The role of food in cultural imperialism and struggle
The role of food in the conflict of two identities: Moriscos and castilians in early modern times
THE ROLE OF FOOD IN THE CONFLICT OF TWO IDENTITIES: MORISCOS AND CASTILIANS IN EARLY MODERN TIMES
SHORT VERSION OF:"L'émergence d'une identité alimentaire: Musulmans et chrétiens dans le royaume de Grenada", in Bruegel, M. & Laurioux, B: Histoire et Identités alimentaires en Europe. Paris. Hachette. 2002, pp. 169-185. Teresa de Castro © 2003-2006.
This paper is protected by the Copyright Laws
Thanks to Prof. Lynn Martin for helping me with the organization of this paper and with the translation into English.
INDEX
Introduction
Identity, conquerors and Muslims
The culinary system of the Andalusians
Castilian Policy on Food
Effects of Castilian Policy on Morisco food ways
Was the Castilian unitary ideology a success?
Conclusions
Bibliography
------
INTRODUCTION
The aim of this paper is to show what were the consequences of the conquest of the Kingdom of Granada on the Muslim culinary system between 1492 and 1610. The "universe of food" was the mirror of a more complex reality. This study of Muslim food reveals the action of the strong Castilian unitary ideology on a group of Muslims whose identity was dualistic, both Arabic and Andalusian. This unitary discourse focused on religious and cultural specificity and affected directly Muslim food ways. The pressure that Castilians exercised on Muslims produced a transformation of the Muslim culinary identity and, as a result, the reinforcement of the Muslim dietary self-awareness. This pressure also and paradoxically transformed the Morisco culinary system.
The paper begins by defining the concept of identity and looks at the meaning of Castilian and Andalusian identity. Next the paper describes the particularities of the Andalusian dietary system and examines the effects that Castilian political ideology had on this system.
The first period includes the years from 1492 to 1502. The treaties of peace between the Andalusian and Castilian rulers granted the continuity of the Islamic laws, customs and properties and established a segregated society. When the Catholic Monarchs changed their religious policy, Muslims' rebellion spread over the Kingdom of Granada between 1499 to1501/1502. After the Muslims’ defeat the monarchs ordered on 12 February 1502 the conversion of Muslims or their expulsion from Castile.
The following period starts in 1501/1502 and finishes in 1610. After the conversion, Muslims –now called Moriscos- lost the privileges that the Crown had granted after the conquest. This was the period of the establishment of the Inquisition in Granada accompanied by the hardening of the measures against Moriscos with the depositions of the Synod of Guadix in 1554. These developments and the policy of indoctrinating children in Christianity became a decisive element in the transformation of the Moriscos. The most important event of this period was the War of Alpujarras, which started in 1568 as a general rebellion of Granada Moriscos against the Castilians. This war was the result of a royal decree in 1567 forbidding Morisco customs, of the confiscation of many Morisco lands, and of the cultural weakness of Moriscos. Two years after the start of the Moriscos’ rebellion, the Castilian rulers expelled them from the Kingdom of Granada and distributed them in Muslim ghettos around Castile. In 1609 came the order of expulsion of all Moriscos from the Iberian Peninsula, and the anti-Morisco literature started to justify the expulsion.
The paper ends by describing the effects of all the Castilian measures on Morisco food identity and on Castilian cuisine.
------
IDENTITY, CONQUERORS AND MUSLIMS
1.1. Identity
Identity is the way a person or a social group defines oneself/itself in relation to another. Because identity is always linked to a particular historical conjuncture, identity is always changing, and as a result the other is never immutable. Any process of identification reflects the way people determine their relation with the others, the way they organise their spaces and create networks of affinities, solidarity or avoidance. The notion of identity includes implicitly the notion of unity and, thus, the will of denying diversity and imposing homogeneity.
Focusing on food, dietary identity takes into account the form in which a society organises and conceptualises the spaces surrounding food, the way in which food is eaten and the mechanisms that permit eating. All of these elements are closely related to the existence of a mentality, in which the social, political and religious factors of a particular period join. In the Kingdom of Granada it is impossible to distinguish Castilian or Morisco identity without distinguishing the antagonism existing between both communities.
1.2. The Identity of Conquerors
The Castilian perception of Andalusian food ways -as shown by the Castilian chronicles and travel books of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries- displayed a certain tolerance toward all food ways located on the spatial or cultural fringes of the Christian West, since they were produced in an environment that was not subject to the mental structures of Castilians.
After the conquest of al-Andalus, Castilians were not tolerant of the food because when Muslim territories became Castilian the structures had to do the same. The process of domination and the measures that Castilians put in place after the conquest were the result of the application of an ideology of unitary identity and its concepts of segregation, marginality, integration, education and persecution. The application of these concepts created a contradiction. Old Christians wanted to separate themselves from Moriscos, but at the same time Christians wanted to integrate Moriscos. Religion was the criterion that separated something assimilable from something that was not. In the ideological context of the period religion united the faithful, meaning that whoever was religiously divergent disturbed the social cohesion of the group. The contradictory Castilian unitary ideology was still in operation after the forced conversion. Castilians forced the Moriscos' conversion but marginalized Moriscos because they did not converted voluntary.
