Almoravid dynasty

The Almoravids were a Berber Muslim dynasty from the Mauritanian Sahara that ruled over a wide area of northwestern Africa and the Iberian Peninsula during the 11th century.

Almoravid Empire المرابطون
1040–1147
Map showing the extent of the Almoravid empire
Capital	Aghmat (1040-1062), Marrakech(1062-1147) & Córdoba
Common languages	Berber languages (predominant), Classical Arabic, Mozarab, Hebrew language, African Romance & Andalusian Arabic
Religion	Maliki Sunni Islam (predominant and official state religion), Roman Catholic, Ibadi, Judaism & Sufism
Government	Caliphate
Caliph
• 1040-1059	Abdallah ibn Yasin
• 1146–1147	Ishaq ibn Ali
History
•	1040
•	1147
Area
Currency	Dinar & Maravedi
Preceded by Succeeded by Lamtuna Taifa of Mallorca Taifa of Almería Taifa of Badajoz Taifa of Beja and Évora Córdoban Republic Taifa of Guadix and Baza Almohad Taifa of Málaga Taifa of Silves Taifa of Niebla Purchena Banu Hilal Taifa of Murcia Aroudant Taifa of Valencia

Under this dynasty the Western Islamic empire included present-day Morocco, Western Sahara, Mauritania, Gibraltar, Tlemcen (in Algeria) and a great part of what is now Senegal and Mali in the south, and Spain and Portugal to the north in Europe. At its greatest extent, the empire stretched 3,000 kilometres from Zaragoza in the north to Senegal in the south (an all-time latitude spanner until Spanish America). The Almoravids originated as a Sunni Islamic revivalist movement in present day northern Mauritania and gradually evolved into a military confederation. The Almoravids started to subjugate Senegal and then started expanding northwards. They first captured southern and central Morocco and then took Marrakesh and started to proclaim themselves as an Islamic caliphate. They gathered many soldiers from the Tuareg tribe of Berbers. They then completed the conquest of Morocco by conquering the northern tip of Morocco and reached Ceuta. After conquering Morocco, they established their power base in Morocco rather than their original home, Mauritania. This was due to the isolation of Mauritania and the urbaneness of Morocco perfect for ruling empires. They then began to rule from Morocco after completing the conquest of the country and continued to further expand. Due to calls of help from the Andalusian taifas in Iberia, they expanded into Iberia and conquered the territory of the Islamic taifas there. After their conquest, they implemented Sharia law in all of their conquered territories. They proclaimed a jihad against the Christian Iberian kingdoms and met them at the Battle of Sagrajas where they decisively crushed the Christian army turning the tide of the Reconquista. The Almoravids veiled themselves below the eyes with a tagelmust, a custom they adapted from southern Sanhaja Berbers. (This can still be seen among the modern Tuareg people, but it was unusual further north.) Although practical for the desert dust, the Almoravids insisted on wearing the veil everywhere, as a badge of "foreignness" in urban settings, partly as a way of emphasizing their nomadic origins. It served as the uniform of the Almoravids. They wore the veil covering their entire face with the exception of their eyes due to their nomadic desert Saharan origins. The empire reached its territorial extent under the reigns of Yusuf ibn Tashfin and Ali ibn Yusuf.

Rulers

• Abdallah ibn Yasin (1040-1059)
• Yusuf ibn Tashfin (1061–1106)
• Ali ibn Yusuf (1106–42)
• Tashfin ibn Ali (1142–46)
• Ibrahim ibn Tashfin (1146)
• Ishaq ibn Ali (1146–1147)

Almoravid Dynasty Media

• 

  A 15th century depiction of the 11th century Almoravid general Abu Bakr ibn Umar ("Rex Bubecar") near the Senegal River in 1413 Majorcan chart. Abu Bakr was known for his conquests in Africa.

• 

  An Almoravid dinar coin from Seville, 1116. (British Museum); the Almoravid gold dinar would set the standard of the Iberian maravedí.

• 

  The Pisa Griffin, believed to have originated in 11th century Iberia.

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  A stele found at Gao-Saney believed to have been created in Almería during the Almoravid period. Now located at the National Museum of Mali.

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  Fragment of the shroud of San Pedro de Osma, early 12th century: the imagery features pairs of lions and harpies, surrounded by men holding griffins

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  An illuminated Quran manuscript in florid Kufic and Maghrebi script.

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  Detail of the Almoravid minbar, commissioned by Ali Bin Yusuf Bin Tashfin al-Murabiti 1137 for his great mosque in Marrakesh.

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  In their North African constructions, the Almoravids explored the use of cusping to make arches more decorative, as seen here in the Almoravid Qubba in Marrakesh.

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  A plaque at the burial place of the Poet King Al-Mu'tamid ibn Abbad, interred 1095 in Aghmat, Morocco.

Related pages

• History of Islam
• History of Spain

References

• General History of Africa, Africa from the Seventh to the Eleventh Century, Ed. M. Elfasi, Ch. 13 I.Hrbek and J.Devisse, The Almoravids (pp. 336–366), UNESCO, 1988

This article includes text from the public domain 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica. Please add to the article as needed.

Other websites

• Historical maps of Almoravid Dynasty Maps to be combined and compared
• Almoravids Dynasty Berber dynasty