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QuoteReplyTopic: Aljamiado: An Iberian Romance Language Wr Posted: 13-Sep-2005 at 21:05
Imagine If You Write "estoy cansado" in Arabic Letters? Aljamiado development and Its contribution to how Arabic Words Became Part of Castilian (Spanish today)?
The cross to Andalucia or the Iberian Peninsula was in 711 AD and the Islamic expansion was put to an end in Western Europe in 714 in the battle of Buatie in the depth of France.
The Muslim Spain or Andalucia has survived as a propsper society of different ethnics and langauges. In fact, the society was bilingual or trilingual. Besides Arabs, Berbers, Jews, and inhabitants of the Iberian Peninsula, Vandals, Celtics, and other European races have mixed with the new comers of Arabs and Berbers. Arab and Berber intermarriages were very common also.
In terms of Languages, the official language was Arabic. Berber, Hebrew, and Iberian Romance langauges existed. One common Iberian Romance Langauge that existed within Muslim spain was spoken what is known later as Mozarabic. Aljamiado is Mozarabic too. Mozarabs are those Christian who lived within Muslim Spain and spoke an Iberian Romance Latin language close to Catalonese but written in Arabic alphabets and scripts, forming Aljamiado. It does not exist anymore but it contributed in adding Arabic origin words to the later Iberian Langauges such as the Castilian and the Portuguese.
For example, at some point of time, Catalon and Aragonese were two languages spoken besides Castilian in Spain. In Northwest Spain and above portugal, a language known as Galician is spoken also till today. However, Galician speakers interacted with the Mozarabs as they advanced down in the Reconquesta forming Portuguese as a seperate language with a lot of Arabic borrowed words and seperate from Galician. Politics also changed languages. The fact that as Castilian became the official language or what is known today as Spanish, was in fact pushed by the Spanish crown and influencing all the languages under the kingdom including Galician itself and widening the differences between Portugese and Galician eventhough they share one origin.
Granada felt to the Spanish Crown in 1492, January 2nd. Muslims and Mozarabs were left to live in Spain under the agreement of Granada. However, later crowns pushed for conversion of Muslims in Spain and caused the revolt of 1500-1502. Also later, Arabic was banned and Muslim dress was banned also causing the revolt of 1568-1572 that was barely put down by the help of John of Austria. Finally, the presecution of Muslims contributed to the cooperation between Spanish Muslim and Turkish Ottoman Empire faciliating an asualt on Southern Spanish shores, leading to final expelling of Muslims in Spain in 1609. Thus, ending the period of direct interaction between Arabic and other Iberian Romance languages.
This is Aljamiado written in Arabic coppied from (http://www.omniglot.com/writing/aljamiado.htm) . Since I speak Arabic but not fluent spanish I will write it down as phonetic sounds and I wonder if any one can translate that or compare it to contemporary Spanish. I took in consideration the instructions provided by the link of the special pronounciation of some letters in arabic to aljamiado.
The Above Text Says: Del galurdun De Los Sapios (title)
Text: Des un recontador kiyan de mandar bur camino ekarra rabbar abbarandar sancia y sapedoria edarasul deus adakaltal y un camino de los caminos del berrays y los ansalas asteyandan sus allas allus.
Edited by ok ge
D.J. Kaufman
Wisdom is the reward for a lifetime of listening ... when youd have preferred to talk.
I can understand only fragments but thanks for transcribing it to latin
alphabet anyhow. It's a weird mixture of clear or less clear Spanish
words with others that are not understandable at all.
Well, im sure the translation to Latin alphabet is far from precise, maybe if someone tried to guess the meaning based on sounds i guess. Do you think some of those are pure Latin words?
Edited by ok ge
D.J. Kaufman
Wisdom is the reward for a lifetime of listening ... when youd have preferred to talk.
This is a text written in a language that is a thousand years old. Languages evolve a lot during such a time span. To give you an idea of just how much they can change, this is an extract from a poem written in Old English, from 937, describing the battle of Brununburh:
elstan cyning,eorla dryhten, beorna beahgifa,& his broor eac, Eadmund eling,ealdorlangne tir geslogon t sccesweorda ecgum ymbe Brunanburh.Bordweal clufan, heowan heaolindehamora lafan, afaran Eadweardes,swa him geele ws from cneomgum,t hi t campe oft wi lara gehwneland ealgodon, hord & hamas.
ettend crungun, Sceotta leoda& scipflotan fge feollan,feld dnnede secgas hwate,sian sunne up on morgentid,mre tungol, glad ofer grundas,godes condel beorht, eces drihtnes,o sio ele gesceaft sah to setle.
And this is its translation in Modern English:
Then Aethelstan, king, Thane of eorls, ring-bestower to men, and his brother also, the atheling Edmund, lifelong honour struck in battle with sword's edge at Brunanburh. Broke the shieldwall, split shields with swords. Edward's sons, the issue of princes from kingly kin, oft on campaign their fatherland from foes defended, hoard and home. Crushed the hated ones, Scots-folk and ship-men fated fell. The field flowed with blood, I have heard said, from sun-rise in morningtime, as mighty star glided up overground, God's bright candle, - the eternal Lord's - till that noble work sank to its setting.
As you can see, it's a huge difference. We probably need someone who is actually familiar with Almijiado to tell us what some of those words mean. My guess is that the language had words coming from Latin, Arabic, Iberian languages and Germanic languages such as Wisigoth or Suevian.
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