Elsa Cardoso

This book focuses on the conceptualization of the court, palace and ruler of the Umayyad Caliphate of al-Andalus. Western terminology still plays a normative role in the representation of foreign courts, determining concepts that fit poorly into chronologies with their own dynamics and specificities, which is the case of Muslim courts. While Court Studies is a well-developed field for modern Western societies, Muslim medieval courts lack a consistent field of research. Sources elaborate a specific terminology for medieval Muslim court societies. In the specific case of the Umayyad Caliphate of al-Andalus, the court is usually articulated as Bāb Suddat al-Khalīfa ("The door of the Sudda of the caliph")-a reference to the symbology of the main city gate of Cordoba-or simply as Bāb. Bāb Suddat al-Khalīfa became the most emblematic concept to name the Umayyad palace and its society, which will be additionally interpreted in the framework of the performance of ceremonial. The strong conceptualization of the Umayyad court of Cordoba was highlighted through the articulation of ceremonial, as the mis-en-scène of the conceptualization, expressed by gestures, insignia and hierarchies. The preliminary comparative perspective with the Umayyad Caliphate of Damascus, the 'Abbasid and Fatimid Caliphates and the Byzantine Empire further discusses the Umayyad Andalusi model in relation to other dynasties. While this book focuses on the Umayyad conceptualization and articulation of ceremonial, this model will be discussed within the Mediterranean and Eastern framework of the 10th and 11th centuries, which broadens the interest of the book to other fields of research.

This special issue arose out of a conference hosted by the RomanIslam Center for Comparative Empire and Transcultural Studies (Universität Hamburg) in March 2021. The conference, entitled "The Umayyads from West to East: New Perspectives" focused on intra-Empire comparison between the Umayyads of the West and the East and on the relevance of various Roman and Late Antique contexts to the conceptualization of Umayyad rule. However, the lens through which most contributors chose to analyze this question, and a recurring topic in the subsequent discussions, was the relevance of transregional Umayyad memory, particularly from the perspective of the Islamic West. The entries in this volume are grouped around this focus, examining different ways in which transregional Umayyad memories influenced, and were influenced by, the culture of the Islamic West. Mnemohistory, or the study of the past as it was remembered, constructed, and recontextualized, has been a thriving area of inquiry in the humanities since the studies of Maurice Halbwachs (1939) on collective memory and those by Aleida and Jan Assmann (1992, 2012) on cultural memory more specifically.1 Its impact on the study of Islamic history has been significant and has led to important advances in the field. Particularly prominent studies include Antoine Borrut's analysis of Umayyad memories in Syria (2011),2 Sarah Savant's book on pre-Islamic memories in Iran (2013), Heather Keaney's work on the remembrance of the rebellion against ʿUthmān, and Tayeb El-Hibri's research on the memories of the Rāshidūn (2010) and the Umayyad rulers (2002). The instrumentalization of the past is also an important topic in the studies of early Islamic historiography by Boaz Shoshan (2016), Fred Donner (1998), and more recently, in Manan Ahmed Asif's study of the Chachnama and its creative context (2016). 1 For a survey of the field, see Erll and Nünning 2008. 2 See also the collected volume edited by Antoine Borrut and Paul Cobb (2010).

The concept and image of a court is strongly associated with its main character, the sovereign around whom court life revolves. How was the Umayyad caliph named and conceptualized in al-Andalus? Keeping this in mind, the purpose of this paper is the discussion of the Umayyad Andalusī caliphal titles. Sources repeatedly stress the Umayyad legitimacy to the caliphate as heirs of the Umayyads of Damascus. In a panegyric, even Syria rises to receive the Andalusī caliph. The contrast of these titles with those reserved for rebels will also be considered. While the caliph was seen as a sun, the darkness was associated with rebels. Official titles used for bureaucracy and metaphorical titles reproduced in official letters and panegyric poetry will be considered, which were preserved in Andalusī sources such as the Muqtabis of Ibn Ḥayyān (d. 1075) or the ʿIqd al-Farīd of Ibn ʿAbd Rabbih (d. 940). Ceremonial situations will also be considered as the figure of the caliph was central and praised in official letters and panegyric poetry.

This essay considers ceremonial features represented during Christian diplomatic receptions held at the court of Cordoba, under the rule of Caliphs ʿAbd al-Raḥmān III (912-961) and al-Ḥakam II (961-976), in a comparative perspective. The declaration of the Umayyad Caliphate of the West by ʿAbd al-Raḥmān III marked the institution-alization of a carefully elaborated court ceremonial, reaching its greatest development under the rule of al-Ḥakam II. Detailed official ambassadorial ceremonies will be addressed, such as receptions of ambassadors from Emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogennetos, and King Otto I, or the reception and submission of Ordoño IV, deposed king of Leon, accounted by both Muslim and Christian sources. Such ceremonies will be compared with ʿAbbasid and Byzantine similar receptions, analyzing furthermore the origin and symbology of those rituals within the framework of diplomatic and cultural exchanges and encounters.

