The Lyrical Archive of al-Andalus

Episode 338
with Anna C. Cruzhosted by Shireen Hamza
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The history of al-Andalus has a special place in Arabic poetry -- as well as in American hiphop. al-Andalus, a name for the Iberian peninsula when under the political rule of Muslim dynasties, has remained a symbol of loss, exile and memory, centuries after the last Muslim king lost power. In this episode, Anna Cruz explores this phenomenon through Arabic poetry by Abd al-Wahhab al-Bayati and Mahmoud Darwish, speeches by Malcolm X and the music of Ras Kass. We discuss the way this history of al-Andalus is shaped through retelling by these twentieth century writers and artists. Anna also considers what it would mean to create an archive of al-Andalus that included these multiple ways of understanding its history.
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