Islam in Europe and North America
The Muslim presence in the West, from the eighth century to the present: al-Andalus and the coexistence of the Iberian centuries, the learning that passed from Córdoba into Latin Europe, the Ottoman centuries in the Balkans, and the communities formed by migration in Europe and North America.
Start LearningBegins with Islam in Europe
Learning Sequence
Articles are ordered so each builds on the one before. You can also read them in any order that suits you.
- Islam in EuropeplaceAll ErasIslam has been part of European history since the eighth century through three main pathways: the civilization of Al-Andalus in Iberia, the Arab and Norman period in Sici…
- Al-AndalusplaceAl-AndalusAl-Andalus was the Islamic territory in the Iberian Peninsula from 711 to 1492 CE. Over nearly eight centuries it produced major intellectual and architectural achievemen…
- Convivencia in Al-Andalus: Interfaith Coexistence and Cultural SynthesisconceptAl-AndalusConvivencia, meaning living together, describes relations between the Muslim, Christian and Jewish communities of Al-Andalus between 711 and 1492. Distinct in identity bu…
- Islamic Influence on Europe - The Andalusian LegacyconceptAl-AndalusThe Islamic civilization of Al-Andalus profoundly shaped European development through the transmission of knowledge, architecture, technology, and culture. From translati…
- The Battle of Tours - Turning Point in European HistoryeventUmayyad CaliphateThe Battle of Tours (732 CE) between Charles Martel's Frankish forces and the Umayyad army halted Muslim expansion into Western Europe, marking a decisive turning point t…
- Fall of GranadaeventAl-AndalusComprehensive history of the fall of Granada in 1492, marking the end of Islamic rule in the Iberian Peninsula after nearly 800 years and the conclusion of the Reconquist…
- Bosnia and Herzegovina: Islamic Heritage in the BalkansplaceOttoman EmpireThe westernmost region of sustained Muslim presence in Europe. Ottoman rule from 1463 until the Austro-Hungarian occupation of 1878 produced a distinctive Bosniak Muslim …
- Islam in North America - Historical and Contemporary OverviewplaceModern EraIslam has been present in North America for more than four centuries, beginning with enslaved West African Muslims. Some 3.45 million Muslims now live in the United State…