This article discusses ceremonial features of the first Cordovan embassy sent to Constantinople by ‘Abd al-Raḥmān II, amīr of al-Andalus. It is the result of a mission sent by the Byzantine
Emperor Theophilos to Cordoba in 225 A.H. (ca. 839/840 A.D.). As al-Ghazāl’s mission to Constantinople does not have the intent of drawing a political alliance, it is usually dismissed by historians as only containing “anecdotic” accounts not worth to be commented. However, situations described reveal ceremonial significance. Poetry within the ritualized protocol, ceremonial gestures and events taking place at the Byzantine court of Theophilos will be discussed.

The  main  purpose  of  the  dissertation  is  the  conceptualization  of  the court,  palace and  ruler  of  the  Umayyad  Caliphate  of al-Andalus  (929-1031).  The  Western terminology  still  plays  a  normative  role  in  the  representation  of foreigncourts, determining concepts that fit poorly into chronologies and traditions with their own dynamics, hierarchies and specificities, which is the case of the Muslim courts. Far from being the paradigm of court society, the Western court model consists of a case amongst  many.  Not  complying  with  the  Western  model  and  terminology  does  not mean  we  are  not  before  a  real courtsociety,  as  in  fact  the  medieval  Muslim court model testifies. Such model is discussed in the light of a courtlycommon language to the Mediterranean and Eastern societies of the tenth and eleventh centuries. The  strong  conceptualization  of  the  Umayyad courtof  Cordoba  was  further highlighted through the articulation of the ceremonial, as the mise-en-scèneof such conceptualization  and  legitimacy,  expressed  by  gestures,  caliphal  insignia  and hierarchies, which was understood by the Mediterranean and Eastern paradigm of courtand ceremonial.  Thus, both the conceptualization and the articulation of the ceremonial of Cordoba are discussed, through the comprehensive survey of primary Andalusisources.  The  dissertation  further  considers  a  preliminary  comparative approach, developed on examples contained in selected primary sources, but mainly through the resort to secondary literature on the Umayyad Caliphate of Damascus, the ‘Abbasid and Fatimid Caliphates, and the Byzantine Empire. Sources  elaborate  a  specific  terminology  for  the  medieval  Muslim courtsocieties and, in the specific case of the Umayyad Caliphate of al-Andalus, the research carried out  for  the  dissertation  established  that  thecourtis  usually  enunciated  as Bāb Suddat  al-Khalīfa(“The door of the Suddaof the caliph”) –a  reference  to  the symbology  associated  to  the  main  city  gate  of  Cordoba –or  simply  as Bāb. Bāb Suddat al-Khalīfaappears to be the most emblematic concept to name the Umayyad palace,  its  society,  the  access  and  submission  towards  the  caliph,  which  is additionally  interpreted  in  the  thesis  in  the  framework  of  the  performance  of ceremonial,  the  language  and  terminology  used  in  such  ceremonies,  as  well  as within the Byzantine and Persian traditions, that overrun the concepts idealized for Western court societies.

No ano de 839/840 (225 da Hégira), sob o reinado do emir ‘Abd ar-Rahman II, chega à capital do al-
Andalus, Córdova, a primeira embaixada bizantina, que transportava uma missiva do imperador Teófilo.
O envio desta embaixada insere-se claramente no processo de orientalização do al-Andalus e também
nas alterações das dominâncias sofridas no Mediterrâneo da época.
Tomando os excertos correspondentes à notícia desta embaixada nas fontes al-Muqtabis II-1 de Ibn
Hayyan e Nafh at-tib min ghosn al-Andalus ar-ratib wa Tarikh Lisan Addin bin Al-Khatib de al-Makkari,
questionaremos por isso quais os objectivos da mesma e o porquê do seu envio exactamente em
839/840, tomando em atenção o quadro histórico-político mediterrânico.
Este artigo deve ser entendido como um ensaio onde se exploram hipóteses de interpretação do
significado desta embaixada, inserindo-se dentro do projecto de tese de mestrado da autora.
Palavras-chave: al-Andalus, Bizâncio, Orientalização, Mediterrâneo.

