Feature: Who Were the Moors? [Community Presentation]
PRESENTER
Mahdi Blaine
ORIGINAL CITY
DC
Original Date
September 17, 2017
Description
When people imagine Al-Andalus, Muslim Spain, they immediately think of a Golden Age of art and thought ushered in by the Moors. The problem is that the term Moor can refer to several groups of people. This afikra feature examines the origins of the term along with developing a narrative for its usage in Europe throughout history. The feature explores notions of race and ethnicity in Medieval Spain and more broadly Europe. It also considers the representation of Arabs/Muslims throughout history and how this discourse of representation has affected modern Arab/Muslim identity in the West.
ABOUT THE AFIKRA COMMUNITY PRESENTATIONS
Delivered and prepared by afikra Community members, the presentation’s goal is to showcase the presenter’s curiosity and research, and share some knowledge on a topic related to the Arab world’s histories and cultures. The presentation is the culmination of the afikra coaching process to help identify a topic, find research, and develop the presentation. afikra presentations come in two forms, a long question-driven afikra Feature, and a short afikra FWD with the purpose of sharing something interesting.
Sources & Future References
Note: All community presentations are prepared & presented by non-experts on the subject. They are sharing information in the hopes of spurring interest in that subject.
