← Al-Andalus: eight centuries from Cordoba to Granada ·
Al-Andalus: eight centuries from Cordoba to Granada
Grade 11 · World History to the End of the Fifteenth Century, Grade 11, University/College Preparation (CHW3M) · Strand C · C3, E1 · 75 min
Mapped by the museum, not endorsed by the Ministry.
A CHW3M pathway on al-Andalus: Umayyad Cordoba, its mosque and library, Ziryab and Ibn Rushd, the coexistence and tension of three faiths, then Granada, the Alhambra and the end of the emirate in 1492.
Lesson goal
Students assess the contribution of individuals and groups to the identity and culture of a flourishing Andalusi society, and analyse its cultural and political legacy in Europe and the Muslim world.
What the lesson does, in the museum's words
The lesson presents al-Andalus as a flourishing civilisation of a European region and a period from 711 to 1492, focusing on the contribution of individuals (Ziryab, Ibn Rushd) and groups (Muslims, Christians and Jews) to its identity and culture, then on its legacy in architecture, philosophy and science. Tensions between the groups are shown as the sources relate them, without a verdict.
The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 11 and 12: Canadian and World Studies, 2015
Seventy-five minutes. The question of 'coexistence' is discussed from the museum's sources in the form 'what do the sources say', not 'who was right'; the museum gives no verdict and students learn to do the same.
Lesson steps
- What is al-Andalus? — The name of the land Muslims ruled in the Iberian peninsula from 711 to 1492. · al-Andalus
- Umayyad Cordoba — A prince fleeing Damascus builds a state, and a caliphate is proclaimed in 929. · Cordoba · Caliphate of Córdoba
- The Great Mosque of Cordoba — A building enlarged in stages over two centuries: architecture as politics. · Great Mosque of Córdoba
- The palace library — Al-Hakam's library: what the sources say about its size, and what did not survive. · Library of the Córdoba Palace
- Ziryab — A musician from Baghdad changes Andalusi taste: music, food and dress. · زرياب
- Ibn Rushd — A judge and philosopher whose commentaries on Aristotle Latin Europe read. · ابن رشد الحفيد
- Granada — The last Muslim emirate in al-Andalus as the land shrank. · Granada · Emirate of Granada
- The Alhambra — Palace, fortress and city: ornament, water and calligraphy. · The Alhambra
Worksheet
Answer in your own words after each step; every question points back to a museum page.
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Draw a timeline from 711 to 1492 and place Umayyad Cordoba, the proclamation of the caliphate and the fall of Granada on it.
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Why was the Great Mosque of Cordoba enlarged again and again? What does that say about the ruler?
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What did Ziryab bring from Baghdad to Cordoba? Name three things.
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How did Ibn Rushd's thought reach the universities of Latin Europe?
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Choose one element of the Alhambra and show what it says about the culture of Granada.
Answer key
Each worksheet question is answered by one step; the number points to the step.
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Draw a timeline from 711 to 1492 and place Umayyad Cordoba, the proclamation of the caliphate and the fall of Granada on it.
2 Umayyad Cordoba — A prince fleeing Damascus builds a state, and a caliphate is proclaimed in 929. · Cordoba · Caliphate of Córdoba
7 Granada — The last Muslim emirate in al-Andalus as the land shrank. · Granada · Emirate of Granada
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Why was the Great Mosque of Cordoba enlarged again and again? What does that say about the ruler?
3 The Great Mosque of Cordoba — A building enlarged in stages over two centuries: architecture as politics. · Great Mosque of Córdoba
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What did Ziryab bring from Baghdad to Cordoba? Name three things.
5 Ziryab — A musician from Baghdad changes Andalusi taste: music, food and dress. · زرياب
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How did Ibn Rushd's thought reach the universities of Latin Europe?
6 Ibn Rushd — A judge and philosopher whose commentaries on Aristotle Latin Europe read. · ابن رشد الحفيد
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Choose one element of the Alhambra and show what it says about the culture of Granada.
8 The Alhambra — Palace, fortress and city: ornament, water and calligraphy. · The Alhambra
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