Golden age of Jewish culture in Spain: Encyclopedia II - Golden age of Jewish culture in Spain - Birth of the Golden Age

Golden age of Jewish culture in Spain - Birth of the Golden Age

The Christian Visigoths of Spain persecuted the Jews severely, so naturally the Jews welcomed the Muslim conquerors in the 8th century. The conquered cities of Córdoba, Málaga, Granada, Seville, and Toledo were briefly placed in charge of the Jewish inhabitants, who had been armed by the Arab invaders. The victors removed the restrictions which had oppressed the Jews so heavily, and granted them full religious liberty, requiring them only to pay the tribute of one golden dinar per capita.

A period of tolerance dawned for the Jews of the Iberian Peninsula, whose number had been considerably augmented by those who had followed the Arab and Berber conquerors, as well as by later immigrants from Africa. Starting especially after 912, with the reign of Abd-ar-Rahman III and his son, Al-Hakam II the Jews prospered, devoting themselves to the service of the Caliphate of Cordoba, to the study of the sciences, and to commerce and industry, especially to trading in silk and slaves, in this way promoting the prosperity of the country. Southern Spain became an asylum for the oppressed Jews of other parts. 'Abd al-Raḥman's court physician and minister was Ḥasdai ben Isaac ibn Shaprut, the patron of Menahem ben Saruḳ, Dunash ben Labraṭ, and other Jewish scholars and poets. During his term of power, the scholar Moses ben Enoch was appointed rabbi of Córdoba, and as a consequence al-Andalus became the center of Talmudic study, and Córdoba the meeting-place of Jewish savants.

This was a time of partial Jewish autonomy. As "dhimmis",or "protected non-Muslims", Jews in the Islamic world paid the jizya, which was administered separately from the zakat paid by Muslims. The jizya has been viewed variously as a poll tax, as payment for non-conscription in the military, or as a tribute. Jews were made to wear identifying clothing. Nevertheless, Jews had their own legal system and social services. Monotheist religions of the people of the book were tolerated but conspicuously public displays of faith, such as bells and processions, were discouraged. ^[1]

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Birth of the Golden Age", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki