
  24. Book: Marçais, Georges . L'architecture musulmane d'Occident . Arts et métiers graphiques . 1954 . Paris.
  25. Web site: 2021-06-07 . Iglesia de Santa Ana. Agencia Albaicín . 2022-06-04 . es-ES.
  26. Book: Castillo-Ferreira, Mercedes . https://books.google.com/books?id=wPQ6DQAAQBAJ&dq=granada+salvador+church&pg=PA284 . Companion to Music in the Age of the Catholic Monarchs . Brill . 2016 . 978-90-04-32932-4 . Knighton . Tess . 284 . en . Chant, Liturgy, and Reform.
  27. Book: Lowe . Alfonso . The Companion Guide to the South of Spain . Seymour-Davies . Hugh . Companion Guides . 2000 . 978-1-900639-33-0 . 265 . en.
  28. Book: Nash, Elizabeth . Seville, Córdoba, and Granada: A Cultural History . Oxford University Press . 2005 . 978-0-19-972537-3 . 214 . en.
  29. Web site: 2021-06-07 . Iglesia de San Nicolás ⋆ Agencia Albaicín . 2022-06-04 . Agencia Albaicín . es-ES.
  30. Web site: 2021-06-07 . Iglesia de San Miguel Bajo ⋆ Agencia Albaicín . 2022-06-04 . Agencia Albaicín . es-ES.
  31. Web site: 2021-06-06 . Aljibe de San Miguel Bajo ⋆ Agencia Albaicín . 2022-06-04 . Agencia Albaicín . es-ES.
  32. Web site: 2021-06-07 . Iglesia de San Cristóbal ⋆ Agencia Albaicín . 2022-06-04 . Agencia Albaicín . es-ES.
  33. Web site: 2021-06-07 . Iglesia de San Ildefonso ⋆ Agencia Albaicín . 2022-06-04 . Agencia Albaicín . es-ES.
  34. Web site: 2021-06-07 . Iglesia de San Luis ⋆ Agencia Albaicín . 2022-06-04 . Agencia Albaicín . es-ES.
  35. Web site: 2021-06-07 . Iglesia de San Pedro y San Pablo ⋆ Agencia Albaicín . 2022-06-04 . Agencia Albaicín . es-ES.
  36. Web site: 2021-06-07 . Ermita de San Miguel Alto ⋆ Agencia Albaicín . 2022-06-04 . Agencia Albaicín . es-ES.
  37. Web site: Palacio de Dar Al-Horra - Official Andalusia tourism website . 2022-06-04 . www.andalucia.org.
  38. Web site: Galán . Daniel . 2015-11-04 . La casa de Zafra: 6 razones para visitar este monumento del Albaicín . 2016-10-22 . EL VIAJE DEL MAPACHE.
  39. Web site: 2021-06-05 . Casa Nazarí de la calle del Cobertizo de Santa Inés nº 4 ⋆ Agencia Albaicín . 2022-06-05 . Agencia Albaicín . es-ES.
  40. Web site: Casa Horno de Oro . 2022-06-04 . Patronato de la Alhambra y Generalife . en-US.
  41. Web site: 2021-06-05 . Casa morisca Horno de Oro, 14 ⋆ Agencia Albaicín . 2022-06-05 . Agencia Albaicín . es-ES.
  42. Web site: 2021-06-05 . Casa del Chapiz ⋆ Agencia Albaicín . 2022-06-05 . Agencia Albaicín . es-ES.
  43. Web site: Monuments & Museums in Granada: Archaeological Museum . 2022-06-04 . granadainfo.com.
  44. Web site: 2021-06-05 . Casa Yanguas ⋆ Agencia Albaicín . 2022-06-05 . Agencia Albaicín . es-ES.
  45. Web site: 2021-06-05 . Casa del Almirante de Aragón ⋆ Agencia Albaicín . 2022-06-05 . Agencia Albaicín . es-ES.
  46. Web site: 2021-06-05 . Palacio de los Córdova ⋆ Agencia Albaicín . 2022-06-05 . Agencia Albaicín . es-ES.
  47. Web site: 2021-06-05 . Casa de Porras ⋆ Agencia Albaicín . 2022-06-05 . Agencia Albaicín . es-ES.
  48. Web site: 2021-06-05 . Casa de los Mascarones ⋆ Agencia Albaicín . 2022-06-05 . Agencia Albaicín . es-ES.
  49. Book: Ieva, Rėklaitytė . A Companion to Islamic Granada . Brill . 2021 . 978-90-04-42581-1 . Boloix-Gallardo . Bárbara . 443 . en . The Rumor of Water: A Key Element of Moorish Granada.
  50. Web site: Carmen Aljibe del Rey - Official Andalusia tourism website . 2022-06-04 . www.andalucia.org.
  51. Web site: Fundación Agua Granada . 2022-06-04 . www.fundacionaguagranada.es.
  52. Web site: Granada . por Rincones de . 2017-12-07 . ✅ ALJIBE DEL REY - GRANADA . 2022-06-04 . RINCONES DE GRANADA . es.
  53. Web site: 2021-06-07 . Aljibe del Rey, Grande de la Alcazaba o Viejo ⋆ Agencia Albaicín . 2022-06-04 . Agencia Albaicín . es-ES.
  54. Web site: 2021-06-06 . Aljibe de Trillo ⋆ Agencia Albaicín . 2022-06-04 . Agencia Albaicín . es-ES.
  55. Web site: 2016-02-07 . ✅ ALJIBE DE TRILLO - GRANADA . 2022-06-04 . RINCONES DE GRANADA . es.
  56. Web site: 2021-06-07 . Aljibe de San Cristóbal o de la Xarea ⋆ Agencia Albaicín . 2022-06-04 . Agencia Albaicín . es-ES.
  57. Web site: 2021-06-05 . Real Chancillería y Cárcel Baja ⋆ Agencia Albaicín . 2022-06-06 . Agencia Albaicín . es-ES.
  58. Book: Shannon, Jonathan Holt . Performing al-Andalus: Music and Nostalgia across the Mediterranean . Indiana University Press . 2015 . 978-0-253-01774-1 . 71 . en.