In the year of 839/840 (225 of the Hijrah) the first Byzantine embassy carrying a letter from Emperor
Teophilus arrives at the capital of al-Andalus, Cordoba, under the rule of Emir ‘Abd ar-Rahman II.
The dispatch of this embassy clearly falls within the process of the oriental influence of al-Andalus as well
as within the undergoing shift of supremacy in the Mediterranean of that time.
Through the historical accounts in the sources al-Muqtabis II-1 by Ibn Hayyan and Nafh at-tib min ghosn
al-Andalus ar-ratib wa Tarikh Lisan Addin bin Al-Khatib by al-Makkari, I shall discuss the aims of the
embassy and the motivation of its dispatch in 839/840 in the framework of the historical and political
circumstances of the Mediterranean.
This article must be read as an essay which attempts to appreciate the meaning of this embassy, as it is
part of the undergoing research thesis project of its author.
Keywords: al-Andalus, Byzantium, Oriental influence, Mediterranean.

Aunque la orientalización de la Península Ibérica ya estuviese en marcha, es bajo el signo del emir ‘Abd ar-Rahman II que ésta se hace constante, estableciéndose en su más alto exponente cultural.
Contrata para su corte letrados, poetas, filósofos, astrónomos y cantantes, inscribiéndose en este punto Ziryab, protagonista de la orientalización que se manifiesta en la época.
A través del análisis del capítulo del Muqtabis II de Ibn Hayyan sobre Ziryab, éste ensayo intentará demostrar que se introducen en al-Andalus novedades que llegan desde la corte abasida y que fascinan Córdoba e impulsan su orientalización.
Si fue o no Ziryab un personaje importante en la introducción de reformas administrativas, eso es algo que no podrá ser comprobado a través de la lectura del Muqtabis. Todavía encontramos indicios que nos hacen creer que el cantante iraquí ha sido tan influente en la corte cuánto otros que sí tenían importancia para la decisión política.

The History of al-Andalus within Medieval Iberian History: Concepts, Considerations and Perspectives

Resumo

Este artigo pretende reflectir sobre a evolução e integração dos estudos árabes e islâmicos, na sua vertente da história do al-Andalus, enquanto disciplina histórica, numa perspectiva comparada entre Portugal e Espanha. Não é objectivo deste ensaio traçar o estado da arte do desenvolvimento historiográfico relativo ao al-Andalus, mas antes considerar conceitos e perspectivas usados neste filão de investigação. Assim, abordar-se-á o conceito de orientalização do al-Andalus, considerando discussões historiográficas que oscilam entre visões de "continuidade" e "ruptura", referentes a construções sociais anteriores ao domínio islâmico peninsular. Articular-se-ão ainda estes debates com discursos historiográficos orientalistas muito próprios de uma formulação que se queria baseada numa especificidade "hispânica." Palavras-chave: História do al-Andalus; História Medieval; orientalização.

O artigo aborda a transição do mundo visigodo da Península Ibérica – representado pelo Reino de
Toledo – para o mundo muçulmano, após a conquista de 711. Tomando como exemplo o emirado
omíada independente do al-Andalus, pretende-se um estudo comparativo, ainda que preliminar,
entre os costumes da corte emiral omíada de Córdova e aqueles em uso na corte visigoda do Reino
de Toledo. Para tal, recorre-se à Isidori Historiae de Isidoro de Sevilha, ao Chronicon de João de
Biclaro e à Crónica Moçárabe de 754, para o período visigodo, e, para o período muçulmano, ao al-
Muqtabis fi Tarikh al-Andalus de Ibn Hayyan e aos Akhbar Majmua’ e Nafhu at-Tib min Ghosni
al-Andalusi ar-Ratib wa Tarikh Lisan ad-Din Ibn al-Khatib de al-Makkari. Assim, o artigo
concentra-se na comparação dos modelos de realeza presentes nos dois poderes ibéricos e,
principalmente, no que respeita às instituições administrativas e ao cerimonial de corte – facto pelo
qual se utilizará, no que diz respeito ao período muçulmano, o emirado de Córdova, já que o período
dos governadores não constitui um modelo de realeza.

Abstract
The article “The Visigoth royal model and the Umayyad Amirate model: continuity and disruption”
discusses the transition from the Visigoth world of the Iberian Peninsula - represented by the
Kingdom of Toledo - to the Muslim world after the conquest of 711. Taking as example the
independent Umayyad Amirate of Al-Andalus, it is intended a comparative study, although
preliminary, between the traditions of the court of the Umayyads, and those customary for the
Visigoth court of the Kingdom of Toledo. For this purpose the following sources will be referred to:
the Isidori Historiae by Isidore of Seville, the Chronicon by John of Biclaro and the Mozarabic
Chronicle of 754, for the Visigoth Kingdom, and for the Muslim rule, al-Muqtabis fi Tarikh al-
Andalus by Ibn Hayyan, the Akhbar Majmua’ and Nafhu at-Tib min Ghosni al-Andalusi ar-Ratib
wa Tarikh Lisan ad-Din Ibn al-Khatib by al-Makkari. Therefore, the article focuses on the
comparison of royalty models prevailing in both Iberian powers, especially in regards to the
administrative institutions and the court ceremonial – thus taking the model, for the Muslim rule,
the Umayyad Amirate given that the years under the Arab governors cannot be regarded as a royalty
model.

