Spain-Al-Andalus: Image of a Jewish cantor reading the Passover story in al-Andalus, from a 14th century Spanish Haggadah

Al-Andalus (Arabic: ________, trans. al-_Andalus, Spanish: Al-çndalus, Portuguese: Al-Andalus) was the Arabic name given to a nation and territorial region also commonly referred to as Moorish Iberia. The name describes parts of the Iberian Peninsula and Septimania governed by Muslims (often given the generic name of Moors), at various times in the period between 711 and 1492, although the territorial boundaries underwent constant changes due to wars with the Christian Kingdoms. Following the Muslim conquest of Hispania, Al-Andalus was divided into five administrative areas roughly corresponding to Andalusia, Galicia and Portugal, Castile and Le-n, Aragon and Catalonia, and Septimania. As a political domain or domains, it successively constituted a province of the Umayyad Caliphate, initiated by the Caliph Al-Walid I (711Ð750); the Emirate of C-rdoba (c. 750Ð929); the Caliphate of C-rdoba (929Ð1031); and the Caliphate of C-rdoba's taifa (successor) kingdoms. Rule under these kingdoms saw the rise in cultural exchange and cooperation between Christians, Muslims, and Jews. Under the Caliphate of C-rdoba, al-Andalus was a beacon of learning, and the city of C-rdoba became one of the leading cultural and economic centres in both the Mediterranean Basin and the Islamic world. (Photo by: Pictures From History/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)