User:Meghancondas/sandbox

Mudéjars in Castile:

The Muslim population in Castile originally immigrated from Toledo. They were not aboriginal to the land in Castile. Muslim immigration into Castile was sponsored settlement by the Christian government. It is hypothesized that the slow-growing Christian population demonstrated a need to bring more people into Castile. Primary documents written by the Spanish in Castile in the 13th century indicate that Muslims were able to maintain some agency while in Spain. The Mudéjars were able to maintain their religion, their laws, and they had their own judges. The Mudéjars in Castile spoke the Romance languages and dialects as their Christian neighbors.

Mudéjars in Aragon:

Like the Mudéjars in Castile, Aragonese Mudéjars also spoke the Romance languages of their Christian counterparts. However, unlike the Mudéjars in Castile, there were Muslim villages in Aragon which populated the land before Christian conquests, setting up a history of Muslim cultivation and population of the land. Besides the large Muslim populations in Granada and Valencia, the Aragonese farmers was the most well-established Muslim community in the region. Aragonese Muslims were under the jurisdiction of the Christian Crown and were designated a special status. This status applied to the Mudéjar cultivators, the exarici, and this status made them subservient to their Christian superiors because by law, they were required to cultivate the land of royal estates. However, this status was also beneficial as the law suggested that this land be passed down through Muslim family members. Despite their expulsion at the end of the Morisco period, the Mudéjars in Aragon left evidence of their style in architecture.

Mudéjars in Valencia:

In the 13th century, the Aragonese Christians conquered Valencia. Unlike in Aragon, the Mudéjar population in Valencia vastly outnumbered Christians in the area. In Valencia, many communities were Arabic-speaking and Muslim. Although there was a disparity between Christians and Muslims, it is important to note that a Christian king ruled over Valencia, and not a sultan or an imam and this shaped the experience of Mudéjars in this region. An effect of Christian rule were the outbreaks of rioting against Mudéjars in Valencia. Mudéjar communities were frequently attacked by Christian rioters, despite being protected by the Crown. Violence against Mudéjars in Valencia was common.