Este artículo se centra en los «incidentes diplomáticos», consenso y contestación de distintas percepciones de diplomacia en la corte omeya de Córdoba (ss. IX-X). En primer lugar, trataré los conceptos de diplomacia utilizados por los omeyas de Córdoba, que se relacionan con la terminología de envío, enviado, mensajero, carta, mensaje, así como de una posible y aproximada percepción de «inmunidad» en torno a estas embajadas y especialmente a los enviados. De este modo, el artículo girará en torno a tres temas principales: 1) la existencia de una jerarquía diplomática de poderes; 2) una aproximación conceptual a la diplomacia omeya; 3) misivas e «incidentes diplomáticos». Para ello, centraré el artículo principalmente en tres estudios de caso donde asistimos a «incidentes diplomáticos», que desarrollaré con más detalle en la segunda parte del estudio, aunque dando también ejemplos de otras embajadas y sus relatos: la embajada del poeta al-Gazāl a Constantinopla tras el envío de una embajada bizantina a Córdoba en 839/840 por el emperador Teófilo al emir ‘Abd al-Raḥmān II, en la que el poeta, proveniente de un poder donde todavía las características del ceremonial de corte podrían considerarse como en desarrollo, encuentra varias estrategias para no cumplir el estricto protocolo bizantino;  la embajada de Juan de Gorze a Córdoba entre los años 953-956, enviado de Otón I al primer califa de Córdoba ‘Abd al-Raḥmān III, constituyendo este el ejemplo más paradigmático de la intricada diplomacia y protocolo previo a la recepción;  y la embajada de la reina regente de León, Elvira, al segundo califa de Córdoba al-Ḥakam II en 974, que da lugar a un «incidente diplomático» que resulta en la expulsión de Córdoba de sus embajadores.  Al mismo tiempo, estos ejemplos se analizarán en el marco de un lenguaje ritual común en el Mediterráneo, como el caso del imperio bizantino.

A historiografia portuguesa, e mais particularmente aquela dedicada ao período medieval de Portugal, sempre teve uma relação difícil com o seu passado islâmico. Especialmente a partir dos anos ‘70, assistimos a uma reacção historiográfica contra uma retórica estado-novista muito marcada pela ideologia da “reconquista” cristã e da epopeia dos descobrimentos que desprezava, e inclusivamente negava, o passado islâmico. Se por um lado essa resposta à negação do passado islâmico reage não só à construção ideológica de uma identidade portuguesa exclusivista e nacional-católica, mas também à apropriação do passado islâmico peninsular como uma memória exclusivamente espanhola, por outro lado essa reacção também se investe de um marcado discurso nacionalista ao atribuir ao Gharb al-Andalus – o ocidente peninsular do al-Andalus – uma origem territorial e identitária quase proto-nacional portuguesa.
Este artigo tem como objectivo rever a definição ou indefinição do conceito de Gharb al-Andalus a partir de dois estudos de caso: a obra de António Borges Coelho (1928), Portugal na Espanha Árabe, da década de ‘70, e a obra de José Garcia Domingues (1910-1989), publicada a partir dos anos ‘40, anterior por isso à de Borges Coelho e que já demonstrava uma intenção de integrar a história do Gharb al-Andalus na narrativa histórica nacional.
Estes dois investigadores, com perspectivas ideológicas e percursos académicos distintos, revelam assim um objectivo historiográfico comum, o de colocar o conceito de Gharb al-Andalus em associação ao território português.