The combination and opposition of a series of concepts related to unity composed the Castilian discourse of identity: assimilation/exclusion, uniformity/anarchy, cohesion/chaos, authenticity/ "alienity", unity/otherness, assimilate/reject, convert/expel, old/new, forced/voluntary, true/false, trust/distrust, etc.
Castilian identity was reinforced and closely linked to the monarchy’s political concepts and to the dominant religious values. The consequence would be the policy of eliminating any "alienity" in order to reach a political unity. The action of the Inquisition supported the lay authorities in the application of the unitary ideology. This process was not unique in the Kingdom of Granada, and the mental structures that Castilians used in regard to American "indios" would be identical.
1.3. The Identity of Andalusian Muslims
Andalusian identity was based on belonging to the Islamic civilisation, so Andalusians were living inside their own semantic, ethical, spatial, economic, political and cultural framework. However, Andalusians were aware of their position inside the Arabic world. For example, al-Shaqundî (thirteenth century) defended in the Risâla fî Fal al-Andalus the superiority of Spanish Islam, and Ibn al-Hatîb (1313-1375) spoke of the superiority of the Andalusian city of Malaga in regard to the Maghribian town of Salé. This Andalusian awareness was not strong enough to give birth to an identity exclusively Andalusian. This vision would hardly be modified by the passage of time, even though by the end of the sixteenth century Granadian Muslims had been outside the frontiers of the Moslem world a long time.
The dualistic ideology and awareness that Andalusians had before the Castilian conquest did not disappear after the conquest. In fact, the feeling of belonging to the Arabic world took three new forms. First, was the creation of a series of salvation prophecies (called Jofores) in which Morisco hope was focused on Ottomans and on Maghribian pirates. Second, was the nostalgia of Muslim-Morisco land, which was no longer al-Andalus but Maghrib. Third, was the strengthening of the awareness of the group against Christians and the exaltation of Islamic laws and ways of life.
------
THE CULINARY SYSTEM OF ANDALUSIANS (1238-1492)
A culinary system could be defined as an ensemble of cultural dietary practices that reject some products, adopt others and give symbolic significance to the dishes reserved for the holy days and festivities.
A) The Andalusian culinary system included, first of all, a series of dietary laws. These norms established the taboo of blood (the need for ritual slaughtering and the distrust of some hunting practices) and the rejection of carrion and pork. Another group of rules established specific religious elements, such as the fasting periods (Ramadan) and the holy days (Feast of the Lamb, New Year, Birth of the Prophet, etc.). There were rules that set the relation between Muslims and other religions and permitted the consumption of Hebraic and Christian food except for religious dishes. Islamic law in exceptional circumstances authorised Muslims to disguise or dissemble their religious customs (a practice known as taqîya), including eating forbidden products and drinking wine.
B) Most of the Andalusian dietary practices had cultural as well as religious meanings. The Andalusian culinary system included the selection of basic foodstuffs: wheat (transformed in bread, "paps" or pasta), spelt, Italian millet, barley, rye, sorghum (used mainly for preparing bread), dried and seasonal fruits, vegetables, sheep, goat and poultry, dairy products syrups and preserves. There was a preference for some methods of preparation, such as mixing systems of cooking (boiling before frying and roasting, or vice versa). It included certain spice and herbs blends (black pepper, coriander, cinnamon, saffron, ginger and spikenard), and the combination of condiments such as sugar or honey with vinegar, juices or floral "waters" and almorí (condiment made of fermented barley balls). There was a basic cuisine’s fat, olive oil, although butter and lamb fat were also available. All of these elements produced the prevalence of certain tastes, sweet/sour especially, the prevalence of some colours such as green, yellow, golden and white, and finally the prevalence of certain aromas. Andalusians preferred fatty wheaten thick soups, chunky fish, minced or stuffed meats, fried meats and fishes, fried sweets (isfany, al-muyabbanât for example) use of vinegar during boiling, some fermented cereal or dairy products. There was, finally, an ensemble of practices related to eating such as frugality, use of low tables, communal eating, and the blessing of the table.
C) Andalusian cuisine was, as Andalusian identity, a mix of Andalusian, Persian and Maghribian recipes. The native dishes were Hubz al-banîy (Italian millet bread), lahtadj (flour pap), zabzîn (a pasta dish), ra's maymûn (a round brioche), al-muyabbanât (cheese fritter), fidâwsh (noodles), Yalya (salsa), Balâya (a tripe-based dish), isfîrîya (decorative pastry), ra's bartâl (dish based on broad beans), musamma' (salted fish, especially tuna) and qawqan (snails). Some of the most famous dishes were from Persian origin, such as tafâyâ (stew of meat with onion and coriander), zîrbây (casserole made of meat, chickpeas, cinnamon, vinegar, sugar, almonds and pepper) or Yasîsh (whole-grain stew). There were Maghribian recipes such as couscous, mutawwama (thin tortillas eaten with chicken and cheese), casîda (a type of porridge) and harîsa (soup of wheat and meat) and it was possible to find products that originated in Central Asia such as yoghurt or skimmed milk.
