Crescent Remembered

Contemporary Spain and Portugal share a historical experience as Iberian states which emerged within the context of al-Andalus. These centuries of Muslim presence in the Middle Ages became a contested heritage during the process of modern nation-building with its varied concepts and constructs of national identities. Politicians, historians and intellectuals debated vigorously the question how the Muslim past could be reconciled with the idea of the Catholic nation. The Crescent Remembered investigates the processes of exclusion and integration of the Islamic past within the national narratives. It analyses discourses of historiography, Arabic studies, mythology, popular culture and colonial policies towards Muslim populations from the 19th century to the dictatorships of Franco and Salazar in the 20th century. In particular, it explores why, despite apparent historical similarities, in Spain and Portugal entirely different strategies and discourses concerning the Islamic past emerged. In the process, it seeks to shed light on the role of the Iberian Peninsula as a crucial European historical "contact zone" with Islam.

"Review excerpt from the German edition: "This well-written study is based on an extensive collection of sources and literature. It fills an important gap in the scholarship by combining multiple fields and approaches of cultural history to offer new insights into the process of nation-building on a variety of levels." -- Hedwig Herold-Schmidt, Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena, in H-Soz-u-Kult (2013)"Review excerpt from the German edition: "In both Iberian nations (Spain and Portugal), Islam and nationalism are analytically correlated and then compared to each other. More differences than similarities emerge, which in turn emphasizes the varied development of the nation-building process in the two countries. The arguments are convincing." -- Walther Bernecker, Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nuremberg, in sehepunkte (2013), Review excerpts from the German edition: This well-written study is based on an extensive collection of sources and literature. It fills an important gap in the scholarship by combining multiple fields and approaches of cultural history to offer new insights into the process of nation-building on a variety of levels. -- Hedwig Herold-Schmidt, Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena, in H-Soz-u-Kult (2013)Review excerpts from the German edition: In both Iberian nations (Spain and Portugal), Islam and nationalism are analytically correlated and then compared to each other. More differences than similarities emerge, which in turn emphasizes the varied development of the nation-building process in the two countries. The arguments are convincing. -- Walther Bernecker, Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nuremberg, in sehepunkte (2013)

Patricia Hertel teaches European history of the 19th and 20th century at the University of Basel. Her research focuses on cultural, political and religious history in Western and Southern Europe. She holds a PhD of the University of Fribourg and a master's degree of the University of Munich.