The purpose of this paper is to discuss which political motivations brought together the Umayyads of al-Andalus and Byzantium, considering the Mediterranean of the tenth century. As political motivations are not stated clearly in sources that account these exchanges, the main question of this essay is to understand mutual interests shared by both powers. Thus, which political circumstances would provide the motivation for such intense diplomatic exchanges and alliance between the Byzantine Empire and the peripheral westernmost power of the Mediterranean Sea?
Exchanges between Byzantium and the Umayyads of al-Andalus in the tenth century are not unprecedented. A first Byzantine mission sent to al-Andalus was received in Cordoba, around 840, by the ʼamīr  ‘Abd al-Raḥmān II (r. 822-852). However, the political situation of Byzantium and the Mediterranean in the tenth century was not the same as under the second Amorian emperor. Diplomatic contacts in the ninth century were an initiative of Theophilos, as described by Ibn Hayyān of Cordoba, an eleventh century historian who transmits the letter sent from the Byzantine capital and the description of the stay of al-Ghazāl at Constantinople.  Ibn Hayyān suggests that the purpose of the embassy was to establish an alliance with ‘Abd al-Raḥmān II against the ‘Abbasids, who harassed Byzantium, referring to the conquest of Amorium in 838 by the ‘Abbasid caliph, and to the loss of Crete, around 827, to Andalusi adventurers.  Crete was conquered circa 824-827 by a group of Andalusis, expelled from al-Andalus.  From Crete, it was possible to control the trade between the Mediterranean and the Aegean Seas, which allowed the Andalusis, at some point, to enter the Propontis Sea (nowadays Marmara Sea). 
Furthermore, Sicily was gradually being conquered, from 827 onwards, by the Aghlabid dynasty, tributary of the ‘Abbasid Caliphate, resulting in the subsequent loss of full control over the coastal regions of the Italian peninsula and beyond the western Mediterranean, as the strait between Ifrīqiyya (nowadays Tunisia) and Sicily fell in the hands of the Aghlabids. However, diplomatic exchanges between Cordoba and Byzantium in the ninth century did not continue, as ‘Abd al-Raḥmān II could not meet the emperor’s requests.  Furthermore, the ‘Abbasid Caliph al-Mu‘taṣim and Theophilos settled an alliance in 841. Thus, what political background could have allowed the renewal of an alliance between the Byzantines and the Umayyads of Cordoba in the tenth century? Especially, as both powers were established in opposite ends of the Mediterranean and had coexisted in such space more than a century without any known official political contacts.
Diplomatic exchanges with Byzantium were renewed under the rule of the first caliph of al-Andalus, ‘Abd al-Raḥmān III, and Constantine VII Porphyrogennetos, emperor of Byzantium. Both Byzantine and Arab sources account the exchange of several missions, which took place between 946 and 972. Political motivations offered the perfect excuse for the central role played by ceremonial. Although ceremonial and gift-exchange should not be neglected by historians who research on diplomacy, this article focus on the political dimension of these exchanges in a broader Mediterranean framework. 
De Ceremoniis, by Constantine VII, reports the arrival of a Cordovan mission to Constantinople between 946 and 949. These exchanges are also accounted by Arab sources, such as Ibn Ḥayyān, Ibn Khaldūn, Ibn ‘Idhārī and al-Maqqarī, who report with detail the arrival and reception of Byzantine ambassadors.
The political framework of the Iberian Peninsula in the tenth century contributed for the emergence of al-Andalus in both shores of the western Mediterranean. ‘Abd al-Raḥmān III succeeded his grandfather ‘Abd Allāh in 912. The Amirate of Cordoba was held by the Umayyad family since 756, when ‘Abd al-Raḥmān I, grandson of the Umayyad Caliph of Damascus, Hishām bin ‘Abd al-Malik, took refuge in the Iberia Peninsula, after another family, the ‘Abbasids, took the caliphal title in the East and massacred the masculine lineage of the Umayyads. ‘Abd al-Raḥmān III inherited a fragmented Amirate where several governors were powerful enough to declare their independence from Cordoba. Although governors recognized nominally the central power, when the new ʼamīr ascended to the throne, Cordoba and its surroundings were the only factual territory controlled by the Umayyads. The central power had to deal with governors who had associated their political administrative position with their own lineage. Thus, the administrative role of the wilaiya (governorate) of a specific province had been affiliated within a family lineage, inherited from father to son. The endemic fragmentation of power was the clear result of a frontier society, such as the Iberian Peninsula, where unstable loyalties prevailed.
One of the most threatening families were the Banū Hafsūn, a lineage which proclaimed their Iberian genealogy, who had resorted to Bobastro, a mountain region quite near the capital, to declare their independence. Amongst other accusations, this family had, at some point, presumably declared their allegiance towards the Shi’i Ismaili Fatimid Caliphate. After a successful military campaign, ‘Abd al-Raḥmān III was able to victoriously enter Bobastro, where he believed the Banū Hafsūn had converted to Christianity, and thus the family were charged with the religious crime of apostasy.
This success offered the ʼamīr the perfect moment for finally claiming the Umayyad Caliphate of al-Andalus. In 929 he despatched several letters to all the governors of al-Andalus, proclaiming his legitimacy to a title long overdue, taking as a laqab (honorific title, typically a caliphal privilege) al-Nāṣir li-din Allāh, “the champion in the faith of God”. The volatile situation experienced by the central power, previous to the “reunification” achieved by the first caliph of Cordoba, meant that no external policy was endured. Mediterranean diplomacy is not reported during such political fragmentation, most certainly because the ʼamīr was troubled in securing his feeble power. The recognition of the power of al-Andalus by a strong Mediterranean ally, such as the Byzantine Empire, was also part of the legitimacy and propaganda program of al-Nāṣir li-din Allāh.
Furthermore, proclaiming the Caliphate of al-Andalus was the logic consequence after the Fatimids rose to power and declared their own caliphate in 909. The Ismaili Fatimid Caliphate had first established in 909 in al-Maḥdiyya, then in al-Manṣūriyya and finally in Cairo when they conquered Egypt in 969. The Fatimids – a name that declared their genealogy through the Prophet Muḥammad’s daughter, Fatima al-Zahraʼ– were able to expand their territories into North Africa, defeating the Aghlabids. They inherited their power in Sicily, where Byzantium had lost its last stronghold of Taormina in 902. Their expansion was potentially dangerous both for the eastern and western parts of the Mediterranean. Both al-Andalus, which ruled several regions in the Maghreb al-Aqṣā, and Byzantium had to pay attention to this new emergent power.