Manuela Marín's study of Andalusian recipe books concludes that there was not a truly Andalusian cuisine, because it was not different from Middle Eastern cuisine, and the native recipes could be directly linked to those of Maghrib. However, Andalusians have a perception of their food as different. For example, Ibn al-Azraq of Malaga (1428-1491) wrote an Uryûza (poem composed in radjaz metre) during his exile in Maghrib in which he wrote about the favourite dishes from his homeland and mentioned the North African ones.
------
CASTILIAN POLICY ON FOOD
3.1. After the Castilian Conquest (1492-1501/2
A) The effect of the Castilian identity ideology on Muslims' food life was the policy of food segregation. First, food segregation was the result of the free decision of Muslims to continue with their faith, traditions and culinary system, as the treaties signed between the Andalusian and Castilian rulers granted.
Second, food segregation was the consequence of the application of the Castilian unitary ideology, thus religious and cultural practices were the same thing and both had to disappear. The best means of achieving this goal to promote the integration of Muslims into Christian society through a segregation policy. Hence, the Archbishop of Granada issued two apparently contradictory edicts. The first edict (March 22, 1498) had the aim of moving Christians away from non Christians, forbidding Christians by punishment of excommunication to sell wine to Muslims, to consume poultry slaughtered by them, to bathe in Muslim baths, to use Muslim midwives, or to rent their houses to Muslims for the purpose of weddings. The second edict, undated but issued a little later, promoted a voluntary integration of Muslims into Christian customs through abandoning their religious customs, such as Muslims prayers, fasts and feasts, birth, marriage and funeral ceremonies, clothes, footwear, hair style and Arabic language.
Third, food segregation was a side effect of the fiscal advantages granted by the Monarchy to Christians in their commercial dealings. The municipal councils received charters that exempted Christians from the payment of tolls and taxes on commercial transactions, and the most important councils also received charters for holding free markets. This meant that the Muslims had to pay those food taxes that the Christian settlers did not have to pay and that the process economically benefited Castilians. Therefore, going to the market was more difficult for Muslims.
Fourth, food segregation was a consequence of the creation of delimited Muslim ghettos, inside or outside the most important cities, in which Muslims had a central market or street market for their shopping.
Finally, food segregation was a sign of the marginal role of Muslims in the transformation of the crops in the fields, of the new organization of the market, and of the adaptation of the public spaces to the Castilian spatial theories.
B) In al-Andalus the consumption of wine was illegal but people still drank it. The tendency of the Moslems to drink wine was especially evident during the years following the conquest. Many municipal ordinances accordingly attempted to control Muslim excesses, but without success. For example, in Granada an ordinance in April 1500 forbade Muslims to drink wine in taverns and to buy "cueros de vino ni botas para se juntar en los cármenes e heredades a se enborrachar" .
C) Castilians apparently had no intention of modifying other typical Muslim practices such as the consumption of secondary breads, the use of cheese or milk, the use of different methods of cooking and other culinary customs.
3.2. From the Forced conversion to the Expulsion (1501/2-1610)
The food measures that Castilian authorities put into operation pursued a successful policy of integration by confronting the cultural meaning of the Muslim food. The authorities continued to oppose Morisco drunkenness and to forbid the consumption of ritually killed meat, and they enacted harsh measures against other religious particularities.
A) Economic segregation. After the conversion the situation changed a little. The entire social group was now, in theory at least, united. Moriscos logically had to follow the same food regulations as their Christian neighbours, but their butchers, bakeries, and mills were still separate. Although the commercial segregation was not as rigid as previously, the economic situation still favoured Christians. For example, the council of Vera decided in July 1504 that the Moriscos of the villages of Teresa, Cabrera, Béder and Serena all had to use the mills of Teresa, while the Christians must use those of Vera and Mojácar. Nonetheless, in this area the majority of the population was Morisco, and the most important mills were the last two reserved for Christians. Another example of the favourable economic position of Christians was the regulation against Moriscos buying cheap salt at the salt-pits, where only Christians were permitted to go.
B) Meat. After the conversion Morisco and Christian butchers were subject to the same bans on ritual slaughtering. But this practice was so widespread that a series of royal decrees was issued between 1511 and 1513 for eradicating it. Although Moriscos often escaped this persecution, these regulations interfered with their food ways. When Moriscos needed to slaughter an animal, they dared not kill it on their own, and if they did the authorities imposed many penalties; on many occasions when the law officers entered a house and found fresh or preserved meat, they mistreated the resident. As a result of this persecution some butchers did not dare slaughter cattle or other animals belonging to Moriscos. As a result, the other option for Moriscos was killing their animals in the presence of a parish priest or sacristan or, at least, in the presence of any old Christian. But often these people had more important things to do or simply they didn’t want to be present. For this reason, Moriscos frequently remained without meat or had to kill the animals illegally.