ARABIC VS. CASTILIAN: THE LINGUISTIC SITUATION IN TOLEDO POSTANDALUSI (11th-15th c.) I. THE MOZARAB COMMUNITY

Abstract

The reconquest of Toledo supposed a radical change in the linguistic history of the city. During the Andalusian period, the Toledan population had experienced an intense process of linguistic and cultural Arabization. The old Romance language had fallen into disuse and both the Muladies and the Christians and Jews of Toledo had adopted the Arabic language as their own. Part of this population remained in the city after its incorporation into Castile at the end of the 11th century. Along with the intense process of colonization that began with the Christian conquest, a new rival appeared on the scene: Castilian Romance. Arabic, however, did not disappear from the Toledan linguistic landscape. The two languages maintained a pulse during the 12th and 13th centuries and, although Romance finally prevailed, the footprint of Arabic lasted for centuries.