The purpose of this dissertation is to study the conceptualization of the court, palace and ruler of the Umayyad Caliphate of al-Andalus. The Western terminology still plays a normative role in the representation of foreign courts, determining concepts that fit poorly into chronologies and traditions with their own dynamics, hierarchies and specificities, which is the case of the Muslim courts. Far from being the paradigm of court society, the Western court model consists of a case amongst many. Not complying with the Western model and terminology does not mean we are not before a real court society, as in fact the medieval Muslim court model testifies. Such model will be discussed in the light of a courtly common language to the Mediterranean and Eastern societies of the tenth and eleventh centuries.
The strong conceptualization of the Umayyad court of Cordoba was further highlighted through the articulation of the ceremonial, as the mis-en-scène of such conceptualization and legitimacy, expressed by gestures, caliphal insignia and hierarchies, which was understood by the Mediterranean and Eastern paradigm of court and ceremonial.  Thus, both the conceptualization and the articulation of the ceremonial of Cordoba will be discussed adopting a comparative perspective with the Umayyad Caliphate of Damascus, the ‘Abbasid and Fatimid Caliphates, and the Byzantine Empire.
Sources elaborate a specific terminology for the medieval Muslim court societies and, in the specific case of the Umayyad Caliphate of al-Andalus, the court is usually enunciated as Bāb Suddat al-Khalīfa (“The door of the Sudda of the caliph”) – a reference to the symbology associated to the main city gate of Cordoba – or simply as Bāb al-Khalīfa (“the door of the caliph”) and Bāb. Bāb Suddat al-Khalīfa is perhaps the most emblematic concept to name the Umayyad palace and its society, which will be additionally interpreted in the framework of the performance of ceremonial, the language and terminology used in such ceremonies, as well as within the Byzantine and Persian traditions, that overrun the concepts idealized for Western court societies.

This M.A. dissertation studies diplomatic relations that Cordoba, as the capital of al-Andalus, kept with the Byzantine, Christian Iberian and Western European courts from the beginning of amīr ‘Abd al-Raḥmān II’s reign (822) until the death of Caliph al-Ḥakam II (976).
Articulating the political intents of these diplomatic exchanges with its ceremonial features is one of its main goals. To achieve such purpose, a broader picture of the political situation within the Mediterranean in the 9th and 10th centuries is analysed, as seen by al-Andalus.
Furthermore, this study seeks to achieve an analysis of the oriental influence from Baghdad, which al-Andalus underwent at this time, by means of comparing the ceremonial prevailing in diplomatic receptions of both courts. Ceremonial protocol practiced in the court of Constantine VII Porphyrogennetos had also an impact in the court of al-Andalus and is addressed in the dissertation.
Ceremonial displayed during ambassadorial receptions was an outcome of the bureaucratization of the court of Cordoba. Moreover, it was the cause of the dynasty's increasing power, being the result of the Umayyad legitimacy and at the same time creating it. Indeed, the oriental influence was not only one of the main products of diplomacy but also one of its causes.

Around 839/840, under the rule of ‘Abd ar-Rahman II, emir of the Umayyad Amirate of al-Andalus, arrives the first Byzantine embassy at Córdoba, carrying a letter from Emperor Theophilus. ‘Abd ar-Rahman II was an emir whose territory and political interests were perfectly articulated within the whole Mediterranean. The arrival of this embassy is an evidence of this articulation, as it is the oriental influence either from Byzantium or the Abbasid court of Bagdad, which resulted in the adoption of new administrative, political and cultural prototypes.
In a time of political and military decay for the Byzantine Empire, strongly harassed either by its first rival, the Abbasid Caliphate, or by North African dynasties, such as the Aghlabids who conquered Sicily, as well as by Muslim pirates from al-Andalus who had recently seized Crete, Theophilus is described in Muslim sources as seeking, almost desperately, for political alliances. This allows Ibn Hayyan in his Muqtabis II-1 to refer to Theophilus as diminishing his own imperial persona by sending an embassy to ‘Abd ar-Rahman II, who feels incredibly flattered as this was enough proof that he was a strong player in the Mediterranean.
More or less a century later, around 946-949, new diplomatic exchanges are pursued between the recently declared Caliphate of Córdoba and Constantine VII Porphyrogennetos. The description in sources shows a great display of ceremonial and pomp. Although the situation of the Byzantine Empire was not the same as under Theophilus’ rule, Sicily was still under Muslim rule, the Fatimid Caliphate, and Crete was still an independent Amirate. At the same time ‘Abd ar-Rahman III, Caliph of al-Andalus, receives in his capital Amalfitan merchants, aiming to extend their Mediterranean trade routes.
This paper aims at discussing diplomatic exchanges that seem to have ceremonial display purposes as well as a political and mercantile background which can be perceived by manoeuvres in the Mediterranean Sea.

