| Shortly after the conquest of Granada in 1492 by the Catholic kings, their Muslim subjects in Spain became known derogatorily as Moriscos (little Moors), Moros, Muhammadans, Hagarans (bastards or descendants of Hagar), and Saracens, despite the fact that they were forced to accept the sacrament of baptism. Such appellations remained in use throughout the sixteenth century, applied indiscriminately to all Moriscos regardless of the degree of their devotion to Christianity. The appellations differentiated between the new converts and the Old Christians, believed to be of pure Spanish stock and possessing purity of blood (limpieza de sangre). |
| Born and reared in the Iberian Peninsula of mixed ancestry (Spanish, Jewish, Berber, Arab, and other ethnic groups), the Moriscos were considered aliens in their own land, heretics who presented an imminent danger to both church and state. Edict after edict reinforced this attitude and relegated the Moriscos to the margin of Christian society. In turn, the Moriscos developed their own attitude, accompanied by passive resistance and sporadic revolt, and expressed in an extensive clandestine literaturesthe Aljamiado literaturewhich was written in Romance in Arabic script. Although they preserved a sentimental attachment to Arabic as their own language, the Moriscos were no longer able to use it, speaking native Romance dialects that were given the derogatory designation of "foreign" (Ar. 'Ajamihence, 'Aljamiyyah, Aljamia, or Aljamiado). This literature was for the most part inspired by Arabic models that not only expressed defiance toward the oppressor, but reiterated Islamic values. At the same time, the Moriscos could no longer write in Arabic or recite the Qur`an* in the Arabic original. A new perspective had developed, causing the Morisos to draw closer to their Christian neighbors despite disavowal and reservations on their part and despite Old Christians' rejection. |
| It is for these and other reasons that the Moriscos and their literature are |
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