The Islam of “Our” Ancestors:

مرکز و کتابخانه مطالعات اسلامی به زبان های اروپایی

منو

" The Islam of “Our” Ancestors: "
Marta Dominguez Diaz

Document Type	:	AL
Record Number	:	1072559
Doc. No	:	LA116188
Call No	:	‭10.1163/22117954-12341261‬
Language of Document	:	English
Main Entry	:	Marta Dominguez Diaz
Title & Author	:	The Islam of “Our” Ancestors: [Article] : An “Imagined” Morisco Past Evoked in Today’s Andalusian Conversion Narratives\ Marta Dominguez Diaz
Publication Statement	:	Leiden: Brill
Title of Periodical	:	Journal of Muslims in Europe
Date	:	2013
Volume/ Issue Number	:	2/2
Page No	:	137–164
Abstract	:	Spain has the highest rates of conversion to Islam in the European Union. A significant proportion of converts live in Andalusia, which was once part of medieval Muslim Spain (al-Andalus). The “Muslim past” is looked to with a burgeoning sense of nostalgia, yet little is known about this romantic longing. Some converts perceive al-Andalus as a glorious epoch marked by religious co-existence (convivencia) and the flowering of Arabic culture, remembering those medieval Muslims who were exiled from Spain or who stayed and practised Islam secretly, and viewing themselves as heirs of these medieval Muslims. Conversion for them is not conversion but a rediscovery of the “truly Muslim nature” of Andalusia. Fundamental to this Andalusian convert discourse is the claim that Islam is not an “imported” religion but a local, indigenous one. An analysis of these Andalusian converts’ narratives will contribute to a more nuanced understanding of the current ideological battles over national and religious identity. Spain has the highest rates of conversion to Islam in the European Union. A significant proportion of converts live in Andalusia, which was once part of medieval Muslim Spain (al-Andalus). The “Muslim past” is looked to with a burgeoning sense of nostalgia, yet little is known about this romantic longing. Some converts perceive al-Andalus as a glorious epoch marked by religious co-existence (convivencia) and the flowering of Arabic culture, remembering those medieval Muslims who were exiled from Spain or who stayed and practised Islam secretly, and viewing themselves as heirs of these medieval Muslims. Conversion for them is not conversion but a rediscovery of the “truly Muslim nature” of Andalusia. Fundamental to this Andalusian convert discourse is the claim that Islam is not an “imported” religion but a local, indigenous one. An analysis of these Andalusian converts’ narratives will contribute to a more nuanced understanding of the current ideological battles over national and religious identity.
Descriptor	:	al-Andalus
Descriptor	:	conversion to Islam
Descriptor	:	Islam in Spain
Descriptor	:	Moriscos
Location & Call number	:	‭10.1163/22117954-12341261‬