In 929 ‘Abd ar-Rahman III, after reassuring Umayyad power in al-Andalus, declares the caliphate, thus retaking a title held by his ancestors, the Umayyad caliphs of Damascus, until almost two centuries before. A carefully drawn plan of legitimacy, started even before the advent of ‘Abd ar-Rahman III, can be perceived through Muslim chronicles such as al-Muqtabis V of Ibn Hayyan, Nafh at-tib min ghosn al-Andalus of al-Maqqari and al-Bayyan al-Mughrib of Ibn Idhari.
The articulation of the legitimacy is not only intended for the population of al-Andalus as it is also projected as an assertion of power in the eyes of its Mediterranean neighbours. Ceremonies held during the reception of ambassadors in Cordoba illustrate magnificently the propaganda of the Umayyad state. One of the best examples is the reception of queen Toda of Navarre, whom ‘Abd ar-Rahman III recognized as the real holder of the throne of Pamplona instead of its nominal ruler, her son García Sánchez. The relationship between the caliph and Toda reveals as well the policy of intermarriage, since the queen was the maternal aunt of Abd ar-Rahman III.

O artigo aborda a transição do mundo visigodo da Península Ibérica – representado pelo Reino de Toledo – para o mundo muçulmano após a conquista de 711. Tomando como exemplo o emirado omíada independente do al-Andalus, pretende-se um estudo comparativo, ainda que preliminar, entre os costumes da corte emiral omíada de Córdova e aqueles em uso na corte visigoda do Reino de Toledo. Para tal, recorre-se à Isidori Historiae de Isidoro de Sevilha, ao Chronicon de João de Biclaro e à Crónica Moçárabe de 754, para o período visigodo, e para o período muçulmano, ao al-Muqtabis fi Tarikh al-Andalus de Ibn Hayyan, aos Akhbar Majmua’ e Nafhu at-Tib min Ghosni al-Andalusi ar-Ratib wa Tarikh Lisan ad-Din Ibn al-Khatib de al-Makkari. Assim, o artigo concentra-se na comparação dos modelos de realeza presentes nos dois poderes ibéricos e, principalmente, no que respeita as instituições administrativas e o cerimonial de corte – facto pelo qual se utilizará, no que diz respeito ao período muçulmano, o emirado de Córdova, já que o período dos governadores não constitui um modelo de realeza.

The paper “The Visigoth royal model and the Umayyad Amirate model: continuity and disruption” discusses the transition from the Visigoth world of the Iberian Peninsula - represented by the Kingdom of Toledo - to the Muslim world after the conquest of 711. Taking as example the independent Umayyad Amirate of Al-Andalus, it is intended a comparative study, although preliminary, between the traditions of the court of the Umayyads, and those customary for the Visigoth court of the Kingdom of Toledo. For this purpose the following sources will be referred to: the Isidori Historiae by Isidore of Seville, the Chronicon by John of Biclaro and the Mozarabic Chronicle of 754, for the Visigoth Kingdom, and for the Muslim rule, al-Muqtabis fi Tarikh al-Andalus by Ibn Hayyan, the Akhbar Majmua’ and Nafhu at-Tib min Ghosni al-Andalusi ar-Ratib wa Tarikh Lisan ad-Din Ibn al-Khatib by al-Makkari. Therefore the article focuses on the comparison of royalty models prevailing in both Iberian powers, especially in regards to the administrative institutions and the court ceremonial – thus taking the model, for the Muslim rule, the Umayyad Amirate given that the years under the Arab governors cannot be regarded as a royalty model.

