The Story of Andalusis: Al-Andalus and the reorientation of Europe's Muslim heritage

In our current times, Muslims in Europe face unceasing vitriol and animosity.

As such, Islam's rich, volatile, and indelible legacy in European history regrettably remains obscured. However, in The Story of Andalusis, Issa Meyer sets out to reclaim the European Muslim heritage.

Published by Ribat Publishers, it is the first text in an upcoming series of Muslims in Europe.

This record is a salient historical epic that affirms Islam has always been enmeshed in our collective past, present, and future. It endeavours to create a portrait of the circumstances, individuals, and choices that enabled the creation of modern Europe.

"[Issam] implores the reader to contemplate Andalusia's pioneering spirit and transcend their understanding beyond the anachronistic thinking of merely integrating Islam into the modern world"

Drawing from traditional Islamic sources, modern works of contemporaries, and recognised specialists in the history of Al-Andalus, Issa reshapes the Western narrative of Muslim leadership in Europe.

Issa Meyer covers 900 years of history in Al-Andalus, Spain, from conception to its demise. He pens in his foreword that as a Muslim author, he does not claim total objectivity for the story of Andalusia evokes a passionate yearning in Muslims.

Yet, his retelling of centuries worth of golden ages, conquests, heroes, villains, downfalls, and achievements is reported with brilliant acuity and analysis.

As a historian, Meyer has a clear objective to dispel the various myths that obfuscate the picture of this remarkable historical epic. He contests the notion of the Reconquista, referring to it as simply a conquista- the Christian conquest of Al-Andalus. He notes that the term Reconquista is used to legitimize the colonisation of Muslim lands under the pretext of recovering lost territories.

Supported by other historians, it is clear that they never had control of those regions. Cities such as Granada, Almeria, Badajoz, Murica, and even Madrid were established by Muslims. The Romans and Visigoths who claimed these lands had not reigned longer than the Muslims they delineated as interlopers.

Thus, the Reconquista has been deemed a long-term project of expansionism riddled with territorial erosion, plunder, military and political harassment, and unjust expulsions. 

Beyond this, the erroneous connection between Islam and barbarism is debunked. Western Islamophobes continue to reiterate that allegedly the so-called Muslim colonisation of Spain harboured a dark age in Europe when, in fact, Muslim rule fostered coexistence, erudition, and artistic effervescence.

While the Andalusian nation was profoundly rooted in Arabness, its cultural identity was a harmonious amalgamation of races, tribes, and ethnic groups.

Meyer has exhaustively chronicled nine centuries of Andalusian history in twelve sections.

The reader is introduced to Tariq ibn Ziyad, the Muslim governor of Tangier. As an ally to the Count of Sebta, Tariq and his men arrived at the Strait of Gibraltar on April 711 AD. This would mark the onset of Muslim presence in Europe.

Tariq's army ravaged the Spanish military with a force of 7,000 men as opposed to the 100,000 men of King Rodric of Spain. Upon hearing this decisive victory, Commander Musa bin Nusair surged to Spain with an additional impetus of 18,000 men.

Tariq’s expedition in Spain would ignite over 750 years of Muslim control over the Iberian Peninsula. Curiously, the armies of Islam were welcomed as liberators, for the conditions under Visogthic rule were inequitable and despotic.

"With expert clarity, Issam reminds us that the society of Andulsia was inundated with creativity, state builders, and emancipation. It was a time when dynamism, justice, innovation, and community served as the hallmarks of civilization"

Jews were victims of persecution, and Christian serfs were exploited. Notably, the conquest was fulfilled without the desecration of places of worship, massacres, or rape. There was no pillaging or enslavement, and while the jizya or tax was implemented, different communities could keep their possessions, churches, laws, and courts.

Tariq and his army continued through 2,500 miles of cities building a Muslim and Arab Andalus in place of Gothic Hispania. There was now a vacuum where all state structures had disappeared, and the Muslims populated a fractured society. But with the laudable tolerance of the Sharia, a cultural, political, and scholastic ebullience was underway.

Meyer documents the innumerable Caliphs and dynasties that ruled this region, from The Umayyad Emirate of Córdoba, the Umayyad Caliphate, the Berber dynasties of The Almoravids and Almohads, the Abbasaids, to the Nasrids of Granada.

During the course of these multitudinous empires, an impressive and dynamic lineup of Caliphs has taken the throne. While Meyer candidly laid no assertion to detachment and reveres the triumphs of this bygone era, he discusses at length the periods in which Muslim rulers have engaged in debauchery, avarice, and substantial blunders.

Nine hundred years of Islamic rule will indubitably produce fallible leaders that contributed to strife, discontent, and its eventual fall. Tariq ibn Ziyad, Abd ar-Rahman ibn Mu’awiya, Hisham I, al-Hakam II, Abd ar-Rahman II, and so on are just a few of the extraordinary men Meyer documents. With impassioned prose, he expounds on the Andalusi dedication to edification, art, technological and agricultural advancements, and political acuteness.

Rulers such as Al-Hakam championed scholarship and solidified the education of all citizens. In contrast to the Christian kingdoms of Europe, Meyer writes, “Only the Catholic clergy was able to read and write, and even the nobles were often unable to decipher a simple text or sign their name; it was difficult to find an illiterate person in an Andalusi city.”

Meyer also discusses the shortcomings that led to Al-Andalus’ final ruin. But his comprehensive account is inextricable with the heartrending sentiment of nostalgia and hope.

He implores the reader to contemplate Andalusia's pioneering spirit and transcend their understanding beyond the anachronistic thinking of merely integrating Islam into the modern world.

With expert clarity, Issam reminds us that the society of Andulsia was inundated with creativity, state builders, and emancipation. It was a time when dynamism, justice, innovation, and community served as the hallmarks of civilization.

Their confrontations with the threats of the Vikings, Franks, and the Consquista and internal rebellions provide us with enduring and tragic lessons.

Meyer does not attempt to rewrite history; instead, he remedies the deceitfulness that conspires to debase Islam while remaining true to Al-Andalus’ deficiencies and virtues. This work is an ode to the lambent phantom of Andalusia and its faithful warriors and poets who held on to their faith, morals, and devotion to humanity.

Noshin Bokth has over six years of experience as a freelance writer. She has covered a wide range of topics and issues including covering the implications of the Trump administration on Muslims, the Black Lives Matters Movement, travel reviews, book reviews, and op-eds. She is the former Editor in Chief of Ramadan Legacy and the former North American Regional Editor of the Muslim Vibe.

Follow her on Twitter: @BokthNoshin