Apresentação do projecto de tese/ Presentation of M.A. project (PT/ENG ABSTRACT)

O projecto tem como objectivo o estudo das relações que Córdova, como capital do al-Andalus, mantinha com o exterior, a partir de 822, com o início do emirado de Abd ar-Rahman II, até ao ano de 976, com a morte do califa al-Hakam II.
Tal como indica o título, pretendo questionar qual o nível de orientalização do al-Andalus. Testarei, em primeiro lugar, o nível de relações e trocas culturais com o Oriente abássida, cujo cerimonial contamina a corte omíada de Córdoba, determinado qual o nível da sua orientalização. Pelo facto dos abássidas serem os inimigos por excelência dos omíadas, já que os tinham destronado e substituído no Oriente islâmico, é evidente que não existem relações (pelo menos formais) com este califado. Por isso, para testar o nível de orientalização confrontarei o cerimonial de Córdova com o da corte abássida. 
Em segundo lugar testará as relações diplomáticas, estas sim atestadas, entre a corte de Córdova e a de Constantinopla, bem como a influência e fascínio que esta exerce sobre os omíadas, também ao nível do seu cerimonial e pompa. Em terceiro lugar analisará as relações existentes e, também atestadas, com os reinos do norte cristão, através da troca de missivas e embaixadas, questionando por exemplo qual o intuito destas, pois as fontes árabes oficiais dizem-nos apenas, na maioria das vezes, que estas buscam somente a prestação de homenagem ao emir ou califa.

The project aims to study the diplomatic relations that Córdoba, as the capital of al-Andalus, kept with foreign courts from the beginning of amir ‘Abd ar-Rahman II’s reign (822) until the death of Caliph al-Hakam II (976).
As the title suggests, I intend to question the level of oriental influence of al-Andalus. For this purpose I will test the level of relations and cultural exchanges with the Eastern ‘Abbasid Caliphate, which ceremonial influenced the Umayyad court of Córdoba. Evidently, no official or formal relations are known between both powers, as the ‘Abbasids represented the enemy par excellence of the Umayyads, dynasty they overthrown in the East. Therefore, for testing the oriental influence in Córdoba, I will compare the ceremonial prevailing in receptions in both courts.
The thesis intends also to analyse the accounted diplomatic relations exchanged between Córdoba and Constantinople, as well as the influence and fascination that the Byzantine ceremonial had on the court of al-Andalus.
For completing the diplomatic relations framework of Córdoba, this work aims moreover to report the accounts concerning exchanges between al-Andalus and Western Europe, questioning their intended goals, as Muslim sources only report their intentions of pay tribute to the Cordovan sovereign.

Los estudios sobre la memoria son un campo de investigación emergente para la historia islámica premoderna. En este sentido, la memoria omeya es un tema prometedor que se ha estudiado en el contexto de la historia de la Gran Siria, centrándose en cómo el pasado califal omeya ha configurado su autopercepción y su identidad local.  El número especial de la revista Der Islam (6/2023), que se publicará en breve, titulado The Umayyads from West to East: New Perspectives (ed. Albarrán, Bosanquet, Cardoso y Toral) amplía la memoria omeya para incluir la perspectiva omeya occidental, que ha recibido menos atención. El volumen fue el resultado de la conferencia con el mismo nombre, organizada en el Centro RomanIslam (Universidad de Hamburgo, 3/2021), que se centró en cómo se construyeron y utilizaron en el occidente islámico las ideas de una continuidad omeya transregional y de una memoria histórica compartida sobre el pasado omeya. El resultado fue un volumen que abre nuevas perspectivas sobre la memoria omeya a través de contribuciones centradas en la construcción de rasgos de legitimidad de Occidente a Oriente. ¿Qué papel desempeñaron estas memorias en la escritura de la historia, la auto representación y la legitimación? ¿Cómo se percibía el Oriente omeya en Occidente? ¿Cómo imaginaron a los omeyas las generaciones posteriores de ambos bandos y concibieron la idea de una continuidad omeya transregional?

Desde las batallas emblemáticas omeyas, los alqāb (títulos honoríficos), los títulos califales y las metáforas u objetos que viajaban como espolios entre Oriente y Occidente hasta la reproducción de las prácticas funerarias dinásticas de los omeyas orientales, o la reformulación de los relatos históricos sobre los antepasados omeyas en Occidente, se produjo una continua recreación del pasado, lograda a través de la construcción de una narrativa translatio Imperii como herramienta de legitimación de la dinastía en al-Andalus, especialmente en época califal. La importancia de la memoria omeya como icono y referencia se sostiene además en la (doble) creación de narrativas polémicas a favor y en contra de los omeyas: mientras que las fuentes elaboran la construcción de narrativas que subrayan una responsabilidad omeya por los fracasos, como por ejemplo por las pérdidas militares en el norte de África en la década de 740, otras proyectan y construyen a los califas omeyas como modelos y prototipos de gobernantes ideales.

El objetivo de este workshop es debatir estas nuevas vías en los estudios omeyas dentro de los estudios sobre la memoria/mnemohistoria, partiendo de las aportaciones del volumen.